Four Weddings and a Funeral is one of two movies that I've seen over twenty times that I've yet to get tired of (Say Anything is the other). Hugh Grant made this film before he developed that blinking- stuttering thing he does now, so he's actually quite charming as Charles, the British 30-something man who is accused by his ex-girlfriend of being a "serial monogamist".

This is a movie about weddings, so one could expect it to be sentimental and girly. It is sentimental, but not saccharine; and not in a way that one would expect. Instead of characters who are happy about their loved ones getting married, Weddings has characters who grudgingly show up at weddings and bemoan their continued single status. At first Charles appears happy to be dysfunctional, but later, you understand that he has chosen the single life more out of fear than a desire to remain free. Then, when he finally decides he's found the girl of his dreams, the story dips into sentimentality, but not overtly.

Charles attends the wedding of his Barbie-and-Ken friends Angus and Laura, where he meets and falls in love at first sight with Carrie (Andie MacDowell). MacDowell is very wooden and annoying. That's okay, though; all the important stuff that happens in this film happens with Charles and his group of unique friends: Fiona (Kristin Scott Thomas); her brother, Tom (James Fleet); Matthew (John Hannah) and his partner, Gareth (Simon Callow); and Charles' roommate Scarlett (Charlotte Coleman). Fiona hisses about the bride, "She looks like a big meringue". It's easy to dismiss Fiona as catty or petty, but we learn a thing or two about Fiona later on. Fiona is the most complex, interesting character in this film, even more so that Charles.

The second wedding is not quite a fairy tale. Tom is the best man at the wedding of his friends Bernard and Lydia and embarrasses both of them with his speech. Charles is stuck at a table with four of his ex-girlfriends, all of whom have interesting stories about him; and to top it all off, Carrie, an American, has returned with a fiance. Charles is quite smitten with Carrie and while he is disappointed that she is getting married, he also hints to Matthew for the first time about a discontent even larger than that. At this wedding, we also meet Henrietta (Anna Chancellor). Henrietta is another one of Charles' old girlfriends, and one of the few who doesn't hold him in contempt.

The third wedding is Carrie's wedding to her fiance, the obnoxious, stuffy millionaire Hamish. We learn Fiona's big secret here. The fourth wedding is similarly surprising, so I'll let you see the rest of the plot for yourself when you rent Weddings. This may be a film you rent many, many times, because in the 20+ times I've seen this film, I've found things I didn't notice before. For instance, the audience knows that Matthew and Gareth are living together, and for all intents and purposes, are married, but we find out later on that it hadn't even occurred to their friends. That fact makes the whole last half hour even more poignant.

Certain aspects of the script are a little far-fetched. It's hard to buy a lot of what screenwriter Richard Curtis tells us about Charles and his actions. He's supposed to be a fairly nice guy who's just misunderstood, but a few of the things he does through the film seem either daft or mean-spirited. We also see so little of Carrie that we have no clue what it is about her that makes her unlike any of Charles' exes.

Weddings is sweet, but at the same time, kind of wry with a dry, cynical sense of humor. It takes a subject that could get kind of corny and gives it a little attitude. You can find a character and relate to him and her, no matter how outlandish he seems at the beginning of the film. They're all likeable.



Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: VHS
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday evening