27 Dresses
There are some movies that I want to see, but need someone else to suggest it so that I can honestly say, “I wasn’t the one who said we should watch it.” And under my breath, I sigh, relieved that my secret wasn’t found out. Most of the time, these movies are romantic comedies. It’s inexplainable as to why I can watch movies from this genre knowing all the while that the majority of them are just pablum.
Last Sunday, my mom wanted to watch 27 Dresses. With wanting to catch the pretty Katherine Heigl on screen, I agreed. At least, I didn’t suggest it.
It’s the standard romantic comedy fair.
Girl loves the right boy who’s completely unattainable for her and the wrong fit (Ed Burns whose eco-friendly businessman I can’t ever imagine acting the way he does).
Girl meets the wrong boy who’s the right fit. She argues with the wrong-right-fit boy and they are steadily drawn to each other. This mutual attraction blossoms to full on passion after drunk karaoke. The wrong-right-fit boy breaks her heart over a little misunderstanding (okay. a bigger misunderstanding), but the right-wrong-fit boy doesn’t do it for her either. She’s really in love with the wrong-right-fit boy. They express their feelings towards each other in the end.
Also, in the plot was the sister who stole right-wrong-fit boy away. And the quirky sidekick who’s name in the script should be Judy Greer as this actress has cornered the market for this type of role. The sister is played by Malin Akerman who makes a living being the so-called hottie, but isn’t anywhere near good to look at. Give me Heigl any day.
Simple. It adheres to the romantic comedy conventions that you know this would be better seen on cable, on TBS, during next summer.
Yet, it wasn’t all that bad. No matter how dumb the setup is or how much of a cliche the movie gets, it was saved by James Marsden. The last year seemed to be Josh Brolin’s year in film, but I would argue that Marsden makes for a strong claim for Best Film year 2007. If Brolin is the drama guy, Marsden is the goto comic, sappy, hunk. He’s charming in this film, finally getting a chance to play the lead and win the girl. That big ol’ smile of his helps make his cynical wedding reviewer melt Heigl’s heart. Maybe this will be his year. Hurray for cyclops!
This was the better of the two movies that I watched that day. At least it didn’t make me sick.
3 of 5 stars.
