A Wedding (1978)

The daughter of a Louisville truck driver marries the scion of a very wealthy family, but reception at the family estate is boycotted by the invited guests.

Director:

Robert Altman

Writers:

John Considine (screenplay), Patricia Resnick (screenplay)

Stars:

Carol Burnett, Desi Arnaz Jr., Paul Dooley

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Carol Burnett	...	Tulip Brenner
Paul Dooley	...	Snooks Brenner
Amy Stryker	...	Muffin Brenner
Mia Farrow	...	Buffy Brenner
Dennis Christopher	...	Hughie Brenner
Gerald Busby	...	Rev. David Ruteledge
Peggy Ann Garner	...	Candice Ruteledge
Mark R. Deming	...	Matthew Ruteledge
Mary Seibel	...	Aunt Marge Spar
Margaret Ladd	...	Ruby Spar
Lesley Rogers	...	Rosie Bean
Tim Thomerson	...	Russell Bean (as Timothy Thomerson)
Marta Heflin	...	Shelby Munker
David Brand	...	Ruteledge Child
Christian Brand	...	Ruteledge Child (as Chris Brand)

Storyline

Muffin's wedding to Dino Corelli is to be a big affair. Except the aging priest isn't too sure of the ceremony, only the families actually turn up as the Corelli Italian connection is suspect, security guards watch the gifts rather over-zealously, and Dino's grandma expires in bed just as the reception starts. Could be quite an occasion.

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Plot Keywords:

estate | security guard | wedding | bride and groom | male female relationship | 

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Taglines:

There is more than one secret at... A Wedding

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

27 September 1978 (USA)

Also Known As:

Un día de boda

Filming Locations:

Waukegan, Illinois, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lion's Gate Films, Major Studio Partners

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby (as Dolby Stereo)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This was Peggy Ann Garner's first screen performance in 12 years.

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Goofs

When Tracy arrives at the reception she apologizes to Toni for "missing the wedding." It was stated earlier that only family members were invited to the actual ceremony. As Dino's ex-girlfriend, Tracy wouldn't have been expected to attend.

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Quotes

Snooks Brenner: [to his family] What's everybody standing around for? There's not a God-damned thing we can do about it! It's a hell of a wedding!

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Alternate Versions

The credits in the German version have a completely different order compared to the original release.

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Connections

References The Godfather (1972)

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Soundtracks

Give Me the Simple Life
(1946) (uncredited)
Music by Rube Bloom
Lyrics by Harry Ruby
Played on piano and Sung by Tony Llorens

User Reviews

Promises promises

Robert Altman's "A Wedding" was shown recently on cable. Having seen it when it was first released, I was curious as to how it kept after all these years. Being an admirer of Mr. Altman's work, it was worth watching again, although the movie seems a bit too long on second viewing.

Mr. Altman brings two families into a formal wedding that are as dissimilar as oil and water. The groom's family is old money and the bride's is new money, perhaps, although the latter one seem to be out of place. The immediate reaction is: why are these two people marrying? Frankly, it makes no sense, at all.

We are treated to a wedding reception from hell! The wedding party as well as some of the few guests that attend the reception are an odd lot indeed. Logic would indicate that if a wedding is at the center of the story, the bride and the groom should be more prominently focused, but this being an Altman film, they are not as important as the people around them.

There is the old matriarch with no sense of time, at all! Then there is the old bishop that might be in the beginning states of dementia. The old family doctor who likes to touch all females' breasts. We have a wedding planner who has no sense of style. The mother of the bride is swept off her feet by the uncle of the groom in a hysterical sequence. The sister of the bride also had relations with the groom and his class at the military academy!

We get to spy on most conversations. Mr. Altman makes us silent witnesses to what is going on behind the scenes. This is his device for telling his story; he lets us hear snippets of conversation to get an idea of what is really going on.

"A Wedding" is a minor Altman. Somehow this story doesn't grab the viewer the same way as some of his best pictures, but it's a fun ride all the same. At the end we have learned the secrets of the two families and frankly, most of it was not that interesting. That is why, perhaps, this movie, although it tries, never found a wider audience when it came out in 1978.

This film is for Altman fans, mainly.