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Get ready to break out the night cheese for an impromptu Galentines brunch: Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are reuniting on the big screen. The pair is set to star in The Nest, where they will play two 30-something sisters who return home to find that their parents are selling their childhood home and moving into a condo. In an attempt to celebrate the good times they had in that house, they have one last wild weekend, bonding and fighting before they can finally start to grow up. Both Fey and Poehler have also signed on to produce the film, which was written by longtime Saturday Night Live writer Paula Pell and will be directed by Pitch Perfect‘s Jason Moore.
But, even as we’re running out to buy celebratory waffles and Sabor de Soledad, we have to admit that we’re a little skeptical about this film. After all, the last good movie that Fey and Poehler were in was 2004’s Mean Girls, and their subsequent cinematic collaboration, Baby Mama, received mixed reviews from both critics and fans. Fey’s follow up films — Date Night, The Invention of Lying and Admission — all failed to live up to the Liz Lemon-inspired hype, and Poehler hasn’t fared much better, with films like Spring Breakdown, Blades of Glory, Mr. Woodcock, the Alvin and the Chipmunks movies, Free Birds, and A.C.O.D. not making much of an impact. Despite achieving massive success on television, neither one has found the perfect project to help them transition into a film career. Based on the small amount of information that has been released about The Nest, it seems unlikely to be their breakthrough movie.
However, when the end result is seeing Fey and Poehler starring opposite each other once again, does it really matter whether or not the film is any good? Surely not when it comes to getting audiences excited about the film, as both casual and die-hard fans are already excited to see The Nest when it hits theaters. Between their shared time on SNL, their respective hilarious sitcoms, and their acclaimed Golden Globes hosting gigs, the pair has enough good will to guarantee that any time they announce a project, people will be interested and excited to see how it turns out. When The Nest does finally arrive in theaters, there will likely be an audience already waiting to see it, simply because it is a Fey/Poehler collaboration. Even when their films’ don’t live up to the high expectations that fans place on them, that never seems to deter interest from future endeavors (together or independently). We automatically set aside any skepticism or doubts that we might have about the film because in the end, what we’re really going to see a Fey and Poehler movie for is… well, Fey and Poehler. If the film happens to be good, that’s essentially just a bonus.
And it does seem as if The Nest could have plenty of extra quality to make it a great Fey/Poehler movie. Pell’s presence as screenwriter is a good sign, as she has not only worked alongside the pair for years at SNL, but has also written many of their most famous sketches, so she understands their strengths as performers. Plus, Moore directed one of the most successful films of 2012 — one that also sounds like a terrible idea on paper — which means he should be able to find a style that not only fits the goofy tone of the film, but also appeals to a wide audience. If all of those elements work successfully together, we could finally have another great Fey and Poehler film on our hands. And if they don’t, we’ll still be just as excited the next time they announce plans to star opposite each other.
