Review : The Big Wedding!

THE BIG WEDDING : A long-divorced couple fakes being married as their family unites for a wedding.

The story goes a little bit like this : Don (Robert De Niro) and Ellie (Diane Keaton) were once married and have two children, Lyla (Katherine Heigl) and Jared (Topher Grace). They adopted a boy from Colombia, Alejandro (Ben Barnes). Eventually they divorce, Ellie moves away and Don hooks up with Bebe, Ellie's best friend (Susan Sarandon). 

When Alejandro is about to get married, he informs Don And Ellie that he never told his natural mother who is so traditional that they got divorced. And she is coming for the wedding so he asks them if they can pretend to still be married. Don and Ellie reluctantly agree to it and Bebe moves out who is also upset that Don for some reason doesn't want to commit.

The plot summery once you read it and get the gist of what the film about is basically what one really needs in order to guide you along the sweet promotional premise of the film, and you know what I think The Big Wedding is nothing spectacular but then it doesn't need to be because it doesn't try to be as big as the title. It's just a fun, easy going type of film that intends to get you into a set back mood of 'just watch something for the sake of enjoying it' and you got an amazing cast to help along with that.

The film is certainly a lot more racier than most family wedding comedies in terms of pacing and could make for an uncomfortable parent-teen movie night. There's lots of sexual content and the opening scene shows Robert De Niro about to perform oral sex on Susan Sarandon and as well as that theres also discussion of virginity, sexual orientation, and open marriage. 

There's also adultery, public displays of more than affection. In addition to the crude sex jokes and sex scenes, you can expect frequent strong language ("f--k," "s--t," "a--hole," "bitch," etc.) and drinking (the father and the priest are both alcoholics).  If you can look past all that and sort of accept that into the overall enjoyment of it, its an okay-ish film which doesn't hold back from being anything but easy viewing. That doesn't mean the film doesn't have potential but you do sort of look at this and think? 'I'll give it a go but I'm not expecting much from it'. It doesn't give you a lot, but enough to satisfy your needs as a viewer, sometimes that can viewed upon as being lacklustre to a viewer because they are expecting more from it to make the enjoyment of it more worth while, but in some cases satisfactory is all your going to get.

A talented group of actors could have signed on for such a mediocre comedy is a mystery. Writer / Director Justin Zackham has included so many ridiculous plot points in The Big Wedding that the entire film is hard not to scoff through, and that is one of the many downers that needs to be pointed out. 

Like for instance : the idea that Ellie would be so forgiving to a best friend who slept with her husband, or that long-divorced exes would have sex when one of them is in a committed relationship, or that a 29-year-old virgin who promised to wait for love would forget all of that at the sight of a his adopted brother's hot Colombian birth sister. The examples go on and on, and instead of being funny, they just highlight why the film is little more than a series of gags strung together over one ludicrous weekend. Instead of concentrating on being about the comedy it tries to hard and as a result what it comes down to is insufficient laughter and insufficient engagement with the audience being that this a film about comedy.

Yes, some of the gags work and there are some laughs to be shared, but not a lot when thinking about it. It would raise a smirk or a chuckle but nothing so laugh out loud funny that I'd regard it as being a successful comedy film.

However, what I would say is it's good, clear, observational easy viewing with a wide ranged all star cast and you can just sit back relax and just enjoy it for what it is and not care about what happens. 

5/10

Next Review : Anastasia.