Film Review – Shotgun Wedding

Shotgun Wedding (2022) includes enough screwball shenanigans to forgive its outrageous story. It mixes both romantic and action funny categories, going through the hijinks of both, and having enjoyable doing so. The characters are bit too crazy to be credible – honestly, most of the stars are too old to be playing such immature individuals. And yet, their dedication to the bit keeps things rolling along at an even clip. At the really least, I was neverever tired. I’m not here to inform you that this is going to renew the romantic funny or the pal action movie, however it is a great surprise. The movie understands it’s pure fluff and welcomes that reality with complete conviction.

This is the kind of product Jennifer Lopez lived in once upon a time. The Wedding Planner (2001) and Maid in Manhattan (2002) strengthened her superstardom. Shotgun Wedding, along with last year’s Marry Me (2022), sees her dipping back into that well, and she does so with ease. She plays Darcy, who – along with fiancé Tom (Josh Duhamel) – have dragged their liked ones to a remote island in The Philippines to commemorate their weddings. Right off the bat, things are going haywire. Where Darcy desired a subtle, non-traditional event, Tom is stressedout out making sure every small information is best. Things wear’t get simple when their insane households showup, consistingof Tom’s momsanddads (Steve Coulter, Jennifer Coolidge), Darcy’s momsanddads (Cheech Marin, Sonia Braga), and Darcy’s ex (Lenny Kravitz) who reveals up allofasudden. 

The writing (Mark Hammer) and instructions (Jason Moore) structure the veryfirst act with the familiar beats of a rom com. Darcy’s cold feet, Tom’s stressandanxieties, and the interfamilial stress all put the event at danger. Things just get evenworse when a group of masked pirates attack the island, taking the visitors as captives and requiring Darcy and Tom to work together to battle them off. The narrative changes to an action funny, with an unanticipated quantity of violence and bloodshed. Will Tom and Darcy makeitthrough going up versus the pirates, and – more significantly – will the 2 makeitthrough each other?

This is straight out of the screwball funny handbook. If this were the 1930s or ‘40s, we might see this movie starring the likes of Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn, albeit without the blood and naughty language. Hammer’s composing and Moore’s instructions works in the spirit of that period. Realism and coherency were neverever part of the strategy. The story takes location in the world of escapist motionpictures, where none of this things is expected to make any sense. The just thing we are implied to think is the chemistry inbetween the characters, and in that regard Shotgun Wedding works. Both Jennifer Lopez and Josh Duhamel are captivating in their particular parts – ready to be hot and sweet in one scene and at each other’s throats in the next. The one point of genuine feeling includes how tough relationships are, and how much effort goes into making a effective one. The reality that Darcy and Tom go through the ups and downs of their weddingevent while evading bullets and surges is simply icing on the (wedding) cake.

But the movie doesn’t simply rely on Lopez and Duhamel. Moore (along with Peter Deming’s cinematography and Doc Crotzer’s modifying) inserts smart visual bits to keep things intriguing. The pirates confine the visitors into the resort’s swimming swimmingpool and staple the location cards to their clothing to keep track of everybody. There’s likewise a running gag including Darcy’s weddingevent gown. At veryfirst, Darcy dislikes the fluffy overindulgence of it, however when the action turns up, it gradually tears and shreds to endedupbeing a warrior’s clothing. The gag is stressed by a hilariously over the leading image of Darcy – wielding a shotgun and knife – looking like a poster for an completely various film. And the climactic set piece, including absolutelynothing less than a helicopter chase, is so overemphasized it that might have come out of a James Bond spy thriller.

When the secret image of the marketing has Jennifer Coolidge shooting an attack rifle in sluggish movement (ala Rambo), you understand what you are getting into. Everyone is a little bonkers here, however that’s to the movie’s advantage. Yes, the twists and turns are nonsense, and the pirates take the expression “faceless badguys” to a entire various level. The supporting characters are underused – specifically Cheech Marin and Sonia Braga. The 2 make the most of their restricted chances, making us dream they were more included in the main action. And the ending has the cleanliness of a comedy, where all the issues and problems vanish as the credits roll. The real-life injury of being held captive by bad people is not something the narrative is worried about.

All those problems are legitimate, and yet Shotgun Wedding is such an ridiculous experience that it doesn’t even matter. It has a blast being goofy and doesn’t pretend to be something that it is not. This is one of those circumstances of a film accomplishing precisely what it assures. Does it reach the highs of the romantic/action funny of state, True Lies (1994)? Not even close. But does it deal a coupleof hours of amusing diversion? Absolutely.

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