I wrote an entry comparing this movie to Animal House nearly ten months ago, but I never really reviewed the movie itself, so I figured that it was time to rectify that situation.
Overall, the movie is certainly enjoyable. It's nothing like Animal House, true, but very few movies are. Frankly, I don't think it's even as good as Old School, but it's definitely a closer comparison. The problem is that it simply doesn't flow. Both Animal House and Old School stayed true to their vision throughout, while Wedding Crashers starts and stops, which detracts from the overall enjoyment.
The movie starts very slowly, with John (Owen Wilson) and Jeremy (Vince Vaughn) helping a couple get through their divorce.
There is really almost no reason for this scene, but it's relatively short, so it's not that bad. After the scene ends, John and Jeremy are seen gearing up for the approaching wedding season, where they can assume the identities of whoever they want in order to crash weddings and meet girls.
Naturally, they are very good at this, both having learned from the master, Chazz Reinhold (Will Ferrell) and having perfected the craft over many years. But at the end of the season a new target awaits - the Cleary Wedding. This is the holy grail of wedding crashers, featuring a society wedding, and it simply cannot be missed, so John and Jeremy take a shot. This is the first place where the movie falters.
To this point, everything (other than that first scene) was funny and moving along well. Here, however, it slows down and moves into a slower gear. Very few movies can maintain a frenzied pace over an hour and a half, but shifts like this are dangerous. This one actually pulls it off during the wedding itself. But when John and Jeremy go to the Cleary house for a weekend, the wheels start to fall off the car.
There are laughs here and there, such as during the football game, at the dinner table and watching the boyfriend deal with Visine in his water glass. But the pace is so different it's hard to adjust and it just isn't well-done. It's like two or three movies are put together and the results aren't as enjoyable as if they were done separately. There are certainly laughs to be had, but it's much better done elsewhere.
Rated R for sexual content, nudity and language.
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