THE HOUSE BUNNY
Directed by Fred Wolf

Starring Anna Faris, Colin Hanks, Emma Stone, Kat Dennings, Katharine McPhee, Rumer Willis, Kiely Williams

THIS film has a Playboy Bunny getting tossed out from Hugh Hefner’s mansion to end up running a sorority house full of socially clueless girls. It’s like Legally Blonde minus the legal jargon.

Quite an interesting storyline, I must say, but the way it is played out leaves much to be desired.

While Anna Faris’ portrayal of Playboy Bunny Shelley is excellent, the sorority girls act too unbelievably stupid to be magically transformed into the coolest girls in school by the end of the movie.

I never thought that I would say this about Faris, but the actress from the Scary Movie franchise clearly shines in her role as the pea-brained bimbo with a lot of heart.
Faris oozes blonde bombshell silliness with every squeal and word, as well as in her body language. She nails the character completely, playing Shelley as if she and the character are one and the same.

The rest of the cast, however, do not match Faris’ fine performance.

Oliver (Colin Hanks, son of Tom Hanks) is just palatable as the good-natured student who volunteers at an old folks’ home.

Rumer Willis (daughter of actress Demi Moore and actor Bruce Willis), who plays Joanne in the sorority, does not impress either — perhaps “acting genes” don’t pass down automatically.

The plot is quite jarring and unrealistic. The producers seem more intent on showing skin than tying up loose ends.

For example, when Shelley enrols in school or the character development of the sorority sisters.

Then there’s a girl who always hides in the closet and no clue is given as to why she does that.

You know the film is bad when the best moments are catchy tunes sung by someone other than the original artiste (in this case Avril Lavigne’s Girlfriend and Rihanna’s Take a Bow).

The movie attempts to examine peer pressure and the endless rivalry between the cool girls and the nerdy ones.

The message is to be true to yourself and to have a good heart but director Fred Wolf doesn’t bring it across with a good story and a strong ending.

Instead, the movie just plods along with a bad script and scenes that are more irritating than funny, even if there is occasional hilarity.

But, thanks to Faris, the story is watchable.