Wedding Daze

It seems that the success of the American Pie trilogy which starred Jason Biggs and spawned a franchise of spin off movies bearing the American Pie branding, had somewhat slapped an unfortunate tag on actor Biggs. Of all the movies to date that I recall him in, they inevitably revolve around teenagers, sex, or romantic comedies. He can't shake off this tag, and I will be curious to see him take a big leap out of this unwarranted comfort zone, unless of course these are roles that appeal to him, and pays his bills anyway. What makes it ideal for him in roles as these, is his average everyday man looks and attitude.

Isla Fisher on the other hand, I've got to admit, despite being in a similar boat as Biggs, has got that exuberant charm that I can't get enough of. I guess it was her infectious smile and laughter in The Wedding Crashers as the psycho babe Gloria stalking Vaughn's Jeremy that made me take notice, and her turn as the carefree, free-spirited April in Definitely, Maybe, had placed the movie as a contender for one of my favourites this year. Perhaps it is her relatively small frame that can always pass her off as a young adult, that she gets saddled with such roles, and again she repeats another rather conventional performance for Wedding Daze, but I'm not complaining.

Biggs stars as Anderson, a man in between jobs and who still cannot get over the death of his fiancé (who actually hasn't said yes), spending twice as long a duration to mourn her, than the time spent with her. On his good friend Ted's (Michael Weston) advice to go out there and meet people. In a spur of a moment during a dare, Anderson proposes to the waitress serving his table, and surprise, Katie (Fisher) says yes. But of course things are never smooth sailing, as the couple soon discovers what they should have discovered during courtship, thus putting numerous spins and surprises that made this comedy go way out of control in the last 30 minutes, reminiscent of some of 80s styled comedies in this film written and directed by Michael Ian Black.

Sometimes you wonder what it would like to just take that leap of faith and plunge into deep waters. Our forefathers probably did that with matchmaking being the requisite way in which to find a mate. They had no say and everything's arranged through parents and parental contacts when a suitable age is reached. While in this case it's not matchmaking, but you just wonder if it'll work out should two people eye each other across a crowded room, like who they see on the surface of course, and decide that's it, he/she's the one? It's a fantasy proposition, but one which becomes key in love at first sight stories. Either that, or the usual courtship route would likely be a journey where flaws surface, and you start to question if you could live with them. Nobody's perfect, but the former way already bound you to an institution, versus a fairly constant probe where you can opt out at any time.

While the supporting characters specifically are present to provide laughter, they do somehow epitomize different aspects of relationships. Katie's mom personifies the typical indecisive woman who flits toward who currently can provide her certain advantages, while her real dad (Joe Pantoliano) and stepdad provide some laughs with the jokes on the latter seemingly a little culturally insensitive at times. But political correctness usually goes out of the window these days (unlike those of old) as it is possibly the quickest way to elicit laughs from an audience, and even sexual deviant acts come courtesy of Anderson's parents. Supporting characters also involve the maligned fiancé of Katie's (but she didn't say yes too), and his finding of his soulmate, best friends of Katie who are into circus tricks, and the very perfect fiancé of Anderson, who would inspire Anderson to have one of the best, honest lines toward the end of the movie, no matter how sappy it sounded, but made a lot of sense.

You might think that you've seen a number of similar movies already like What Happens in Vegas and Just Married, but those seemed a little more polished than the raw, indie treatment that is Wedding Daze, where jokes fly rather fast and furious, employing a whole repertoire of methods to deliver its punch lines, from sight gags to my personal preferences of extreme wit in dialogue where you really have to be at attention to catch them all. It might not be a big budgeted movie, but its charm more compensates for everything else.

I saw this movie on Netflix Instant Queue and saw Jason Biggs and Isla Fisher on the cover...two actors who I've never disliked...so I gave this movie a shot. I walked in expecting a pretty terrible movie but I was pleasantly surprised. Basically, the movie is about how Jason Biggs randomly proposes to Isla Fisher on the basis of how spontaneous and romantic it is and Isla Fisher says yes. The rest of the movie is the "getting to know each other and falling in love" story. Now, in no way was this movie what I would call "amazing"; the plot was predictable, the acting was mediocre, and there was no evidence of outstanding direction, musical composition, or cinematography. But there's just a certain special magic present in the awkward, teen-oriented romantic comedy. Jason Biggs is just perfect at playing the role that made him famous...the awkward, embarrassing guy. Isla Fisher is gorgeous and funny...but mainly gorgeous and fills out her role well. Even Joey Pants (Joe Pantoliano) is in this movie. All in all, Wedding Daze is a fun romp that's worth 90 minutes of time you planned on wasting anyway.

This is one of those movies where a lot depends on how you feel going in. If you're in a good mood and aren't looking for anything great, Wedding Daze will happily fill up an hour and a half. If you're looking for another American Pie or Clerks, though, I'd give this a miss.

Really, there are about a dozen hilarious moments scattered about this movie. Unfortunately, they're surrounded by underwritten characters, mediocre acting and a cookie-cutter plot. Jason Biggs is still playing the same character he did in American Pie. Isla Fisher has an extremely convincing American accent but that's about it. And despite flashes of brilliance, everyone else seems to be a little embarrassed to be here. Really, I'd say wait for the DVD.

(Oh, and for you dirty old men out there, there's a truly delightful scene of Isla Fisher early on parading around in her underwear. It makes absolutely no sense plot-wise but six months from now, a bunch of 13-year-old boys with cable are going to be very, very happy.)

Jason Biggs (American Pie) stars as Anderson, a depressed guy who lost his girlfriend by proposing to her. Pushed by his friend, he asks a random waitress to marry him, which she says yes.

The idea of this romantic comedy is there. I like the idea of spontaneity but the film lacks humour.

Jason Biggs is funny in other films, as is Isla Fisher (Wedding crashers) but this film lacks effort and purpose. It's as if there's no point.

Following many conventions of the genre, the film uses physical humour and some really cheesy lines to portray comedy, which is a shame because from the beginning it appeared to be heading somewhere.

Its flat, its predictable and repetitive and overall, just boring and familiar.

I don't like films which follow patterns and so the ending is scant consolation for that as it is slightly different from other romantic comedies.

The acting is average; none of the cast seemed too bothered to put their true potential into the characters.

At the end of the day it is a light hearted film which is sweet in its own way. The humour isn't brilliant, like the acting but the idea and the ending are quite interesting.

Anderson (Jason Biggs) is in love with love. He goes all out dressed as cupid to propose to girlfriend Vanessa in a restaurant. She is so shocked that she dies from a heart attack. He's left as a pathetic mess who can't get over Vanessa. His friend Ted tries to get him to try harder and he asks waitress Katie (Isla Fisher) to marry him. Katie's life isn't going so well. She's in a dead end job. Her father is in jail. Her boyfriend proposes and she can't take it. In exasperation, she accepts Anderson's proposal. It's a ridiculous idea at first, but after a lot of misadventures, they may have stumbled onto something real.

The setup is really awkward. Knowing Michael Ian Black's brand of comedy, it's not surprising that he goes so dark so soon. Jason Biggs and Isla Fisher are two of the most likable and funniest comedic actors around. They combine to have some really funny moments. Chris Diamantopoulos is ridiculous and funny. This is a case of really funny people with some really inappropriate jokes trying very hard with less than expert directions and editing.