Tom McDevon (Josh Duhamel) and Lila Hayes (Anna Paquin) are getting married. Her family and their college friends are gathering for the occasion. Laura Rosen (Katie Holmes) is his ex but Lila has invited her to be her maid of honor. Jake (Adam Brody) and Weesie (Rebecca Lawrence Levy) are engaged. Tripler (Malin Akerman) and Pete (Jeremy Strong) are the other college couple. Minnow (Dianna Agron) and Chip (Elijah Wood) are Lila's siblings. Lila's mother Augusta (Candice Bergen) warns her about Tom getting cold feet. Laura is a mess believing Lila has stolen her life while Lila has a nagging sense of their connection.
This is a cross between 'The Big Chill' and 'Rachel Getting Married'. Galt Niederhoffer overuses overwritten dialog when real emotions are required. Duhamel and Holmes are not necessarily the greatest of acting talents although they do good work sometimes. Their late night confrontation strikes me as actors acting. They are rushing through their college level lines and even tears can't convey real emotions. Paquin, the third side of this triangle, shows good inner conflict but she is still somewhat miscast. The other characters do their parts but in the end, I can't accept Duhamel and Holmes.
The Romantics
2010
Action / Comedy / Drama / Romance
The Romantics
2010
Action / Comedy / Drama / Romance
Plot summary
Friends and family convene at a beach house for the wedding of Lila and Tom. But things don't go swimmingly, mainly because of one thing that Lila and her maid of honor, Laura, have in common - Tom, the groom. Laura and Tom were an item before Lila came along and nobody seems able to forget that. With very few successful marriages to look up to, and friends that she's not sure she can trust, will Lila be able to go through with the wedding?
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
Director
Top cast
Tech specs
720p.BLU 1080p.BLUMovie Reviews
overwritten dialog
I do, I do
Galt Nietherfoffer wrote the novel in which this film is based and directed her own adaptation. Not having read the book, it is hard to make a more objective comparison. It is another wedding picture, but in spite of its subject, the screen treatment does not break any new ground. We are sure that the the creators started with another movie in their minds.
We are taken to a Northern Long Island location where old moneyed types live, quite a contrast from the flashier Hamptons. Lila Hayes is getting married to Tom. The two families have gathered for the wedding rehearsal and the obligatory dinner. Laura Rosen, who is the maid of honor, has a reason for being uncomfortable, she is in love with the bridegroom. Lila, a callous young woman, knows all about it, but she is going ahead with her plans to be a bride the following day.
After dinner, the wedding party decides to keep celebrating at the beach. A lot of alcohol is consumed and Tom and Laura rehash their differences, for Tom realizes the kind of life he is to expect to live with Lila, a woman he obviously does not love. After all the awkward comments from all the so-called friends, we cannot help but wonder: will Tom marry Lila, or will he not? Well, do not expect fireworks to go off any time soon.
The miscasting of Anna Paquin derails the film. This is a film that fall between "My Best Friend's Wedding" and "Rachel Getting Married", this last one kept popping into our mind at the time of the rehearsal dinner toasts. Kathy Holmes has done better. All the male roles are so uninteresting one wonders why were they included. The ultimate problem lies on the fact that we do not connect to this wedding as we should have.
No Ending and Not A Comedy
This movie is more drama than comedy. There really aren't enough comedic moments to put it in the comedy category. I wouldn't call it a romance either. My main issue with it is that nothing was resolved in the end. The rest of the movie was enjoyable enough, but the lack of resolution left me annoyed in the end.