Support the Girls

Support the Girls is a 2018 American comedy film written and directed by Andrew Bujalski. It stars Regina Hall, Haley Lu Richardson, James LeGros, Shayna McHayle, Dylan Gelula, AJ Michalka, Brooklyn Decker, Jana Kramer, John Elvis, Lea DeLaria, and Victor Isaac Perez.

Support the Girls
Theatrical release poster
Directed byAndrew Bujalski
Produced by
  • Houston King
  • Sam Slater
Written byAndrew Bujalski
Starring
CinematographyMatthias Grunsky
Edited byKaren Skloss
Production
company
  • Burn Later Productions
  • Houston King Productions
Distributed byMagnolia Pictures
Release date
  • March 9, 2018 (2018-03-09) (SXSW)
  • August 24, 2018 (2018-08-24) (United States)
Running time
91 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$132,288[1][2]

The film had its world premiere at South by Southwest on March 9, 2018, and was theatrically released on August 24, 2018, by Magnolia Pictures. It received positive reviews from critics, with Hall's performance earning particular praise. Hall earned nominations at the Independent Spirit Awards and Gotham Independent Film Awards and won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress, the first African-American to win the award.

Plot

Lisa is the general manager of the sports bar and breastaurant Double Whammies. She takes her job seriously, protecting her employees from inappropriate or rude interactions with customers. Despite her commitment to the restaurant, her incompetent boss, Ben Cubby, has repeatedly threatened to fire her. His ire is provoked when Lisa has her employees host an off-the-books car wash to raise money for an employee, Shaina, who has hit her abusive boyfriend with her car and is staying at Lisa's house.

Despite Lisa's optimism, the day proves challenging: she has potential new employees to try out; an attempted robbery results in a man becoming stuck in a ventilation duct; one of her most trusted employees, Maci, turns out to be secretly dating a much older patron; another, Danyelle, is a single mother struggling with child care for her son; another gets a large tattoo of Steph Curry on her midsection despite tattoos being forbidden on employees; the bar is trying to get its cable fixed in time for a big fight that night; business is threatened by ManCave, another breastaurant developing in the area; and Lisa is separating from her depressed husband, Cameron. After Cubby scares Lisa during an episode of road rage, she calls Cameron for a ride.

Cubby fires Lisa and she forces herself to leave. When she returns home she learns from Shaina that Cameron has moved out. Shaina reveals that she is back together with her boyfriend and will use the fundraising money to pay his hospital bills. Furious, Lisa forces her to return the money. That night during the big fight, Maci and Danyelle, frustrated by the loss of Lisa, sabotage the cable in protest and are fired.

The next day, Lisa, Maci, and Danyelle interview with ManCave. The interviewer tells Lisa that ManCave waitresses are unintelligent and easily replaced. Lisa, Maci and Danyelle sit on the rooftop drinking liquor stolen from Double Whammies and contemplate their future employment before letting out cathartic screams.

Cast

Production

In May 2017, it was announced Haley Lu Richardson, James LeGros, Regina Hall, AJ Michalka, Dylan Gelula, Junglepussy, Lea DeLaria, Jana Kramer, and Brooklyn Decker had joined the cast of the film, with Andrew Bujalski directing from a screenplay he wrote. Sam Slater and Houston King served as producers on the film, under their Burn Later Productions and Houston King Productions banners, respectively.[3][4]

Filming

Principal photography began in May 2017 in Texas.[5]

Release

The film had its world premiere at South by Southwest on March 9, 2018.[6][7] Shortly after, Magnolia Pictures acquired U.S. distribution rights to the film.[8] The film was theatrically released on August 24, 2018.[9]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 91% based on 151 reviews, and an average rating of 7.6/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Support the Girls handles serious themes—and a talented ensemble cast—with wit and humor, all while proving Regina Hall's talents have been woefully underutilized."[10] On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 85 out of 100, based on 30 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[11]

David Fear wrote in Rolling Stone, "You could not ask for a better image of our country right now. You could not ask for a better American film to showcase it."[12] Former President Barack Obama named the film one of his favorites of 2018.[13]

Accolades
Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
African-American Film Critics Association December 11, 2018 Best Actress Regina Hall Won
Americana Film Fest March 5-10, 2019 Tops Andrew Bujalski Nominated
Austin Film Critics Association January 7, 2019 Best Actress Regina Hall Nominated [14]
Austin Film Award Andrew Bujalski Won
Black Reel Awards February 7, 2019 Best Actress Regina Hall Runner-up
Boston Online Film Critics Association December 12, 2018 Best Ensemble The cast of Support the Girls Won [15]
Ten Best Films of the Year Support the Girls 7th Place
Chicago Film Critics Association December 8, 2018 Best Actress Regina Hall Nominated
Chlotrudis Awards March 17, 2019 Best Actress Won [16]
Buried Treasure Support the Girls Won
Florida Film Critics Circle December 21, 2018 Best Cast The cast of Support The Girls Runner-up
Gijón International Film Festival November 19-26, 2018 Best Film Support the Girls Nominated
Gotham Awards November 26, 2018 Best Actress Regina Hall Nominated [17]
Best Screenplay Andrew Bujalski Nominated
Houston Film Critics Society Awards January 3, 2019 Visionary Award Won
Independent Spirit Awards February 23, 2019 Best Female Lead Regina Hall Nominated [18]
International Online Cinema Awards February 23, 2019 Best Actress Nominated [19]
Motovun Film Festival July 23-27, 2019 Best Film Andrew Bujalski Nominated
National Society of Film Critics January 5, 2019 Best Actress Regina Hall Runner-up
New York Film Critics Circle November 29, 2018 Best Actress Won [20]
Online Film Critics Society Awards January 2, 2019 Best Actress Nominated [21]
San Francisco Film Critics Circle December 9, 2018 Best Actress Nominated
Sarasota Film Festival April 13-22, 2018 Narrative Feature Andrew Bujalski Nominated
Seattle Film Critics Society December 17, 2018 Best Actress Regina Hall Nominated
SXSW Film Festival March 9-18, 2018 Narrative Spotlight Andrew Bujalski Nominated
Toronto Film Critics Association December 9, 2018 Best Actress Regina Hall Nominated
Vancouver Film Critics Circle December 17, 2018 Best Actress Won

References
  1. "Support The Girls (2018) - Financial Information". The Numbers (website). Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  2. "Support the Girls (2018)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
  3. Hipes, Patrick (May 2, 2017). "Regina Hall & Haley Lu Richardson Topline Andrew Bujalski's Indie 'Support The Girls'". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  4. Raup, Jordan (May 4, 2017). "Andrew Bujalski Begins Next Film 'Support the Girls' Starring Haley Lu Richardson, Regina Hall & More". The Film Stage. Retrieved August 26, 2017.
  5. Wyche, Elbert (May 2, 2017). "Regina Hall, Haley Lu Richardson join 'Support The Girls'". Screen Daily. Screen International. Retrieved August 26, 2017.
  6. McNary, Dave (January 31, 2018). "SXSW Film Festival Lineup Unveiled, John Krasinski's 'A Quiet Place' Set as Opener". Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved February 1, 2018.
  7. "Support the Girls". SXSW Schedule. South by Southwest. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  8. Hipes, Patrick (March 7, 2018). "SXSW Comedy 'Support The Girls' Scooped Up By Magnolia Ahead Of Austin Premiere". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  9. "Support the Girls". Magnolia Pictures. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  10. "Support the Girls (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
  11. "Support the Girls Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
  12. Fear, David (August 24, 2018). "'Support the Girls' Review: The Great American Breastaraunt Movie Has Arrived". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  13. "Former President Obama reveals his favorite movies and books from 2018". TODAY.com. Retrieved 2018-12-29.
  14. Whittaker, Richard (January 7, 2019). "Austin Film Critics Association Announces 2018's Best Films and More". Austin Chronicle. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  15. "2018 AWARDS". BOFCA. December 12, 2018. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  16. "2019, 25th Annual Awards". Austin Chronicle. March 17, 2019. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  17. Wagmeister, Elizabeth (November 26, 2018). "Gotham Awards: A24 Sweeps With Five Wins, Including 'First Reformed,' 'Eighth Grade' (Full Winners List)". Variety. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
  18. Erbland, Kate (November 16, 2018). "2019 Independent Spirit Awards Nominees: 'Eighth Grade' & 'We the Animals' Lead". IndieWire. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
  19. Anderson, Erik (February 23, 2019). "'The Favourite' tops 17th International Online Cinema Awards (INOCA)". AwardsWatch. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  20. Sharf, Zach (November 29, 2018). "2018 New York Film Critics Circle Awards". IndieWire. Retrieved November 29, 2018.
  21. "2018 AWARDS (22ND ANNUAL)". OFCS. January 2, 2019. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
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