Reviews & Previews - Wedding Crashers

Posted on Wednesday, August 10, 2005 at 06:00 PM

Wedding Crashers

By: S. Tran

Starring: Owen Wilson, Vince Vaughn
Directed by: David Dobkin
Running Time: 119 Minutes
Rated: Rated R for sexual content/nudity and language.

Crash This Party

Wedding Crashers is a funny, low brow summer movie worth checking out if you are a fan of films like Old School or There's Something About Mary. Vince Vaughn delivers the laughs as Jeremy Grey with his usual verbal assaults while Owen Wilson plays the relative straight man as his best friend John Beckwith.

John and Jeremy are professional wedding crashers who attend weddings for the sole purpose of picking up women. When they decide to crash the wedding of a well known politician trouble arises when John becomes infatuated with the bride's sister, Claire, played by Rachel McAdams.

From there the film follows a fairly predictable path punctuated by all the gross out humour you would expect from such a film. Vaughn and Wilson work well together as a couple of dysfunctional, yet ultimately caring guys. The supporting cast is also good in the limited roles they are given. Isla Fisher in particular though is a riot as the crazy little sister who goes pornstar / pyscho on poor Vince Vaughn.

As you would expect from such a film Jeremy and John eventually learn there is more to life than meeting and sleeping with strange women and each seeks a bit of redemption in their own way. The film lacks focus however and there are abrupt changes in pace and unresolved story lines that leave the audience a bit confused. A prime example of this is Jane Seymour as Claire's seductive mother. We're lead to believe that she and Claire's father (Christopher Walken) have an unfaithful, unloving relationship and she tries to seduce John. In the end though we're never shown why her relationship is bad and the seduction is never explained or mentioned again.

Its moments like these that drag the film out longer than it should have been. This would have been a pretty good 90 minute film, instead it gets bogged down by the extra 30 minutes that made it into the movie. While the added footage may have been mildly amusing they didn't do anything to keep the energy and pace going.

All in all though Wedding Crashers is an enjoyable movie with engaging stars. In a bleak summer season this may provide you with the laughs you might be looking for.

3 out of 5 stars.