Hey, I actually really liked this picture. At first, I wasn’t particularly attracted to it. As you know, I usually go to the movies to see macho studs and gangsters, edgy independent flicks, wild comedies or intelligent dramas, but I rarely check out chick flicks before they’re on video. Don’t think it’s because I’m a man’s man: I’m well in touch with my feminine side, I sometimes cry at movies and I simply adored movies like “Say Anything” and “When Harry Met Sally”. It’s just that way too many romantic comedies are phony and predictable, while only a few work whatever you’ve got in your trousers. This is one of them.
Most of this film’s hype surrounded Julia Roberts, as this was said to be her comeback movie after a series of bombs. I don’t know. I never really liked her all that much, but I admit that she’s fantastic here. She plays Julianne, just the kind of character she plays best: a cute and funny girl next door, all fun and simple. She’s a New York food critic who lives a good life, even though she hasn’t found true love yet (or so she thinks). She’s best friend with Michael (Dermot Mulroney) ever since she dumped him in college. They made a pact that if they were still single at 28, they would marry each other. And now, as Julianne is about to hit 28, Michael calls… But it’s to tell her he’s about to marry Kimmy (delightfully played by Cameron Diaz), a 20-year-old college graduate, heiress to the billionaire owner of the Chicago White Sox. As fun as she’s gorgeous, there’s something about Kimmy! Julianne is upset about all that for some reason, which turns out to be that she’s been deeply in love with Michael all these years without realizing it, and now she’s got only 4 days to make him hers!
This must have been a challenging plot for screenwriter Ronald Bass. Both female leads are wonderful, so it’s hard to decide which one Michael should go to. Roberts’ the perfect girlfriend, while Diaz is the dreamiest chick you’ve ever seen. We understand Julianne’s motives, but we don’t want her to crush the charming Kimmy. As you can see, this is a hard situation, but the film plays with it really well, and you have to admire how not only it’s hard to guess how it’s gonna end, we aren’t even sure what would be best!
This isn’t the most insightful of films, but the writing is sharp enough. The movie was directed by P.J. Hogan, an Australian filmmaker who I’m not familiar with. Well, he does a very good job. His film is always fun and surprising. I especially liked how feel-good it was, thanks in no small part to the soundtrack, which comes almost entirely from the Burt Bacharach repertoire. Another high in the film is Rupert Everett, who plays George, Julianne’s gay editor and confident. The guy is hilarious! He steals every single one of his scenes.
“My Best Friend’s Wedding” is undoubtedly a film to see. It might not be edgy, profound or extremely funny, but it sure is an entertaining movie. Whether you usually like chick flicks or not, you should check this one out.