Tanya Batson-Savage, Freelance Writer
'Jeremy' (Vince Vaughn, left) watches 'John' (Owen Wilson) make a speech at one of the weddings they snuck into. - CONTRIBUTED
THE WEDDING Crashers, directed by David Bobkin, is a funny romp of a romantic comedy. Like love, this movie is about chemistry, chemistry, and more chemistry. Interestingly, with no more hint of homo-erotica than two football players patting each other's behinds, The Wedding Crashers thrives off the chemistry between its two male leads.
So the flick depends heavily on its stars Clive Owen and Vince Vaughn, who each have great comic timing. They play roles that have largely become their stock characters. The situation is different, but the characters could have been pulled from another of their comedic films. This is not bad, because the two are good at their roles and they mesh well as each attempts to out speed-talk the other.
Vaughn (Jeremy) is very rough around the edges. There is nothing loveable about him; he talks too fast, is generally insensitive and seems to find too much comfort in food. Owen (John), on the other hand, is quite loveable. He, too, is a fast-talking Cassanova, but there is a hint of a sensitive interior (maybe it's his shock of frizzy blonde hair and southern charm). Indeed, the two are so different that the flick occasionally looks like a buddy movie disguised as a romantic comedy.
COMMON INTEREST
John and Jeremy have been friends for many years. Like all best friends, they have that special common interest which helps to keep their relationship afloat. For these two, that bond is crashing weddings to meet women - and they have it down to a science. However, when they attempt to crash the major wedding of their careers the tide is about to turn.
The two's journey to love is beautifully created by Bobkin, who allows us to see how charismatic and shallow John and Jeremy are with a montage of weddings they have crashed contrasted to their cynicism about marriage.
The film's romantic element is not its strength. This is in part because the female lead is really quite boring. Rachel McAdams (Claire) is very pretty, she smiles serenely and looks like the kind of woman television usually tells us is deserving of love. She isn't bright enough to realise that she should not marry a shmuck and so needs to be rescued. She is essentially a blank slate, but at least she is pretty. Her sister Gloria (Isla Fisher) is psycho and sooooo much more interesting.
QUIRKY CHARACTERS
Though most of the characters are mere stereotypes, several are quite quirky and enhance the movie beautifully. Even Jane Seymour, now clean from the puritanical stench of Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman, is interesting (though her character is never properly resolved). Christopher Walken plays an interesting father of the bride. Of course, because he is Christopher Walken, you constantly expect that he is going to break out into violence, which enhances the moments he is on the screen. Will Ferrel, who captures the desperately strange so well, makes a great cameo as Chaz.
So, those who are looking for a film to tug at their heart strings need to look elsewhere. It's a romantic comedy but is too testosterone heavy to be a chick flick. But if you are looking for a few laughs, The Wedding Crashers can scratch that itch.
