Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)

Sorry, this movie sucks

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

A Major Disappointment

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Why is this mediocre romantic comedy-drama film so popular? The protagonist, Charles (played by Hugh Grant), happens to meet an American, Carrie (played by Andie MacDowell), at four weddings and a funeral. The biggest problem with this dreadful film is that Carrie is very unlikeable. She's cold, aloof, selfish and arrogant. She's not particularly physically attractive either. It's difficult to believe that Charles thinks she's wonderful.

Reviewed June 2011I always feared these kind of movies and loathed Andie MacDowell's smile. Both feelings subsided a bit by the end of two weddings. That's when I realized their material got over as it's a downhill from there and both the feelings cropped right back to the top.Well there is not much of a story to talk about as the title says, there will be 4 weddings and a funeral and where Hugh Grant character meets Andie MacDowell's in the first and they hook up, they meet again in the second and same story there too. For an unknown reason, MacDowell marries some Scottish guy in the third wedding and you should know by then what would happen in the funeral and the next wedding. There is a bunch of fun characters as the humor free flows for the first half of the movie, then they do the same all over again which is when the true color of the movie comes out as it depends completely on Hugh Grant's despicable histrionics. I watched so far and if I write a review without finishing it and one of you guys point out the spectacular ending I might have missed. That wouldn't be cool. So I endured. It ended just as anyone would have written who has seen two thirds of the movie.

For some reason for the last two years this is my later-night go-to rewatch movie. I missed this the first (or second or third) time around and it just came on my radar screen a few years back. I was never really a big fan of any of the leads, I guess Andie McDowell was closest from Groundhog Day. But I really like Hugh Grant as the introspective victim (or so he feels) of several misfired romances who always has trouble making weddings on time. Andie is the first girl who causes lightning, but is it just him or does she feel it too? The ensemble work by Hugh's friends is top notch, particularly Callow as the true life of the party, but the whole crew works great together. This has a realistic feel to it and I highly recommend it.

Four Weddings has achieved iconic status as a British film and for good reasons. It comes under the category of a romantic comedy but I would argue that it is in fact far more than that. It is a film about love in all its myriad and astonishing aspects - love between man and woman, or between 2 men, love between mother and child and longstanding friendship which can be much more important than sexual love. You would need a heart of stone not to cry at the funeral scene. The film is beautiful to look at with the contrasting weddings and gorgeous costumes. It is directed with a very light touch and interweaves the main characters in an ingenious way. The acting is generally superb and without a doubt it is Hugh Grant's greatest role - before he became middle aged and cynical. My only objection is that Andie McDowell was a very odd choice for the role, not very beautiful and not a serious actress. Apart from that, the film is perfect in every respect and I could watch it forever.