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Parents' Guide to

Queenpins

By Tara McNamara, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Considerable cursing in chummy coupon comedy caper.

Movie R 2021 110 minutes
Queenpins Poster Image

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Kids say (1 ):

There's no discount on laughs in this ripped-from-the-headlines coupon clipper comedy; it sparkles at full value, thanks to its perfectly assembled cast. The so-weird-it's got-to-be-true story does come from real events: In 2012, three Phoenix women really did pull off a massive multimillion-dollar illegal coupon scam. Queenpins fictionalizes the characters while sticking to some of the facts of the case, but these invented characters are fully dimensional, brought to life by actors who embody them to a tee. (That said, from a parent's perspective, they might be too sympathetic -- we're asked to root for these "sweet" women who are working out their life's frustrations by turning their hobby into a life of crime.)

While thoroughly entertaining, with heroes where you least expect them (Vince Vaughn's by-the-book postal inspector is a very positive cinematic role model when it comes to law enforcement), the film sends messages that are shaky. Tidbits that will stick include realizing how much money you can save through coupons and an explanation of how winning changes your brain chemistry. What's missing is the lesson you think you're going to get: that friends who commit crimes together do time together. Consequences exist, but they're not positioned in a way that will be remotely effective. Because Queenpins is entertaining, with thoroughly relatable characters, there's a feeling of condoning the women's behavior and the idea that the rules don't -- or shouldn't -- apply to everyone.

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