I think it was Shakespeare who said that weddings could be the worst of times or the best of times, or maybe it was someone else about another subject entirely. Either way you either love them or hate them, but almost everyone has been in one, or at least attended one. As the bride and groom you have to do so much before you say “I Do” . Things like pick out the cake, pick out the place, and oh yeah find bridesmaids and groomsman. That part sounds the easiest, just call your friends and ask them to do the duty, but what if you have no friends? Who you gonna call, well it’s not The Ghostbusters, it’s the wedding ringer, a guy who will be your best man for a fee.
The scenario I just described is the plot for the new film “The Wedding Ringer”. Doug Harris (Josh Gad) has a great job and is marrying Gretchen (Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting), a woman way out of his league. Their day of bliss is upon them, but there is a slight problem, Doug doesn’t actually gave any friends, and the groomsmen whose names he has given are some of his favorite sports stars. Lucky for him he is given the name Jimmy Callahan (Kevin Hart), a man who will be your best friend and your best man for a fee. Doug though doesn’t just need a best man; he needs six other guys to be his friend and his groomsmen as well. So just like that Jimmy Callahan becomes Doug’s best friend, a priest who is serving in the military, together he and Doug must pull off the golden tuxedo and give Doug the wedding and the friends he’s never had.
We are now one year in the world where Kevin Hart is in what seems like every movie. With plenty of box office success, but whose act is wearing a little thin, with the way he has performed in his last films. The good news that Kevin Hart does not show up in “The Wedding Ringer”, and I never thought I would say this, but I sure do miss him. This Kevin Hart is ok; he just is not that funny. Add a just as not funny Josh Gad and well you have a not so very funny movie. Written by Jeremy Garelick (The Break-Up) and Jay Lavender (The Break-Up) the movie just doesn’t’ feel right, especially after it makes one of the funnier comedians and makes him not so funny. The other problem is that this movie already exists, or well a movie with a lot of similarities, and it is a whole lot better, that film was “Hitch” with Will Smith playing a better Kevin Hart and Kevin James a lot funnier as a lovable loser than Josh Gad. I wanted to enjoy thing movie, but with so many things not to laugh at, this movie make attending a real wedding a blast compare to watching this film. I hope the real Kevin Hart shows back up in whatever four other movies he will be in this year, because this Kevin Hart is no fun, and neither is “The Wedding Ringer”.
Brian Taylor
