by Nick Ferro, Contributing Writer
When I heard that Kristen Bell, Vince Vaughn, and Paul Walter Hauser were going to be appearing in a comedy based on a true story about coupon fraud, I was intrigued. As a former loss prevention (LP) retail employee, I knew that Queenpins would either drive me insane or be hysterical. I spent so many days in LP dealing with exactly the type of people portrayed in this movie. They come into a store, rack up a $200-plus bill, and then take out their coupons (real and fake), bringing the total down to about $12, and most of the time you just had to smile and say, “have a great day.” When this exact scenario played out in the movie (about five minutes in) my wife threw her hands up in frustration and proclaimed, “I can’t watch this! It hits too close to home!” and then promptly went to bed.
We both worked in retail for many years and dealt with all kinds of coupon related fraud. I once had a case involving fraudulent baby formula coupons. Every weekend the same group of about five to 10 people would use them and walk out with hundreds of dollars of free formula. Turns out they were hitting multiple states on the east coast for a couple months. I actually collaborated with local and state law enforcement to record their activity when they came to our store. I may not have gone as far as Paul Walter Hauser’s character does in the movie, but it was funny to watch because I knew peers in other stores who were exactly his character. It was scary how accurate the movie was from that perspective; there are a lot of kinds of coupon fraud and this movie showcases a few of them, which makes sense as it is based on a true story, which can be very hit or miss in terms of accuracy to the real-life events. So, I sat back and crossed my fingers that I too wouldn’t have to shut the movie off in frustration. I guess if this review doesn’t have an ending, you’ll know what happened!
Queenpins tells the story of Connie (Bell), a former Olympian/homemaker in Arizona and her best friend JoJo (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), a beauty product saleswoman/vlogger. They go from your average coupon cutting super savers to the heads of a multimillion-dollar crime spree. Connie and her husband Rick (Joel McHale) are deep in debt due to three failed rounds of expensive, out of pocket IVF treatments, and she is emotionally recovering from a miscarriage. JoJo is living at home with her mom, trying to expand her YouTube channel and sell beauty products, but is having trouble becoming financially independent due to having her identity stolen and credit ruined years prior. Both women are neighbors and have a friendship that has been founded on their love of couponing.
One day, Connie gets a stale box of Wheaties. As a former Olympic athlete, she is compelled to write a harshly worded letter to the manufacturer to which she is rewarded a coupon for a free box. Upon redeeming this coupon at her local grocery store, she is told by an annoyed cashier that she isn’t special and that all the manufacturers send out those coupons to people who complain. This, combined with an argument she has with her husband, prompts Connie to take this newfound knowledge to the next level. She sends multiple letters to different manufacturers and ends up receiving hundreds of dollars’ worth of “free item” coupons. Upon showing JoJo and learning that JoJo would pay 20 dollars for a coupon valued at 40, Connie hatches a scheme to go to Mexico to the factory where the coupons are printed and conscript someone who works there to steal the extra “free item” coupons that are supposed to be destroyed. Once they do this, they create a website and start selling the coupons for huge profits. As the girls are starting to make money hand over fist, a District Loss Prevention Specialist, Ken Miller (Hauser) is alerted to the sudden influx of fraudulent coupons by their corporate partners. This prompts him to start an investigation in which he tries to conscript help from the FBI. Because the fraudulent coupons are being sent through the mail, the FBI refers the case to the Postal Service, and Postal Inspector Simon Kilmury (Vaughn) is sent to investigate. Kilmury and Miller work together to solve this case while Connie and JoJo go a little out of control with their new found wealth.
Bell and Howell-Baptiste have excellent chemistry together. They are funny and feel like old friends, which probably comes from their time working together on their hit show, The Good Place. Likewise, Vaughn and Hauser are a great duo with their “buddy cop” dynamic. Altogether, they put together a really fun comedy. The humor is purposeful and effective, and I found myself chuckling throughout. There is a moment toward the end that calls back to an earlier scene in which I sat up with laughter. They really leaned in hard with the comedy for the overall tone. Even though this movie does touch on some serious and emotional moments, it never strays too far from the laughs. Hauser as the overzealous retail security and Vaughn as the actual law enforcement officer have their odd couple moments, but they also provide some serious, poignant moments that speak in part toward the movie’s message. According to the director, Queenpins tells a story of finding your own self-worth. Each of the four main characters have moments where they are faced with this and must either change or persevere. This element of the movie is one reason why I would revisit. They have such a positive message mixed in with the crazy humor that even though these women are breaking the law, you can’t help but root for them — not to succeed or get away with their crimes, but for them to discover who they really are and how they can be better people.
As I previously mentioned, this story is based on true events, so I did a little research (shhh, don’t tell anyone) and I discovered that they were playing fast and loose with the term. The true story does involve coupon fraud in which several women do sell coupons through a website and are eventually arrested having defrauded several major corporations millions of dollars. Queenpins however, fabricates their backstories and means. In the movie there is a hacker character that helps them that did not exist, Vaughn’s character was made up for the movie, and Hauser’s character, although modelled after a real person, was exaggerated to fit the tone of the movie. The filmmakers did use some real-life details which they peppered throughout, but overall, they chose to keep the details vague in order to allow the story to not get bogged down in drama. I, for one, am glad for this. If they had gone for a more serious tone, Queenpins would resemble Jennifer Lopez’s Hustlers, which I didn’t enjoy due to its dourness. My only big negative would be the rewatchability of the movie. It was very funny, and I could see myself watching it again if it came on TV, but I don’t know if I would ever seek it out. The movie was engaging and charming, but it wasn’t quotable or laugh-out-loud hilarious.
Well, since we made it to a conclusion paragraph, you can rest assured I did in fact finish the movie! There should be no surprise when I tell you I really enjoyed it and would highly recommend it, especially if you have ever worked in LP or committed coupon fraud yourself. Its fun and quirky with a touch of heart that will keep you entertained (unless you get triggered five minutes in, like my wife). The good news is that after a limited theatrical release, it is now available to watch on Paramount+, if you subscribe to the service, so you don’t have to go very far to check this one out. If it is playing in a theater near you, and its safe to do so, I would recommend this as a fun afternoon matinee, maybe a discount Tuesday, because if the movie taught me anything, it’s this: definitely take advantage of those sweet, sweet savings!
Okay, fine, I may not have learned anything…
Grade: B
You can follow Nick Ferro on Twitter