BRIDESMAIDS (Rated R)

Judd Apatow, the prolific producer of raunchy comedies such as “Superbad” and “Knocked Up,” has normally focused on a male-centric view of what is comically bad behavior.

With “Bridesmaids,” Apatow takes a detour into the uncharted waters of equal opportunity purveyor of humorously bad taste goofiness, as the female sensibilities attendant to an impending wedding are upended.

For a shorthand understanding of what is at stake, just think of “Bridesmaids” as the somewhat female rendering of “The Hangover,” if only slightly less crude.

The real jewel of this coarse chick flick is Kristen Wiig, the “Saturday Night Live” comedian, who shines in her disarming ability to be awkward, self-destructive and genuinely funny all at once.

Wiig’s Annie is careening through life as a thirtysomething failure at life, love and even business. Her Milwaukee cake shop just went under as the result of the sour economy.

As the story in “Bridesmaids” unfolds, where Annie is supposed to be the maid of honor for her best friend’s wedding, we discover her inescapable knack at tumbling even further into depths of despair.

The lifelong friend of Lillian (Maya Rudolph), Annie instinctively knows that she’s crucial to the success of the impending nuptials.

However, she does not reckon with the emergence of the annoyingly perfect Helen (Rose Byrne), who makes herself nearly inseparable from Lillian, thus threatening a longstanding relationship.

Snooty and fabulously wealthy, Helen has no compunctions about insinuating herself into a starring role in the wedding, setting up fittings in fancy dress shops and hosting social gatherings.

Meanwhile, as Annie struggles to hold on to her role of maid of honor, competition between Annie and Helen set up amusing battles at a reception and on the tennis court.

Comic disaster ensues when Annie insists on hosting a bachelorette party luncheon at a downscale Brazilian restaurant which leads to food poisoning.

The effects of the gastronomical fiasco strike when the bridesmaids visit an exclusive dress shop and while trying on expensive garments they become violently ill at virtually the same time.

An even greater calamity occurs when the girls decide to take a flight to Las Vegas, not figuring that Annie’s fear of flying would result in total comic mayhem aboard the airplane.

Meanwhile, an element of humanity is introduced when Annie meets cute with Wisconsin state trooper Rhodes (Chris O’Dowd), a likable fellow with an inexplicable Irish accent.

Nevertheless, Annie does her best to try to mess up the putative romance with the offbeat cop, even continuing shallow trysts with a despicable, conceited male chauvinist (Jon Hamm).

Other obstacles in Annie’s life include the oddball British brother and sister that awkwardly share her apartment and the strained relationship with her mother (Jill Clayburgh).

The best supporting role in the bridal party goes to the larger-than-life Megan (Melissa McCarthy), an assertive woman who throws around her considerable weight to great comic effect. In fact, she has some of the best lines.

Overall, “Bridesmaids” belongs to Kristen Wiig, since the movie chronicles her slide to the rock bottom of desperation, and she carries it off with great humor.

“Bridesmaids” may be the greatest comic anomaly of all time: a chick flick that might actually be enjoyed more by men than the opposite sex.

This is one hilarious, twisted comedy well worth watching and ranks high on the list of Judd Apatow comic masterpieces.

DVD RELEASE UPDATE

Korean genre master Kim Ji-Woon delivers the ultimate revenge tale, filled with gory violence, in the DVD release of “I Saw The Devil.” Be warned that this film is not for the squeamish.

“I Saw The Devil” is the shockingly violent tale of murder and revenge.

Choi Min-Sik plays a dangerous psychopath who kills for pleasure. The embodiment of pure evil, he has committed horrifying and senselessly cruel serial murders on defenseless victims, successfully eluding capture by the police.

On a freezing, snowy night, his latest victim is the beautiful daughter of a retired police chief and pregnant fiancée of an elite special agent (Lee Byung-Hun).

Obsessed with revenge, the agent decides to track down the murderer, even if doing so means becoming a monster himself.

When he finds the killer, turning him in to the authorities is the last thing on the agent’s mind as the lines between good and evil fall away in this diabolically twisted game of cat and mouse.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.