Directed and Written by Jeff Chan and Andrew Rhymer
Starring Maya Erskine and Jack Quaid
Produced by Red Hour Productions
Viewed on Netflix
This movie flew under my radar in 2019 after premiering at the Tribeca Film Festival it only got a limited theatrical release and was put on Hulu and VOD which I do not have. The production company is Ben Stiller operated and I tend to enjoy his work. This movie centers around Alice Mori and Ben King played by Maya Erskine and Jack Quaid. The two main characters are a pair of singles going through a summer wedding circuit and the woes of being the “bridesmaid but never the bride”. Alice is single due to a recent breakup that has left some scars and Ben is letting perfect get in the way of the good when it comes to his love life. Both characters clearly want love in their life but sit on the sidelines as everyone but them gets married. Attempts to mingle and meet other singles ends in failure. Ben and Alice decide to plus one each other to all of the weddings they are invited to in an effort to support and wingman/woman each other.
The tale of young adults feeling the pressure to get married and fear of being alone is not a new story. However, the two leads perform quite well in their roles and make a familiar tale feel fresh. The movie did feel a bit predictable but the characters were likable enough to still keep the movie enjoyable. I had never seen Maya Erskine in another movie but she was funny and had an unusual but sarcastic delivery in her lines but could hunker down and be convincing for the more serious and dramatic moments of the movie. Jack Quaid I learned was the son of Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan and kept noticing when he looked like each parent which was somewhat distracting. I thought Jack played a pretty good straight role in a comedy film and was a nice compliment to Erskine. He was a little more jaded by his father’s divorce and his unrealistic views on love/marriage. Where Alice had a protection mechanism from getting hurt early, Ben was willing to dive into things but would get antsy at shit or get off the pot time.
There was a fair bit of character development over the course of the film. It seemed like the movie was going on a down note before a change of course in the final act. The ending felt a little cop out like but then again many relationships and human behavior don’t always go in the direction of the expected. As a thirty something guy who is not married and has gone through the gauntlet of friends and cousins getting married I do know the pressure and emotions that weddings can draw out. It is another landmark on the life cycle of adulthood and I feel this is a time when kids become adults. Married people tend to run with other married people and the next step is having children. Those two steps basically end any remnant of childhood and lead into middle age. A cleavage forms between single and married and some feel the pressure to settle down and marry and others stay the single course and maybe become less relatable to those around them. These realities are faced by the stars of the show and I believe both actors navigate and portray this conundrum very well.
I will conclude by indicating that I enjoyed the movie and would want to see more from the directors and lead performers. The movie had a good mix of humor and serious and will be relatable to those in the wedding age demographic. It may not be relatable to teens but might be charming to those past the wedding age viewers.
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