Pun Salad

It's good, PG-rated fun. (Why is it PG? MPAA: "mild thematic elements and some action") It was distributed by "Affirm Films", a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, whose mission statement says it is "dedicated to producing, acquiring and marketing films which inspire, uplift, and entertain audiences." That means there's God stuff.

The movie centers around harried mom Allyson, who claims to be not "happy". As near as I can tell, this is due to her not living up to her own standards of what a "mother" is supposed to be. Otherwise, she's fine: her kids are rambunctious but loving; her husband (Samwise Gamgee) travels a lot, but is loving; she's got a network of loving friends, a big friendly church, a nice house, and a Sienna minivan.

So she decides to arrange (see title) a "moms' night out" for her and her friends: the pastor's wife, Sondra (Patricia Heaton), and childhood friend Izzy. A fancy restaurant is arranged, makeup is applied, nice shoes are worn, a small non-mommy purse is acquired. And then things rapidly go downhill, because (a) the restaurant misunderstands/loses her reservation and (b) the kids are left with dads and acquaintances, and their childcare skills are weak.

Involved are: bikers, a tattoo parlor, the cops, a parakeet, a pothead, bowling, a nice African-American family, a British cabbie, a high-speed chase, a holding cell, accidental tasering, occasional punching. Good clean fun. It goes on about 10 minutes too long, but that's forgivable. Patricia Heaton is a gifted comic actress.