Film Review – The Wedding Ringer
3 min read
Doug Harris (Josh Gad) is only two weeks away from marrying his beautiful girlfriend Gretchen (Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting), with the final touches being placed on the wedding preparations. But there is one gaping hole in their plans: shy and socially-awkward Doug has no friends to make his groomsmen, and no best man. Enter Jimmy Callahan (Kevin Hart), professional best man who runs a successful business helping friendless grooms complete their wedding parties, for the right price. Using his suave and charming demeanor, Jimmy fills the role of best man by convincing the family and friends of the groom that he is his old, lifelong friend that no one has ever met.
Desperate, Doug calls upon Jimmy to provide him not only with best man services, but to round up seven other men to be his groomsmen. Jimmy reluctantly agrees to pull off the extravagant service in less than two weeks, under the condition that his relationship with Doug is strictly business related, and nothing more.
This bromatic comedey is directed and written by Jeremy Garelick, alongside writer Jay Lavender, who worked together as screenwriters for The Break-Up. And just like that movie, The Wedding Ringer falls flat. This film uses the most basic forms of comedy as the foundation for almost every single joke, revolving mainly around penis, toilet and gratuitous slapstick gags. It’s the kind of comedy that aims to please the masses with the most elementary humour possible, which to an extent is acceptable in all comedies. But the The Wedding Ringer took this to all knew heights, severely lacking in any sort of wit or intelligence that others of it’s genre (think 22 Jump Street) still manage to maintain. I know it probably sounds like I’m way up on my film elitist high horse, but for me the humour was mindless, crude and wholly unfunny.
In saying that, if you’re looking for a light cinema experience that completely whisks you away from the real world and allows you to leave your brain behind at home, then The Wedding Ringer is exactly what you’re looking for. There is something to be said for fluff films such as this, and while it mightn’t have been up my alley, it would certainly entertain a lot of people for the mere fact that you don’t have to think about what you’re watching – just go along for the ride. And it’s not all doom and gloom; Josh Gad gave a really wonderful performance as the socially inept Doug, with killer comedic timing and an unexpectedly lovable, awkward charm. For me, Gad was the best part about the film and I genuinely enjoyed watching his character blossom onscreen.
Predictable and silly, this is the perfect kind of movie for a lazy day on the couch that requires absolutely no thinking on the viewers part. However, if you’re looking for a bit more wit in your comedy, then you might want to give The Wedding Ringer a miss.
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