Comedy: The Wedding Crashers

Oftentimes I sit bored, blinking at the computer screen as the cursor blinks back at me waiting for me to think of my favorite movie type. However, upon being assigned the Comedy section, this was a no brainer. I guess I can stop with all the fluff as the only person that actually reads this blog is you, Ms Washington, so i'll get straight down to business.



As evident by the movie poster and the title, my comedy blog will be about the movie "Wedding Crashers," by far my favorite comedy to date. Directed by David Dobkin, the movie stars Owen Wilson as John Beckwith, and Vince Vaughn as Jeremy Grey as two divorce mediators who, in their spare time, like to attend weddings under fake names and fake job titles. Their goal: Take as many women as possible on a late night ride to Pound Town. They also enjoy the perks that come with weddings being open bars, appetizers, meals, music, dancing, etc. However, the wedding this movie focuses on takes the cake, literally. It's the wedding of all weddings, the crash of all crashes. It's the wedding of the U.S. Secretary of the Treasurer's daughter. Played by Christopher Walken, William Cleary is the Secretary of the Treasurer and he has three daughters. One of whom is getting married, and two of whom are targets for both Jeremy and John. Gloria, played by Isla Fisher, is Jeremy's target, a young redheaded who is a bit immature, as shown by a seen by her stomping her feet and yelling at a wedding reception until her father, William, gives in. Claire, on the other hand, is the more articulate and beautiful of the two, and thus is the target for John (Owen Wilson.) Claire, however, has a boyfriend (played by Bradley Cooper) named Sack Lodge, an arrogant, pompous BSer who is only dating Claire to exploit her father's powerful position in politics. The hilarious onslaught of fornication, booze, and sex that occurs over the weekend at the Cleary's estate is one that will leave you clutching your stomach and gasping for air as you roll on the ground laughing at the hilarity of Owen Wilson, Vince Vaughn, and an appearance of Will Ferrell, their mentor.


As usual, I will be judging the film based on four criteria: Plot, Acting, Lead Female Character(s), and my overall satisfaction with the movie.

Plot: 8 Stars. Honestly, the plot is not what makes this movie so good. Yes, it is very unique and far-fetched, but it wasn't all that great. It was pretty predictable which wasn't all too appealing.

Lead Female Characters: 9 Stars. The female cast in this film is pretty money. They have the red-hot girl from Mean Girls, plus the babe to the left (Isla Fisher) who is some sort of Omanian goddess. There is also an appearance by a Mrs. Jane Seymour, the Bond girl in Live and Let Die.

Acting: 9.5 Stars. The acting is almost unbeatable. It's all-star. Plus, with so many amazing actors and actresses in the film, the sygnergism in the room has to be great, raising the bar for the more inexperienced actors. The Vaughn/Wilson combo is MONEY too. You can tell they had a lot of fun filming the movie.

General Satisfaction: 9.5 Stars. Like any comedy, this movie doesn't deviate from the run of the film predictable plot. That's not what makes the movie great. The acting, the girls, the booze, all the debauchery in the movie is on point. At one point in the movie Vince Vaughn screams at this priest for blabbing his deepest darkest secrets, and meanwhile the priest just sits their like a sad puppy. It was hilarious. I do suggest not having any parents/adults in the room while viewing, as it can get quite awkward in a few of the "sticky" scenes. Also, the nudity and swearing run rampant, another reason not to watch with parents.

Favorite African American Film

My all time favorite African American film is definitely Beverly Hills Cop. This 1984 comedy action film is directed by Martin Brest and stars Eddie Murphy as Axel Foley, a Detroit cop who goes to California to follow a lead on his best friends murder. Supporting characters include Judge Reihnhold, John Ashton, Ronny Cox, and Lisa Eilbacher.

In the film, Eddie Murphy seems to resemble me in a few aspects. He's intelligent and funny, yet does not fully submit to authority. He questions his boss quite a bit. Even when told not to take the case, he does what he knows is right and does it, and of course it works out for the best. 

Eddie Murphy, or Axel Foley, is a Detroit cop whose best friend is murdered by some thugs asking about some Germany bearer bonds Mikey (his friend) has in his possession. Because of his close ties with the case, his boss tells him not to go near it. So Axel, being the wise guy he is, tells his boss he needs some vacation time to get his mind of things. Ironically, it's to investigate the case head on. What follows is a hilarious bout with gangsters, women, police, and drugs. 

The filming for the Detroit scenes were mostly done in Pittsburgh, with a few in Detroit, and the remainder in California. The film shattered records at the box office and grosses almost 285 million making it the highest in 1984 and the third Highest grossing R rated film ever behind The Exorcist and The Godfather. 

Another great aspect of the film is the music. During that time period, upbeat techno music was prevalent, which is why the theme song is what it is. Duh duh duh du nuh nuh nuh duh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh duh duh duh duh duh nuh duh. Duh Nuh. 

My film ratings are based upon four criteria: Plot, Acting, Lead Female Character, and Overall Satisfaction with the film.

Plot: 9 Stars. Comedies are known for generally having poor, unoriginal plots. This one is actually surprisingly good. From Detroit to Beverly Hills, we see Axel Foley doing his thing with no regard for how people view him .The film was also extremely well written, with the first draft having been written seven years before the movie even came out.

Acting: 8 stars. In the film, Eddie Murphy is spectacular. Probably a solid 9 or 9.5. However, I found it difficult to draw any tangible connection to the supporting characters, who play a huge part in movies if you want to enjoy the overall experience. If that makes sense. It's 1 o'clock and i'm tired from work, so bear with me.




Lead Female Character: 7.5 Stars. Honestly, women do not really come into play much in this film. Therefore, the lead female character, Lisa Eilbacher, is a supporting character, but not extremely relevant in the film. She is, however, pretty for that time period, and is a straightforward, quaint individual whom one can not simply dislike.
Overall Satisfaction : 9 Stars. This is shockingly a great film taking into account numerous things. First, it's a comedy and it has a great plot. Secondly, Eddie Murphy was not well known, and this role shot him into his spot as an A-Lister. Overall a solid film.