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The Wedding Singer
Adam Sandler had one of his biggest hits with 1998's The Wedding Singer, a silly romantic comedy that has garnered a cult following over the years, but if the truth be told, Sandler has done better work.
Set in 1985 in a fictional town called Ridgefield, Sandler plays Robbie Hart, a voice teacher and wedding singer who has just been left at the alter. Julia Sullivan (Drew Barrymore) is a waitress where Robbie works and has just gotten engaged to her scummy fiancee after two years. Since Julia's fiancee wants nothing to do with planning the wedding, Robbie agrees to help and guess what happens?
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Two minutes into the film, we are told that the film takes place in 1985 but this was completely unnecessary...I can't remember the last time I saw a film that screams "the 80's" the way this one does...the big hair, the outrageous clothes, disco and break dancing, everything you expect in a 1980's romantic comedy you will find here. There's a scene where the fiancee gifts Julia with a CD player that he paid $400 for! I was surprised that John Hughes had nothing to do with this one, though I have a hard time imagining Sandler in a Hughes film, but one thing this film does is nail the period. There is nothing in this film that doesn't scream 1985, and that includes the kick-ass song score.
Tim Herlihy's screenplay spoon-feeds us this story very methodically, as if we couldn't tell what was going to happen about 10 minutes in. Having the central character being a wedding singer does provide a somewhat original canvas upon which to base the story, which makes its predictability a little easier to take.
What I really liked about this film is the character of Robbie Hart and Sandler's bringing this character to fruition. This is actually one of Sandler's richest performances, leaving behind a lot of the accustomed man-child that we're accustomed to. I love the fact that even though this character is a rock singer and songwriter, we still see the lost ambition behind his eyes. I also loved the fact that it was so important to this lost rocker that he get married and have a family. Sandler works very hard at making this rambling story interesting for the entire running time and he almost succeeds. This character also gives Sandler the opportunity to show off his severely underrated musical talent.
Drew Barrymore was a little sugary as Julia, but she and Sandler do have a chemistry that would eventually lead to them making two more films together. I also liked Matthew Glave as the slimy fiancee and there are fun cameos from Jon Lovitz, Kevin Nealon, Billy Idol and Sandler rep company member Steve Buscemi. Frank Coraci's direction could have used a little more pacing, but it never interferes with Sandler's charm.
Adam Sandler had one of his biggest hits with 1998's The Wedding Singer, a silly romantic comedy that has garnered a cult following over the years, but if the truth be told, Sandler has done better work.
Set in 1985 in a fictional town called Ridgefield, Sandler plays Robbie Hart, a voice teacher and wedding singer who has just been left at the alter. Julia Sullivan (Drew Barrymore) is a waitress where Robbie works and has just gotten engaged to her scummy fiancee after two years. Since Julia's fiancee wants nothing to do with planning the wedding, Robbie agrees to help and guess what happens?
Two minutes into the film, we are told that the film takes place in 1985 but this was completely unnecessary...I can't remember the last time I saw a film that screams "the 80's" the way this one does...the big hair, the outrageous clothes, disco and break dancing, everything you expect in a 1980's romantic comedy you will find here. There's a scene where the fiancee gifts Julia with a CD player that he paid $400 for! I was surprised that John Hughes had nothing to do with this one, though I have a hard time imagining Sandler in a Hughes film, but one thing this film does is nail the period. There is nothing in this film that doesn't scream 1985, and that includes the kick-ass song score.
Tim Herlihy's screenplay spoon-feeds us this story very methodically, as if we couldn't tell what was going to happen about 10 minutes in. Having the central character being a wedding singer does provide a somewhat original canvas upon which to base the story, which makes its predictability a little easier to take.
What I really liked about this film is the character of Robbie Hart and Sandler's bringing this character to fruition. This is actually one of Sandler's richest performances, leaving behind a lot of the accustomed man-child that we're accustomed to. I love the fact that even though this character is a rock singer and songwriter, we still see the lost ambition behind his eyes. I also loved the fact that it was so important to this lost rocker that he get married and have a family. Sandler works very hard at making this rambling story interesting for the entire running time and he almost succeeds. This character also gives Sandler the opportunity to show off his severely underrated musical talent.
Drew Barrymore was a little sugary as Julia, but she and Sandler do have a chemistry that would eventually lead to them making two more films together. I also liked Matthew Glave as the slimy fiancee and there are fun cameos from Jon Lovitz, Kevin Nealon, Billy Idol and Sandler rep company member Steve Buscemi. Frank Coraci's direction could have used a little more pacing, but it never interferes with Sandler's charm.