Review: Kathryn Hahn scores big win in ‘Bad Moms’

The name Kathryn Hahn might not ring a bell, but you know her face, familiar from movies like “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days,” “Step Brothers” and “Bad Words.”

After “Bad Moms,” you’ll know her name.

Hahn is the breakout of the wildly funny comedy, which follows a trio of moms — played by Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell and Hahn — who start sloughing off their parental duties and focusing on themselves.

So rather than schlepping their kids to school and soccer practice and rushing to the PTA meeting at night, they stop, the same way Peter Gibbons stops going to his job in “Office Space.”

“Bad Moms” is like “The Hangover” for moms, and the same way “The Hangover” played to the bro crowd, “Bad Moms” will play like a rock concert to groups of women. Writer-directors Jon Lucas and Scott Moore — wouldn’t you know it, they penned the “Hangover” trilogy — present themes that all parents can relate to while keeping the storyline broad and packing it with huge laughs.

Bell, who plays a meek mother who learns to discover her inner boss, works well with Kunis, and Annie Mumolo scores as a dowdy member of the perfect mom clique.

But Hahn hijacks the film and makes it her showcase. She’s rude and crude in a physical, full-body performance, and half her lines seem improvised, because she spits them out like a spray of machine gun bullets. Hers is a breakout like Melissa McCarthy’s in “Bridesmaids” and deserves similar awards season consideration. When it comes to “Bad Moms,” she’s the best.

agraham@detroitnews.com

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‘Bad Moms’

GRADE: B+

Rated R for sexual material, full frontal nudity, language throughout, and drug and alcohol content

Running time: 101 minutes