If there’s one friendship squad we’d love to be a part of, it’s the women of Saturday Night Live in the early 2000’s. Frankly, we’d love to be friends with literally any woman on SNL, but those women in particular have gone on to create some of favorite films, series, and characters. Women like Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and Maya Rudolph are must-sees in any project they are a part of. But all of them in one film? Shut up and take our (Netflix subscription) money!
Wine Country, directed by Poehler, features an all-star cast of our favorite women, including Poehler herself, Rudolph, Fey, Rachel Dratch, Ana Gasteyer, Emily Spivey, and Paula Pell. The synopsis reads:
In honor of Rebecca (Rachel Dratch)’s 50th birthday, Abby (Amy Poehler) plans a scenic Napa getaway with their best, longtime friends. Workaholic Catherine (Ana Gasteyer), post-op Val (Paula Pell), homebody Jenny (Emily Spivey), and weary mom Naomi (Maya Rudolph) are equally sold on the chance to relax and reconnect. Yet as the alcohol flows, real world uncertainties intrude on the punchlines and gossip, and the women begin questioning their friendships and futures. A hilarious and heartfelt comedy directed by Poehler, Wine Country co-stars Tina Fey, Jason Schwartzman and Cherry Jones.
The film, written by former SNL writers Spivey and Liz Cackowski, is based on the real-life vacations taken by the women in Napa Valley, including Dratch’s 50th birthday weekend. Dratch said of the trip, “In real life, the trip to Napa and Sonoma County went according to plan, but in the movie, things go bonkers. We exaggerated some of the Northern California characters and occurrences, none of which I am permitted to share at this time!”
This movie looks stone-cold delightful, mainly because watching these women do literally anything is hilarious. Watching them chill in the gorgeous background of Napa Valley and getting wine-drunk is pretty much all I want out of a film. There’s a lot to like here: a film written, directed by, and starring women over 40 is pretty great. But the biggest draw, of course, is a film about female friendship that features IRL friendships. While we’ve seen countless movies that feature the Apatow boys club palling around, we rarely get the all-female versions. Films like Bridesmaids and Girls Trip are sadly, too far and few between.
Dratch said of the trip, “Back with these ladies, with whom I’ve worked so many years at Saturday Night Live, there’s this common language. You’ve been in the proverbial foxhole with them, staring into each other’s eyes with panic when a scene is eating it at dress rehearsal, or having the time of your life when a scene takes off.”
Wine Country hits Netflix on May 10th.
(via The Hollywood Reporter, image: Colleen Hayes/Netflix)
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