My Best Friend's Wedding Review
by Michael J. Legeros (legeros AT pagesz DOT net)June 23rd, 1997
MY BEST FRIEND'S WEDDING
A film review by Michael John Legeros
Copyright 1997 Michael John Legeros
(TriStar)
Directed by P.J. Hogan
Written by Ronald Bass
Cast Julia Roberts, Dermot Mulroney, Cameron Diaz, Rupert Everett, Philip Bosco, M. Emmet Walsh, Carrie Preston, Susan Sullivan, Christopher Masterson, Paul Giamatti MPAA Rating "PG-13"
Running Time 98 minutes
Reviewed at General Cinemas at Pleasant Valley, Raleigh, NC (16JUN97)
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More gratuitous garbage-- ah, the joys of summer-- this one a re- lentlessly cheery romantic comedy that entertains with as much reckless abandon any of those bloated boy toys, such as SPEED 2 or CON AIR, only with broader laughs and big, goofy grins in place of the bombs, bullets, and other things that go boom in the night. Julia Roberts-- remember her?-- plays a neurotic restaurant critic who, for no apparent reason, decides to sabotage the wedding of her best friend (Dermot Mulroney). See, they made a pact, years ago, to marry if each was still single at age 28. So, on the very day that she recalls this fact, just like that, out the blue, he calls, not to propose, but, rather, to tell of his *own*, few-days-away wedding. This drives her nuts and for reasons that the film never bothers to explain. Worse, the bride-to-be (Cameron Diaz, playing a prep princess) just up and starts loving her on the spot, putting Roberts' character in an increasingly uncomfortable, increasingly jealous, and, heh, increasingly *advantageous* position. (There's even a cat fight. And in a ballpark restroom, no less!)
With Ms. Roberts beaming brighter than she's been in any number of years, a frothy supporting cast that doesn't frown much, either, a huge, high-dollar wedding ceremony at the end, and enough overall sunshine to blind any Batpatron unlucky enough to stumble into the wrong theater, MY BEST FRIEND'S WEDDING is the perfect summer movie to laugh, coo, and get all warm and fuzzy with. Needless to say, I didn't buy a minute of it, mostly because there's no core character motivation for Roberts' char- acter. Bam, she's racing to the airport, cigarette in hand and mayhem on her mind. (Do I recall a scene from the trailer, where Roberts is rehearsing the reasons she can't get married, thinking that her friend is calling to cash in on their pact?) Sure, she's funny, falling off beds and knocking over dinner trays. Sure, we feel her pain-of-the- moment, though, really, what kind of best friend sabotages the other one's wedding? And then she pauses to flash that mega-watt smile and everything is forgotten, except for how sore your bottom might be. (Or, as I noticed, how much her voice, over an answering machine, sounds like Mary Tyler Moore's.)
Director P.J. Hogan (MURIEL'S WEDDING), unafraid to try anything, includes several musical numbers, ranging from the insipid (doo-wop girls in wedding gowns over the opening credits) to the excruciatingly insipid (an everybody-sings rendition of "I Say A Little Prayer," com- plete with M. Emmet Walsh singing bass, if you can believe it.) What else helps pass the time? Oh, there's the occasional oddball moment-- Roberts entering a plain-English Internet e-mail address, the actress behind the wheel of a "borrowed" bread van, and her quiet moment with PRIVATE PART's Pig Vomit, actor Paul Giamatti as a bellboy. Let's see... Cameron Diaz croaking karoke is a confirmed comic high point, as is a fifteen-minute excursion into farce, when Roberts' character's drop-dead dashing gay editor (Pierce Brosnan lookalike Rupert Everett) pretends to be her fiance. His attempt at public affection may well be worth the price of admission. Sorry about the hand.
Grade: C+
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Mike Legeros - Movie Hell
http://www.nonvirtual.com/hell
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