The Big Wedding

 

One can only look at the list of names appearing in The Big Wedding, and just wonder what any of them saw in this overly safe, inoffensive, and laugh-free wannabe sitcom.  I mean, just look at this cast - Robert De Niro, Diane Keaton, Susan Sarandon, Amanda Seyfried, Topher Grace, Katherine Heigl, Robin Williams, Christine Ebersole...All likable actors who are cast adrift here in a particularly mindless romantic comedy that all but wastes their talents.

Adapted from a French film, this is one of those movies that is harmless enough, but has absolutely no reason for existing.  It's not particularly funny in any way, and the big name actors that writer-director Justin Zackham (he wrote the screenplay for The Bucket List) managed to round up are mainly going through the motions here.  And don't let the fact that the film is R-rated fool you into thinking that it's some outrageous comedy for adults.  Were it not for some unnecessary four-letter words and some mild sex jokes, this would be hard pressed to earn a PG-13.  This is a movie that wants to be a farce where things build and grow out of control as two families gather together for a wedding.  The only problem is things never grow out of control like they should, and the whole thing kind of meanders along, instead of building energy.

Our two leads are Don (Robert De Niro) and Ellie (Diane Keaton).  They're divorced, but still on friendly terms with one another.  Don now lives with Bebe (Susan Sarandon), and the three are brought together when Don and Ellie's adopted adult son, Alejandro (Ben Barnes), is set to marry his childhood sweetheart, Missy (Amanda Seyfried).  Also attending the wedding weekend are Don and Ellie's two other children - Jared (Topher Grace), a 29-year-old virgin, and Lyla (Katherine Heigl), who is dealing with the emotional blow of her husband having recently left her.  Also coming for the wedding is Alejandro's birth mother from Columbia, Madonna (Patricia Rae), who just happens to be a Catholic and believes that divorce is a sin.  Not wanting to upset his mother, Alejandro stages an elaborate and hairbrained scheme where Don and Ellie will pretend to be a married couple for the weekend.  The comedy is supposed to build from this lie spiraling out of control, as well as the various other subplots and complications that spring up from it.  But the tone of this movie is much too relaxed to be funny, and we don't care about these characters.

The Big Wedding is the kind of movie that the word "mediocre" was created for.  It's flat, uninspired, and the actors are obviously just cashing a paycheck, especially Amanda Seyfried (who spends most of her screen time in the background, smiling) and Robin Williams, who has an unfunny cameo as a Catholic Priest.  The actors that are given more to do, such as De Niro, Keaton, Sarandon, Grace, and Heigl, are pretty much just repeating performances they've given in other films.  There's absolutely nothing new about the performances, the story, and the jokes.  So, why are we supposed to be involved?  I kept hoping that the next scene would provide an answer with some kind of wit or fresh spin on the material, but it never happened.  At least it knows not to overstay its welcome, and flies by at a very breezy and short 90 minutes.  You know I'm pressed for complements when I'm praising its short running time.

 

There's really not a lot else that needs to be said.  It's one of those movies that will be forgotten quickly, and will probably be gone from theaters before Memorial Day.  I'm sure the cast took this project as an easy paycheck before going onto more exciting films.  At least they got paid.  That's more than the audience will get from this.

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