Moms’ Night Out Parent Guide

I’m sure there is a marketing strategy behind Mom’s Night Out releasing so closely to Mother’s Day. Despite all the flowers, cards and sappy commercials, that second Sunday in May is the one day of the year that makes many women question if they’ll ever live up to the ideal of the perfect parent. Luckily, this movie reminds women that you don’t have to be perfect to still be a good mom.

All Allyson (Sarah Drew) wants is a reason to dress up, a nice dinner and some uninterrupted adult conversation with a couple of girlfriends. It’s not that she doesn’t love her husband (Sean Astin) or their three children. She’s just itching for a much-needed evening out with her friend Izzy (Logan White) and the preacher’s wife Sondra (Patricia Heaton).

To his credit, Allyson’s husband is supportive of the idea. But as a businessman who is more frequently on the road than at home, he’s a little nervous about caring for the kids on his own. Luckily, in spite of Allyson’s reservations, he talks his friend Kevin (Kevin Downes) into helping him. (Kevin is one of those perpetually adolescent males who plays video games and tosses around kitchen knives.) Izzy’s husband (Robert Amaya), on the other hand, is a blithering bundle of nerves who is sure he’ll maim (or worse) the couple’s twins. And Sondra might be past the stage of toddlers in diapers, but she is now dealing with teen trauma.

Unfortunately the ladies’ night out ends up being a lot more like Date Night than Sex and the City. Their dinner reservations are for the wrong weekend, their cell phones repeatedly ring with updates from home and then they run into Allyson’s demanding sister-in-law Bridgette (Abbie Cobb) at the bowling alley. That’s when they discover Bridgette’s childcare arrangements are not as secure as she thought. Her boyfriend has left the couple’s baby boy with someone called Bones (Trace Adkins) at the local tattoo shop. Still wearing their dresses and stylish bowling alley oxfords, the four women hire a cabbie (David Hunt) and begin what turns into a manhunt for the missing child. Eventually the evening ends in jail where Sondra is accidentally tazered.

To be sure, these women’s adventures are exaggerated, as are the misadventures of their husbands at home with the kids. (But what comedy isn’t full of hyperbole and embellishment?) However, for audiences who want comedy without crudeness, this faith-based film is a great option. In no ways does it try to proselyte to the unbeliever—the movie is merely a comedy about coming to appreciate the important role of a mother (whether religious or not) in a world where parenting isn’t always easy or appreciated. It also reaffirms that along with those Hallmark moments are the realities of life when kids draw on walls, try out their cooking skills in the kitchen and create complete havoc within minutes of getting out of bed.

Yet who is better than a woman to reassure another mom that things will eventually get better—even if it takes a year or so? Filmmakers Andrew and Jon Erwin invited their wives’ input while making this film—and it shows. There is a certain authenticity to some scenes that only women who have been there will understand. And thanks to strong directing, editing and great performances from the main cast, Mom’s Night Out gives audiences plenty to laugh at without having to settle for off-colored jokes and suggestive humor.

About author

Kerry Bennett

Kerry Bennett is interested in media from both a journalist and parent perspective. Along with authoring articles for several family-oriented publications, she has written for Parent Previews for over 15 years. As a parent herself, she believes parents play a powerful role in teaching media literacy in their homes.