Rough Night

Front Row at the Movies by Shirrel Rhoades

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Think of it as one of those boys-night-out movies … but with girls.

In “Rough Night” (original title: “Rock That Body”) five old college friends get together ten years later for a wild bachelorette weekend in Miami (think: “The Hangover” … with girls). You see, Scarlett Johansson‘s character is getting married so the girls rent a beach house and book a male stripper.  But things get off-track when they accidentally kill him.

Oops.

This dark comedy stars Scarlett Johansson (“Lucy,” “Ghost in the Shell”), Zoë Kravitz (TV’s “Big Little Lies”), Kate McKinnon (TV’s “Saturday Night Live”), Jillian Bell (TV’s “Workaholics”), and Ilana Glazer (TV’s “Broad City”) as the five friends who find themselves with a dead body on their hands. The craziness comes as they try to cover it up — an effort that includes jet-skis, guns, and car chases. (Think: “Weekend With Bernie” but more frenetic.)

The script by Lucia Aniello and Paul W. Downs had the working title “Move That Body.” When Sony bought the script in a heated bidding war, Aniello cut the deal that she would get to direct the movie and Downs would have a co-starring role.

Added to the cast were Demi Moore, Ty Burrell, and Colton Haynes. Also you’ll recognize Dean Winters who plays Menace in those Allstate commercial. And Bob the Drag Queen appears as himself.

“Rough Night” is currently playing at Tropic Cinema.

Sony is hoping for another “Bad Moms.” Or “Very Bad Things.” Or “Bridesmaids.”

LMR, a fan-oriented blog site, observes, “Female-driven hard R comedies are definitely becoming a welcome trend in Hollywood. While the industry has definitely taken a shift to creating somewhat lazy female remakes of existing male-driven properties, some studios have taken the right approach in giving these actresses films of their own in which to shine.”

Being the highest-grossing American actress of all time (her films have made over $3.6 billion), Scarlett Johansson can have her own female-based comedy if she wants one. Ergo: “Rough Night.”

Email Shirrel srhoades@aol.com