The Big Wedding is a big mess. BIG. And what is super annoying is that it should have been so much better.
The plot is about as flimsy as a cheap paper plate at a family reunion. A divorced couple hold the wedding of their youngest son at their enormous home, and the other two grown children come in for the weekend. The couple have been divorced for a while [2 years? 10 years? it's unclear] and the husband still lives in the family home with his girlfriend, played by Susan Sarandon. His ex wife comes to stay for the weekend.
The Big Wedding has a ton of big stars. Robert DeNiro is probably the biggest star in the movie. His character is the most interesting, and he is what makes the movie watchable, in my opinion.
His scenes were the ones where I put down my phone and stopped playing Words With Friends.
Deniro plays a sculptor with an overactive libido.
OTOH, the scenes with Topher Grace made me want to throw things at the TV. He played one of the grown children, and his character is supposed to be a 29 year old virgin. A doctor. The other child, played by Katherine Heigl is almost as silly, supposedly an attorney with HUGE daddy issues whose marriage is in crisis.
The son who is getting married was supposedly adopted at age 10 from Colombia South America. Yet, his adoptive family stayed in close contact with the birthmom and birth sister, and they have been invited to the wedding. The divorced parents are told they need to pretend to still be married because the Colombian birthmom who is a devout Catholic will be shocked if they are divorced.
That little plot point is right out of an episode of Three's Company. I don't mean that as a compliment.
The whole adoption plot angle is unrealistic. I've never seen or heard of anything like it, and I've been active in the international adoption world for more than 10 years. In foreign countries children rarely have contact with birth families after adoption. The birthmom's character is really weird and unrealistic, and it's unclear if she understands English or not. The whole thing is just bizarre.
By far the biggest tragedy is Robin Williams, playing a Catholic priest. He has 2 scenes in the movie and neither scene is funny. Just awkward and weird. What a waste of his brilliant talent.
If you want a little more in-depth review and a video of the trailer check out this.
My advice is to avoid The Big Wedding.
Comments