one of my colleagues was surprised when i told her i was willing to see betsy 's wedding .
and she was shocked to hear that i actually liked it .
her reaction was understandable when you consider that the film revolves around molly ringwald , who has n't made a worthwhile film since 1986 .
but the fact is , betsy 's wedding is also an alan alda film .
and while ringwald has been making duds for the last four years , alda has been involved with several noteworthy projects , including crimes and misdemeanors and a new life .
written and directed by alda , betsy 's wedding is a vibrant slice - of - life , mixing a few dramatic moments into a big bowl of whimsical humor .
alda 's comic elixir is smooth and refreshing
--and a welcome change of pace from the usual summer fare .
as bride and groom , molly ringwald and dylan walsh are the pivotal characters in the film , but they are by far the least interesting .
walsh is a nonentity , with all the screen presence of a door knob .
ringwald is simply unbearable and is easily the weakest link in the chain .
she looks hideous with her short - cropped orange hair , red lip - stick and grotesque outfits .
she 's supposed to be a dress designer , but she looks more like a clown .
and to make matters worse , ringwald 's performance matches her appearance .
thankfully , alda keeps ringwald 's screen time to a minimum ; he is far more interested in the colorful periphery characters .
the wedding is just a device to bring together the bride 's working - class , italian family and the groom 's rich , gentile family .
ringwald 's folks are homey and down - to - earth , with alda as her free - spirited father , madeline kahn as her practical mother , and ally sheedy as her lonely sister .
walsh 's clan , on the other hand , is prim , proper and ostentatious .
when the two families meet and mingle , the movie becomes a story of culture clash , or as one character puts it , " money versus values .
"
ally sheedy , in a wonderfully understated performance , is one of the film 's most pleasant surprises .
sheedy expresses more with just her eyes than ringwald does with her entire body .
it 's anthony lapaglia , however , who seizes the spotlight .
lapaglia plays stevie dee , a suave , overly polite mafioso who is formally courting sheedy with old - fashioned chivalry .
lapaglia 's sincere but dim - witted character is a riot .
and what 's uncanny is that lapaglia is a dead ringer for robert de niro , with a little bit of alec baldwin thrown in for good measure .
lapaglia seems to have attended the de niro school of gangster acting , and his inspired performance is partly a tribute to his role - model and partly a rip - off .
i do n't know whether to say a star is born or a star is re - born , but i do know that lapaglia 's over - the - top performance should not be missed .
the scrumptious comic acting , however , extends well beyond sheedy and lapaglia .
joe pesci , in particular , sinks his teeth into his role as alda 's unscrupulous brother - in - law , a slum lord with mob ties , who is cheating on his wife ( catherine o'hara ) .
alda , faced with challenge of both directing and acting , somehow finds just the right comic touch
as the bride 's financially - strapped father , a carpenter whose dreams are bigger than his wallet .
the film adopts alda 's psychological point of view as he tries to one : plan the wedding , and two : pay for it .
as a filmmaker , alda 's style of humor is remarkably restrained and tasteful .
and while he does n't have the comic genius of a woody allen , alda does possess the inspiration to make movies which are ten times more entertaining than the slop which usually passes for comedy .
Output: P