I have never felt more out of the loop

Rating: 2/10 (24 March 2007)

I know film, I love film, I admit I am a film geek. I'll also admit I don't like everything, but I usually see other's points of view even when I disagree. Not this time. I simply do not understand why this movie was funny. Really! These are decent folks, with real problems. Everybody has seen it already, but I'll still call out a spoiler alert. In this film, the grandfather dies, but he's a loved, if odd member of the family; a man has an uncomfortable confrontation with a former lover (and we all know what fun that is); a dad loses his dream (yes, he's a jerk, but his family was depending on the opportunity); a teenager loses his dream (which I think he handled it really well, BTW), and a mom watches her family suffer. What hilarity! Then there's the premise of the movie itself. The pageant. Olive, a sweet kid, LOVES pageants, and has even been in a few. Yet, when entering the titular event, she and her parents are shocked to see the other girls made up like Bratz dolls, and don't understand why a hoochie dance is unacceptable. I know logic defying things happen in movies all the time, but really, this was the whole set up for the film. You gotta play fair in your own make believe universe.
Why is this all to be laughed at? I'm stumped. I feel like empathy was declared illegal and nobody told me. Best not to know, in my opinion. When people tell me I just don't get this one, I'll just say "yep", and change the subject.