With a modest $32 million budget and no real star power, 2011’s Bridesmaids went on to earn a surprising $168 million and become one of the summer’s surprise hits. It also helped spawn a new genre, the female-centered “R”-rated comedy.

Set in Milwaukee, Bridesmaids introduces us to Annie (Kristen Wiig), a 30-something gal who’s seen better days. She opened her own bakery but it went under. She also got dumped by her boyfriend and lost her savings.

Now Annie barely ekes out a living at a jewelry store while she rents a room in a crummy apartment. Her only relationship comes with narcissistic Ted (Jon Hamm), a dude who treats her as a booty call and nothing more.

In the midst of all this gloom, Annie’s lifelong best pal Lillian (Maya Rudolph) gets engaged to successful Chicago banker Dougie (Tim Heidecker). Lillian asks Annie to be her maid of honor, and of course her closest friend accepts.

However, Annie feels threatened when she meets Lillian’s new friend Helen (Rose Byrne), the wife of Dougie’s boss. Annie already feels mopey that Lillian will move 90 miles down I-94 to the Windy City, so she gets even more upset when it looks like she’s been traded in for a sleeker, shinier model. We follow Annie’s angst and how this affects the wedding and her friendship with Lillian.

That synopsis doesn’t make Bridesmaids sound all that much like a raunchy comedy, does it? Believe me when I say it does fall into that category, but it also nods closer to the dramatic territory than most of its male-oriented siblings.

Indeed, dare I say Bridesmaids bumps up against “chick flick” at times? Clearly it’s rougher around the edges than that genre’s standard fare, but it doesn’t go “all in” with its crudeness, as it attempts a bit more heart than you might expect from the guy-oriented comedies.

Whether or not that’s a good thing is up to the individual viewer. I didn’t really mind the softer ‘n’ gentler side, though I think the movie would be a bit more daring if it just went for the jugular.

I know it sounds odd to say that Bridesmaids would seem more original if it more obviously emulated other “R”-rated comedies, but I think that’s the case because of its cast. When I see The Hangover and its ilk, I compare them to each other, whereas when I see Bridesmaids, I compare it to other estrogen-oriented comedies.

This means that a more consistent embrace of its crudeness would allow Bridesmaids to feel more honest. At times the “chick flick” elements feel like they’re there because the filmmakers are afraid to go all the way and show women in the same situations we see in the male-based comedies. Sure, it indulges in a few moments that rival the raunchiest bits we’ve viewed elsewhere, but those come and go quickly, and the movie simply doesn’t seem to have the stomach to push the envelope more frequently.

It also doesn’t appear to have an editor, and you’ll be forgiven if you think Bridesmaids is a Judd Apatow movie. Paul Feig directed it, but Apatow produced it and it sure feels like one of his, partially due to its length. Apatow flicks always ramble too long, and that problem befalls Bridesmaids.

The movie’s extended running time becomes most apparent during its third act. Though it feels loose and padded at other times, we don’t bear the brunt of the length until the last 40 minutes or so.

That’s when the material starts to wear thin; we just want the inevitable happy ending to occur and move on with our lives. Like virtually all Apatow efforts, Feig’s Bridesmaids could easily lose 15-20 minutes and be better for it.

All these criticisms aside, I do think Bridesmaids mostly works. Is it too sappy and too long? Definitely, but it’s funny enough to generally overcome those flaws.

Actually, it was more amusing the second time I saw it. Perhaps because I was aware of its problems – especially the excessive length – those issues didn’t bother me as much during my follow-up screening. Instead, I was better able to focus on the uniformly excellent cast and the generally high quality of the gags.

It’s a good sign that a movie still works well the second time around, and I think that’s true for Bridesmaids. Will I ever regard it as a comedy classic?

No, and I do think it would’ve benefited from better editing. Nonetheless, it’s a rare “chick flick” with real laughs and it has just enough charm and humor to make it enjoyable.

Bridesmaids appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.40:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This turned into a strong presentation.

Sharpness looked good. Next to no softness materialized, so the image remained accurate and concise.

No concerns with jagged edges or shimmering occurred, and edge enhancement remained absent. Source flaws also failed to create problems.

In terms of colors, Bridesmaids tended to stay with a light teal and amber palette. Within those constraints, the colors appeared pretty clear and concise.

Blacks were deep and firm, while shadows showed good delineation. Overall, this was a pleasing presentation.

I thought that the DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack of Bridesmaids seemed fine but it didn’t excel because of a lack of ambition. Like most comedies, the movie featured a limited soundfield that strongly favored the forward channels. It showed nice stereo spread to the music as well as some general ambience from the sides.

Panning was decent, and the surrounds usually kicked in basic reinforcement. A few scenes opened up better, though, such as those on a plane. However, most of the movie stayed with limited imaging.

Audio quality appeared good. Speech was natural and distinct, with no issues related to edginess or intelligibility. Effects sounded clean and accurate, with good fidelity and no signs of distortion.

Music was perfectly fine, as the score and songs showed positive dimensionality. This track was good enough for a “B-“ but didn’t particularly impress.

How did the Blu-ray compare to the DVD version? Audio seemed similar – the Blu-ray’s lossless mix added a little oomph, but both remained a lot alike.

Visuals demonstrated obvious upgrades, though, as the Blu-ray looked better defined and offered stronger colors and clarity. Though the DVD appeared pretty solid for its format, the Blu-ray became a definite visual improvement.

The Blu-ray packs a slew of extras, and it includes two editions of the film. We get the theatrical cut (2:04:58) as well as an unrated version (2:10:17). How do the two differ?

Some of the changes come from minor additions to existing scenes, but we do get some bigger alterations. We see a creepy sequence with Annie’s roommates in the bathtub, and there’s a long segment that lets us view Annie’s attempt to go on a blind date.

That last one accounts for more than half of the extra footage on its own. It’s cute but not great.

The same goes for the other sequences. While they can be enjoyable, the movie was already too long theatrically, so making it run another five-plus minutes doesn’t help.

Next we find an audio commentary with director Paul Feig, writer/actor Kristen Wiig, writer Annie Mumolo and actors Ellie Kemper, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Maya Rudolph and Melissa McCarthy. All of them sit together for a discussion of cast and performances, characters and story, deleted/altered scenes, sets and locations, and anecdotes related to real-experiences with concepts featured in the film.

If nothing else, this commentary boasts a lot of energy, as it keeps rolling from start to finish. It includes some fun stories and clever twists like Feig’s decision to field some questions from fans on Twitter. I also like the fact they recorded the commentary before the film opened, as it’s fun to hear them discuss it without the knowledge of how well it’d do.

But do we learn much from this track? Not really. The most extensive notes relate to improvised moments and alternate bits.

Otherwise, we get a lot of laughing and chatter without much real content. It’s a likable commentary but not one with a ton of good information.

A Gag Reel goes for nine minutes, 41 seconds. While it includes some of the usual goofs and giggles, it also throws in quite a few alternate lines. That makes it more fun than most collections of this sort.

A staple of movies from under the Judd Apatow umbrella, Line-O-Rama provides two compilations that run a total of 12-minute, 13-seconds. They show alternate lines delivered for various movie scenes. The majority are pretty darned funny, so this is a delightful collection of bits.

More cut footage appears next. We get three Deleted Scenes (8:57) as well as 14 Extended and Alternate Scenes (50:03). Of the deleted segments, “Shrimp Fork” offers the most amusement, while “Bon Jour” brings a small snippet that tells us Lillian and Helen went to Paris.

“Annie & Judy” goes down a dramatic path. It comes with some humor, but it mostly allows Annie’s mom to give her a pep talk of sorts. “Judy” arrives via three different takes, and they’re good to see.

As for the extended/alternate scenes, they offer little in the way of new character or story information, but they throw out a mix of entertaining bits. Like the other clips found on this disc, they’re well worth a look.

A documentary called Made of Honor runs 31 minutes, 43 seconds and provides notes from Wiig, Feig, McLendon-Covey, Rudolph, McCarthy, Mumolo, producer Judd Apatow, production designer Jefferson Sage, stunt coordinator Malosi Leonard and actor Rose Byrne.

“Made” looks at the project’s roots and development, script, story and characters, cast and performances, Feig’s impact on the production, challenges related to filming improvised scenes, sets, stunts, and related domains. With lots of footage from the set – and some fun rehearsal elements – this turns into an enjoyable and informative show.

Two clips pop up under Blind Date: “Blind Date with Dave” (5:21) and “Dave-O-Rama” (1:45). The former provides a deleted scene in which Annie goes on a date. It’s not great, though the presence of a fairly large star as Dave makes it more enjoyable.

Inevitably, ”Dave-O-Rama” delivers alternate lines for the scene in question. These revolve around Dave’s profane outburst, and they’re fairly funny.

Plenty additional content appears under Roommates, all of which concentrates on the siblings who live with Annie. “Welcome Home” (1:37) presents alternate versions of a segment in which the siblings greet Annie as she comes back to the apartment.

Three “Deleted Scenes” (5:52) follow, all of which concern Annie’s roommates. Three “Extended and Alternate Scenes” (9:52) give us more with Annie, Gil and Brynn, and “Oo-Laka Juice Commercial” (1:11)

Under the deleted scenes, one offers a fun capper on the Brynn/Gil relationship, and along with the extended/alternate bits, we find fun material. The “Commercial” provides an ad for a commercial enterprise presented in a cut clip, and it seems enjoyable as well.

Cholodecki’s provides content related to Annie’s job. We find three “Deleted Scenes” (5:28), two “Extended and Alternate Scenes” (15:32), and two “Commercials” (2:22).

Here we find more of Annie on the job along with the two ads used to promote the film’s jewelry store. A little additional plot/character info appears – mainly via Helen’s visit to the business – and we get an absurdly but hilariously long version of Annie’s fight with a teen customer. Throw in the amusingly awful Cholodecki’s commercials and this compilation delights.

More alternate lines appear under Drunk-O-Rama. It fills four minutes, 21 seconds with outtakes from Annie’s outburst on the plane. More amusement results.

Pep Talk lasts two minutes, 41 seconds and presents footage from the tennis match. It’s another fun reel.

Next comes Annie vs. Helen, a seven-minute, 29-second collection that focuses on the ongoing battle between those two. It’s more random than many of the others because it spans scenes from the whole movie, but it adds additional mirth.

Finally, Hold On occupies four minutes, 31 seconds and shows more from the Wilson Phillips cameo. The comedy comes from the way the characters “jam out” to the song, and it brings a little entertainment, but the lack of alternate lines makes it the least compelling of the cut/alternate segments.

The disc opens with ads for Fast Five, Honey 2, Hanna and The Big Lebowski. No trailer for Bridesmaids appears.

A second disc provides a DVD copy of Bridesmaids. It includes both cuts of the film, the commentary, and abbreviated versions of the gag reel, the deleted/extended/alternate scenes, “Line-O-Rama” and the Cholodecki’s stuff. The Blu-ray blows away the DVD in terms of all this content.

Bridesmaids proves that “chick flicks” can be raunchy, too. It’s too long and too sentimental, but thanks to a great cast and some clever writing, it’s funny enough to succeed. The Blu-ray offers excellent picture as well as acceptable audio and a broad array of supplements. We find a nice release for an entertaining movie.

To rate this film visit the DVD Edition of BRIDESMAIDS