As I sat there in the theater, the smell of popcorn in the air...I couldn't help but be surprised at how much I was enjoying The Big Wedding. I try to go into every film with an open mind but this one I was truly skeptical about. It looked so cliche, so dumb and like such a film with A-list actors being stuck in a film that should be on TV at two in the morning. Actually...it is all of these things in spades. However, it's also undemanding and fun in a quaint kind of way.
The film stars Robert De Niro as Don. After divorcing his wife, Ellie (Diane Keaton), Don moves onto Ellie's best friend, Bebe (Susan Sarandon.) However, when their adoptive son Alejandro (Ben Barnes) is getting married to Missy (Amanda Seyfried)....Don and Ellie have to pretend like nothing happened. Why? Well...this is because Alejandro's real mother, Madonna (Patricia Rae) does not believe in divorce and thinks it is a sin. All the while...Don is trying to make things right with daughter Lyla (Katherine Heigl) and son Jared (Topher Grace) is sleeping with Alejandro's sister, Nuria (Ana Ayora.)
There were many problems I had with this movie but let's talk about the two most significant first. The main problem I had was that there were way too many highly acclaimed actors in the film. That may sound like a bogus complaint but it felt as if writer-director Justin Zackham just wanted to fit in as many A-list celebrities as possible and it just ended up being very, very contrived. As well---there is not one likable character in the film. All of these people are jerks in one way or another and by the time the film is over...you're glad you don't have to be a part of these people's lives anymore.
However, some good did come out of the film. There are many funny scenes especially one involving Jared's methods of wooing Nuria. The film's acting is also quite good even if there is too much acting so to speak. Also...although it's completely contrived, the film is undemanding. It's not telling you what to enjoy and what not to enjoy thereby making it so that some people will enjoy certain scenes and others won't. It's also quite quaint. Sure...it's a sitcom premise but I enjoyed the way it was done. It didn't feel too modern but it didn't feel too dated, either.
I know I may be contradicting myself quite a bit during this review. The point I'm trying to make is that The Big Wedding is not great by any means of the word. It is, however, fun enough to squeeze by on a mild recommendation.
(3 out of 5 Stars, The film is rated R for language, sexual content and brief nudity)
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