"Tattoo on the lower back? Might as well be a bullseye." - Jeremy

Rating: 7/10 (16 August 2005)

I was excited and intrigued to see the latest big comedy 'Wedding Crashers'. The reason for that is because it starred Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn, two very funny comedic actors who never really had a chance to steal the show. Whether it was Vince Vaughn in Old School (the show was stolen by Will Ferrell), or Owen Wilson in 'Starsky & Hutch' (Ben Stiller owned that movie), the two never really stood out in their films. For me, 'Wedding Crashers' took two very good yet underrated comedic actors and gave them a chance to really showcase their talent without Stiller or Ferrel stealing the movie. I was expecting a funny movie, and I got a freakin' hilarious film that could go down as a classic screwball gross-out comedy just like 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High' or even the masterful 'Animal House'. 'Wedding Crashers' is likely to bring out the dirty, raunchy and wild party animal in all of us.
'Wedding Crashers' is the story about two best friends, John Beckwith (Owen Wilson) and Jeremy Grey (Vince Vaughn). By day they work as divorce court mediators, but at night they work at crashing weddings to score ditsy and vulnerable chicks. Whether it's American, Italian, Jewish, Indian or Chinese weddings, John and Jeremy always manage to be the hit of the party and get a couple of scorching looking babes in the sack. One day, the perfect opportunity approaches them. They get a chance to crash the weddings of all weddings -- the wedding of the Washington, D.C. State Treasurer's (Christopher Walken) daughter. Jeremy and John go to the wedding and find girls; John gets to know the sweet, funny and affectionate eldest daughter Claire Cleary (Rachel McAdams), and Jeremy gets to know the bi-polar, crazed youngest daughter Gloria (Isla Fisher) with the psychotic squeaky laugh. Gloria falls for Jeremy (who's afraid of her), and both him and John get invited to spend the weekend at the Cleary family compound. During the weekend, all hell breaks loose! John tries to win Claire over so she'll leave her stuck-up verbally-abusive a-hole boyfriend (Bradley Cooper), while Jeremy tries to get away from the insane Gloria.
Calling 'Wedding Crashers' funny is a whopper of an understatement. I haven't laughed so hard in a movie theater since I saw 'Team America'. However, the film isn't as funny the second half as it is the first half. The first half is absolute comic brilliance with outrageous laughs and yucks, but the second half (still very funny) gets very sappy and turns into a sort-of love story. Vince Vaughn steals the entire film as the smart-mouthed Jeremy who always is doing or saying something hysterical. Owen Wilson is also funny playing his typical witty slick guy he played in 'Starsky and Hutch' and 'Shanghai Noon'. Rachel McAdams is good for her bland role of the sweet and kind Claire, but Isla Fisher is drop dead hilarious as the psychotic and spoiled younger daughter who takes a liking to Vince Vaughn. I was disappointed of how watered-down Christopher Walken's character was because he really is a talented comedic performer if given the chance. Jane Seymour co-stars as the sex-hungry wife of Walken who wants to score Owen Wilson in the sack, while newcomer Keir O'Donnell is a hoot as the disturbed gay son who tries to score Vince Vaughn in the sack. The film also has bit parts by Rebecca De Mornay, Dwight Yokam and the token old-lady Ellen Albertini Dow (Adam Sandler's grandma from 'The Wedding Singer') playing Walken's foul-mouthed and bigoted elderly mother.
There isn't much to not like about 'Wedding Crashers'. If it wasn't for the second half dragging, I would have enjoyed it a hell of a lot more. David Dobkin does a fine job directing this (his previous efforts were 'Shanghai Knights' which starred Wilson, and 'Clay Pigeons' which starred Vaughn.) For the type of movie 'Wedding Crashers' is it's superior in so many ways. I recommend seeing it in the theaters if you haven't already for numerous belly laughs, if you don't mind the film's depravity. Will Ferrell even has a small role in this, but I won't tell you who he plays. Grade: B (screened at AMC Deer Valley 30, Phoenix, Arizona, 7/15/05)
my ratings guide - A+ (absolutley flawless); A (a masterpiece, near-perfect); A- (excellent); B+ (great); B (very good); B- (good); C+ (a mixed bag); C (average); C- (disappointing); D+ (bad); D (very bad); D- (absolutley horrendous); F (not one redeeming quality in this hunk of Hollywood feces).