License to Wed (2007)

A reverend puts an engaged couple through a grueling marriage preparation course to see if they are meant to be married in his church.

Director:

Ken Kwapis

Writers:

Kim Barker (screenplay), Tim Rasmussen (screenplay),

Stars:

Mandy Moore, John Krasinski, Robin Williams

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robin Williams	...	Reverend Frank
Mandy Moore	...	Sadie Jones
John Krasinski	...	Ben Murphy
Eric Christian Olsen	...	Carlisle
Christine Taylor	...	Lindsey Jones
Josh Flitter	...	Choir Boy
DeRay Davis	...	Joel
Peter Strauss	...	Mr. Jones
Grace Zabriskie	...	Grandma Jones
Roxanne Hart	...	Mrs. Jones
Mindy Kaling	...	Shelly
Angela Kinsey	...	Judith the Jewelry Clerk
Rachael Harris	...	Janine
Brian Baumgartner	...	Jim
Jess Rosenthal	...	Jewelry Clerk

Storyline

Sadie and Ben are in love, and although Ben suggests getting married in the Caribbean, Sadie has her heart set on a wedding at the family church, St. Augustine's. Ben says sure, and they meet with the pastor, Rev. Frank. The only date open for two years is three weeks away, and Frank insists the kids go through his marriage prep course. They're to write their own vows; he also demands chastity, bugs their apartment, initiates arguments, has them care for robot twins, creates friction between Ben and her family, and raises doubts in Sadie. Desperate, Ben looks for dirt on Frank. Can he undermine Frank's authority and keep Sadie's heart?

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Plot Keywords:

church | episcopalian | box office flop | wilhelm scream | priest | 

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Taglines:

First came love... then came Reverend Frank.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sexual humor and language

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros [France] Warner Bros [United States]

Country:

USA Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 July 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mariage 101

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£268,016 (UK) (10 August 2007)

Gross:

$43,792,641 (USA) (28 September 2007)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Village Roadshow Pictures, Robert Simonds Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ben Murphy's parents are played by John Krasinski (Ben)'s real life parents.

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Goofs

In the scene where Ben and Sadie profess their love for each other on the beach, one of the rotations of the camera reveals a receiver for a wireless microphone.

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Quotes

Sadie Jones: I wanna pass the course, don't you?
Ben Murphy: Yes, I wanna pass the course!
Sadie Jones: So...
Ben Murphy: So, I also wanna play "Pickle me, tickle me" with my really hot fiancé.

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Connections

References The Wizard of Oz (1939)

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Soundtracks

It Must Be Love
Written by Labi Siffre
Performed by Madness
Courtesy of Geffen Records
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises
Courtesy of Virgin Records Ltd.
Under license from EMI Records Ltd.

User Reviews

God-awful comedy

"License to Wed" might as well have been called "Meet the Minister," since all the film does is to recycle the nightmare-before-marriage scenario from "Meet the Parents" - albeit with one crucial deviation. Needless to say, lightning rarely strikes twice when it comes to Hollywood happenings and "License to Wed" is no "Meet the Parents." Not by a long shot.

Ben Murphy and Sadie Jones are a young Chicago couple who agree to undergo an intense pre-marital "training course" conducted by an obnoxious local reverend in exchange for being allowed to hold their nuptials at the church Sadie's dearly departed grandfather helped to build. To pass the course, the couple must agree to be abstinent until the wedding night, take care of two fully operational and anatomically correct mechanical infants, and undergo various forms of trauma that even Sigmund Freud himself would have trouble undoing after years of reparative analysis.

As a "Meet the Parents" wannabe, "License to Wed" stumbles right out of the starting gate in that one can imagine suffering the slings and arrows of outrageous humiliation and abuse in order to win the favor of a prospective spouse's PARENTS, but to go through all that just to placate her MINISTER? I don't think so. In no time flat, the laughter turns to frustration as we find ourselves wondering why Ben doesn't just tell the dear old Reverend to go take a hike - or worse - and then seek out some religious establishment with less stringent requirements for walking down the aisle.

And let's face it, there's something more than a trifle off-putting and creepy about an unwed man-of-the-cloth running around with a young boy as his personal protégé and sidekick, planting listening devices in young couple's bedrooms. Even for an alleged comic fantasy such as this one, that may be just a bridge farther than most people will be willing to go in the queasiness department.

John Krasinski and Mandy Moore make an appealing enough couple, and it isn't really their fault that they've been handed a screenplay - written by no fewer than three writers, a sure sign of trouble - filled with cornball humor, heavy-handed slapstick and unappetizing secondary characters. In the role of Reverend Frank, Robin Williams, all cutesy mannerisms and third-rate mugging, hits a new low in teeth-grinding unctuousness, although one likes to believe that, if director Ken Kwapis could have gotten the actor to dial back his performance even a little, this might have been at least a tolerable movie. As it is, though, "License to Wed" is a painful experience that you will have no trouble leaving stranded at the altar.