Battle of the sexes or battle of the guns-rights activists? Matt Cooper’s “Is That a Gun in Your Pocket?…” is a hilarious comedy that plays on both.

The movie takes place in the gun-obsessed rural town Rockford, TX after it becomes literally divided when Jenna Keely’s (Andrea Anders) young son brings a gun to school and accidentally fires it. The incident mobilizes the women in town to prevent more accidents by refusing to have sex with their husbands — or any men at all — until they’ve disposed of all their guns. From there, things turn hysterical as the men become increasingly desperate and the women become increasingly determined.

“Is That A Gun…” is inspiring. It’s easy to get swept into the battle and end up cheering Keely and her band of women on as they screw their courage till it sticks. Keely is resolute at all the right times and even has the courage to come clean when she’s made a mistake. Her personal mantra, “Every avalanche starts with a single snowflake,” is cheesy, but rings true as she leads by example. She embodies the strong, independent woman every girl should aspire to be as she angrily questions her gun-slinging husband, saying, “Did it ever occur to you that I might be able to come up with my own ideas? That I’m not just some extension of you?” If there ever were a movie moment worth cheering for in a theater, this would be that moment.

Not without its flaws, the film plays into insulting stereotypes, the most obvious of which is the depiction of Texans as gun-culture fanatics. It portrays men less as humans and more as sex-crazed animals. The movie is white-washed, featuring only three Latin actors (despite Texas’ known Mexican influence): Gus (Gino Montesinos), who is in charge of driving a truck illegally loaded with “hookers;” Luis (Horatio Sanz), the sweetest and most honest of the men, but also the biggest push-over and under-motivated character of the film; and Connie (Fernanda Romero), who has a nasty temper and an overwhelming sex drive she seems to be unable to control.

The writing of the film is also guilty of employing the “straw man” logical fallacy, where one appears to attack an opponent’s argument while actually attacking an entirely different issue. It oversimplifies the argument of gun-supporting-conservatives, while presenting the liberal, pro-gun-laws side of the debate in a much more holistic and logical manner.

However, these flaws don’t ruin the movie’s creative value, as comedies rarely succeed without being insulting. It’s a funny film that portrays not only family dynamics and the process of creating change in a community very honestly, but also does a great job of coating its satirical medicine in a pill that’s very easy to swallow. “Is That a Gun in Your Pocket?…” will have you laughing out loud and clapping with the actors after every victory. What’s more, it’ll teach you something along the way.

“Is That A Gun In Your Pocket?…” will be released in theaters this Friday, Sept. 16.

Email Katherine Armstrong at [email protected].