A Date Movie For Those of us Who Aren't Whipped

Rating: 9/10 (26 July 2005)

I hate seeing reviews containing the term, "this summer's best date movie." What it usually means is the plot centers around a guy who is half-whipped at the beginning of the movie. Then, by the time Meg Ryan gets done with him at the end, he is completely whipped, a mere shell of his former self. We are led to believe he is happy.
Wedding Crashers is a "new date movie." It is about men and women, the lies they tell, the sex they enjoy, the fun they have, and...if they eventually become domesticated at the end...its without giving up what made them special in the first place. The trailers and plot summaries for Wedding Crashers may lead you to believe that the movie is about the adventures of two lying and lecherous guys. But, that is only half the story. The women in Wedding Crashers are smart, dynamic, deceitful, and damn sure, every bit as funny as their male counterparts. Women will love this movie, too.
Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn play it super cool as two masters of the "Wedding Crash" -- freeloaders who cruise the Washington wedding scene in hopes of bedding down love-hungry bridesmaids. Against better judgment and the rules of "The Crash," the pair become over-involved at the wedding of the Secretary of The Treasury's daughter. Violating their usual hit and run mantra, both join the family for an extended party at the official's estate.
Here, the casting of Christopher Walken as Secretary Cleary can almost be seen as a decoy. When you see Walken in the cast, you expect crazy. But he doesn't come close to the lunacy displayed by his wife, son, daughters and especially his mother. The hijinks involving Wilson and Vaughn and the various members of the wedding party are fresh, surprising, and for the most part, hilarious. Within it all, a love story sneaks up on you like a full nelson and draws you in before you have time to resist.
There would have been so many formulaic ways to create a sappy "date-movie" ending out of this story, but thanks to a fantastic script, hysterical performances by Wilson and Vaughn and the freedom of an R rating, Wedding Crashers remains true to its characters. There is no phoniness. We loved these guys at the beginning. We love them at the end. They have not changed for love.
Certainly a date movie for today's times, Wedding Crashers says we can be flawed, crude, and chronic liars, and instead of someone being out there to save us, there is someone out there to match us. I found the movie to be refreshing, clever, heartwarming, but most of all, simply hilarious.