By: Andrew Wing
Queenpins is a 2021 American comedy film written and directed by Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly. The film stars Kristen Bell (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Bad Moms) in the lead role as Connie Kaminski, a bored and frustrated suburban homemaker whose hobby of using coupons eventually leads to a multi-million dollar counterfeit coupon scandal. The film also stars Kirby Howell-Baptiste (Downward Dog, Killing Eve) as Connie’s partner-in-crime JoJo, Paul Walter Hauser (Richard Jewell, BlacKkKlansman) as Ken Miller, the hapless Loss Prevention Officer from the local supermarket chain, Vince Vaughn (Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, Wedding Crashers) as the determined U.S. Postal Inspector Simon Kilmurry, and it also features American singer and songwriter Bebe Rexha in her first live-action feature film debut.
The film was released in the United States on September 10, 2021 by STXfilms, and is currently available to stream on Paramount+. Also, the legendary Ben Stiller serves as an executive producer for this movie under his Red Hour Productions banner.
THE GOOD
I remember when Ted sent me the first trailer for this movie and I remember being pumped for it to say the least. Obviously, I was excited to see Kristen Bell in another comedy movie because I am a big fan of some of her big comedy films she has done in the past such as Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Couples Retreat, and Bad Moms. However, I’d be lying if I said that she was the main attraction for me when it came to Queenpins. The main attraction right off the bat was Paul Walter Hauser and Vince Vaughn. We all know Vince Vaughn and we know just how funny he is, but a lot of people still don’t know much about Paul Walter Hauser and just how good of an actor he is. His range as an actor is extremely impressive. There are not many actors who can play both the lead role in a Clint Eastwood biographical drama film like Richard Jewell where he leaves you in awe with such a powerful and authentic performance, but at the same time can also leave you pissing your pants with his comedic skills that he puts on display big time in this movie.
If you haven’t been able to guess yet, Hauser’s performance in this was the highlight of the film for me. There was something just so freaking hilarious about him playing a Loss Prevention Officer for a local supermarket chain that takes his job incredibly seriously that put a smile on my face. This isn’t a big spoiler, but his character’s entrance into the film was amazing as he tells an elderly woman that she can’t use a coupon because the coupon is a fake because of its expiration date being the 31st of November where the month of November only has 30 days. Arguably more impressive than Hauser’s performance, was his on-screen chemistry with Vince Vaughn. Whoever was in charge of casting for this film deserves a raise because these two went together perfectly and because of how good they were together, I am hoping and praying for some sort of future buddy cop comedy film that brings these two actors together again because I know it would be just perfect.
Aside from their performances, I just really enjoyed the fact that the amount of silliness didn’t take away from the overarching story in my opinion. I also thought the movie was paced really well. I was worried going into it that it might drag at points with a 110-minute runtime but that was not the case. Trust me, the fact that this is based on a true story is interesting enough that you won’t be feeling bored whatsoever.
THE BAD
I certainly enjoyed the movie overall, but similar to the last comedy movie I reviewed, Vacation Friends (see full review here), it still has its flaws. Even though I said I thought the downright silliness of the film didn’t take away from the story as a whole, that is just my opinion. It is a very silly movie and you can tell it’s trying to fluff up the story as much as they can to make it an interesting enough film and there is a chance it could be a tad over the top for some viewers. That also ties into my next point that this movie is LOOSELY inspired by true events, so if you’re thinking that this movie will show you exactly how all of it went down, you are mistaken.
I also really wasn’t blown away by Kristen Bell’s performance in this. I mean she’s not terrible by any means, but going into this I really thought she was going to take the cake but that was not the case. For as compelling as her character’s backstory is, I felt Bell’s performance was anything but compelling and that was rather unfortunate. As for the other key players in the film, Kirby Howell-Baptiste and Bebe Rexha, I just thought their performances were average. They really didn’t bring much to the film as a whole other than a few laughs here and there.
Lastly, I thought this movie could have benefitted big time from a good soundtrack but it felt nonexistent at times. I would have loved to see slow-motion scenes of either Bell’s character using her coupons or Hauser and Vaughn’s characters doing some investigative stuff with some modern hip song playing in the background because I think that just would have brought another element to this story.
THE VERDICT
Although not everyone in the talented cast of this coupon-clipping comedy makes their presence felt, Queenpins is still an above average comedy film that most audiences will enjoy. It is a very silly telling of a true story where two housewives created a multi-million dollar coupon scam that is highlighted by awesome performances from two of my favorite actors, Paul Walter Hauser and Vince Vaughn, whose comedic chemistry in this film is so good that it will leave you wanting to see more of it in the future.
TED TAKES RATING - 7.4/10
Queenpins is now streaming exclusively on Paramount+. Check out the latest trailer below.