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 "The Wedding Date" Chris' Review: "I'd rather fight with you than make love to anybody else." Cliche cliche cliche... So why did I enjoy it so much? I could poke holes in the plot all day long, the acting was just awful, the story was predictable and, as I mentioned, cliche, the soundtrack was an amalgam of sappy dreg... yet the film entertained me. Debra Messing plays Kat, a neurotic redhead with a penchant for screwing up her relationships and never being "happy". Dermot Mulroney plays the hunky (did i just use the word "hunky"?) male-escort that Kat hires to take her to her half-sisters wedding. Of course the plot has it's share of the cliche characters. The mother who makes sure that the world is fully aware of all of her daughters mistakes, the cheerleader-manic sister who is so self-centered that she confuses astrologers, as the whole universe revolves around her, and of course, the foul-mouthed best friend as the comic relief. I can't really explain why it works. I really enjoyed this movie. The jokes were ones that you had heard a thousand times before. You could tell that the poor celluloid strip was focus-grouped over every single frame. The scenery was typical, even inclimate weather during the most emotionally taxing scenes. It just all seems to come together in the end. Debra Messing does a fantastic job. She is playing the exact same character that she honed to perfection in Will and Grace, but she plays it as a different person. The contrast is subtle, but apparent. On the other hand, Dermot Mulroney is about as stiff as if someone washed his shorts in super-glue. This was not a typical performance for him and one has to wonder what was going through his head as he shuffled through the scenes... because he certainly wasn't thinking about the script. Once they get together, though the two actors clash against each other. There is very little chemistry. Messing is brilliant whenever Mulroney isn't in the picture. When he is, his static character rubs off on her. He's just not giving her anything to work with. Messing makes her character fluid and well-rounded... in a story where her co-star is written with just as well rounded a part, he manages to make it just fall flat. Another interesting performance was by the groom, Jack Davenport. Obviously he was hired to play the requisite village idiot, but he plays it believably. He's just barely stupid... which makes him into a very realistic character. I'm going to credit how all of this came together and presented an engaging and entertaining movie with the director, Clare Kilner. All the scenes just seemed to work. The story was cohesive, even if the writing was drab and the plot full of holes. The director did what she could with what she had and brought forth something that is actually worth watching. Keep in mind though, this is hardly Shakespeare. Just because I enjoyed it and it was a good distraction for the 90 minutes that it played on the silver screen, does not mean that I have any desire to see it again, nor will I throw away the hard earned money to buy the DVD. I give it 3 thumbs up. I think Messing is well on her way to becoming the next Julia Roberts if she can just manage to find some leading men that she has some chemistry with.   Jim's Review: In Jim's stead: Guest Reviewer Madrigal Costello offers up her review of the movie: BackHome - Info - Reviews - Map - Message Board - Photo Album |
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