There is always something interesting about a dysfunctional family. But very few of these stories turn out to be light-hearted, loving and endearing without the characters being annoying. I know, I know, we’ve seen it all before; the big ensemble cast, the different individual storylines, the forced and unnecessary banter – but I do believe that “The Big Wedding” is one of the very few films that have done this concept well.
It all starts off with Alejandro and his partner Missy preparing to get married. Alejandro is actually adopted and his birth mother is coming all the way from Colombia to attend the wedding. The problem? Just a tiny one. Alejandro‘s mother is a severe Catholic. What does this mean? This means that divorce in her eyes is considered a sin. Of course this has nothing to do with Alejandro and Missy directly, but Alejandro‘s adopted parents are divorced.
Don and Ellie have actually been divorced for 10 years but because of the situation, now find themselves pretending to be married again. Don‘s long time partner and former best friend of Ellie, Bebe also finds herself moving out of the house before Alejandro‘s mother promptly arrives. As crazy as it sounds, this is only the surface of all the dilemmas in this storyline. Together they make one interesting and entertaining film.
The acting in this film is great, as you would expect. Robert De Niro, Diane Keaton, Susan Sarandon, Topher Grace, Katherine Heigl, Robin Williams, Ben Barnes and Amanda Seyfried all have great comic timing, but what I loved most was the chemistry between the characters. The actors all managed to make their relationships believable, like they were a real family and not just a bunch of actors thrown together.
When I saw this film, I laughed, I cringed, I was surprised, and even then I laughed some more. I can honestly vouch for this film and say with confidence that this really is one of the good family comedies out there.
In short, please do check out this film if you’re into romantic comedies, because The Big Wedding is a real treat.