Written by: Andrew Bujalski
Starring: Regina Hall, Haley Lu Richardson, James LeGros, Shayna McHayle, Dylan Gelula
Rating: [4.5/5]
Individuals working in management state all of the time how much they care about their employees and the way everyone in the unit operates as a family. Something many can contend with when it comes to actually supporting the employees in their moment of need, especially if it conflicts with the profits the organization wants to attain. In short, believing a manager when they say these things should be received with bountiful skepticism unless it’s the person we follow in Support the Girls as we get dropped right into a seedy environment filled with oodles of love.
At a sports bar where the employed waiters dress in short shorts and crop tops, Lisa (Regina Hall) tries her best to ensure each of her girls receives the respect they deserve amongst the sordid clientele entering the bar. On the day of a big mixed martial arts fight, she must contend with various obstacles in her way as she tries to manage it all and keep her sanity.
Establishments like Double Whammies as displayed in the feature serve as the real-world equivalent of Hooters, which opens up a whole can of worms of what they bring to the marketplace. A location where patrons can get food served to them by women wearing less clothing than the typical waiter would and gets tasked with being a bit flirtatious. Something, obviously, appealing to a certain type of man who likes the idea of being served by a woman dressed in that manner even with the knowledge everything presented to them represents a ruse to get them to tip generously. Therefore, this illusion exists where essentially all parties get what they want, but one where the exploitation very much runs rampant on these young women, which makes the integration of someone like Lisa as their managers something so touching for how much she cares about them.
Lisa’s job not only lies with serving as the general manager for this sports bar, but she mainly cares about taking care of her girls. The equivalent of a fierce mother bear who will not let anyone disrespect the women who work for her, which presents quite the quandary considering this type of environment does nothing but breed an atmosphere for the worst type of men to gather. Listen, the food at these places may be okay, but the men attending it know what they want and quite often it does not layered in levels of respect for these women. It makes for several instances, as displayed in the film, where they step over the line and need to get addressed very quickly and harshly for their behavior. In this sense, the feature does a tremendous job of highlighting the disgusting nature of these men and displays their misogyny brightly. The scene where a particular biker calls one of the obviously gorgeous women fat displays this specific misogyny to the extreme only made worse when the camera pans to the guy who made the comment. Not that someone who looks attractive has a right to speak ill of another person’s looks so openly, but of all people someone like that guy making the comment wreaks of hatred for women.
Therefore, this introduces the intriguing concept of this feature and where Lisa fits into all of this when she knowingly works for an establishment serving as this horrific environment for young women. She works her tail off to keep it afloat despite a terrible owner and clientele who are, at times, the scum of the Earth. There’s even the reality of these young women getting hired as entertainers officially because that way the owner can dictate how they look and if they begin to get too unattractive for what the role necessitates. However, it all comes down to the love she has for these young women and the way she cares for them and the community they build here makes for such an infectiously fun time making me wish it would never end.
The waiters who work at Double Whammies know very well what they have gotten themselves into with this position and looking behind the scenes on how they approach their jobs allows someone like Maci (Haley Lu Richardson) to shine bright. Richardson has not missed in any of her roles and she presents such a delight in this feature. Someone so innocent but not dumb in acknowledging what this job entails. She brings this infectious positivity to everything going on at this establishment and really helps serve as the glue even when Lisa gets down because of all of the nonsense going on around her. This presents her counterbalance in Danyelle portrayed wonderfully by Shayna McHayle, who very abruptly states the obvious of their circumstance but still knows how to utilize her femininity to her advantage when called upon.
With all that said, this feature belongs to Regina Hall, who delivers such a beautifully layered performance. The care her character, Lisa, has for her girls makes everything going on in this feature so stressful. From the fundraiser, she tries to craft in order to support one of her waiters and the way she treats everyone Hall captures the inherent sadness within her and exhibiting and how she can bring out the positivity when necessary. We go through these heartbreaking moments with her as we see the ridiculous circumstances she must encounter on a daily basis. As much as Lisa cares for these girls, she ultimately cannot solve all of their problems, which serves as such a disheartening but eye-opening experience and Hall brings it all out of the character in a meaningful way.
An incredibly stark portrayal of the working class experience for these young women within a predatory industry, Support the Girls provides such lovable characters in the sisterhood they form with each other. They try to make the best out of their situation and end up stealing our hearts while they’re at it. This feature delivers an abundance of hilarious scenes because of the ridiculousness of this circumstance while also delivering some hard-hitting messages about the brutal realities of this industry and the way it views these young women as interchangeable cattle for the purposes of tantalizing the male customer base keeping it afloat. Truly a tremendous film that gets better with each new watch.
Films with Josh 
