The Wedding Singer

The Wedding Singer
February 13, 1998
New Line Cinema
Comedy, Romance, Historical
VHS
B

I'm not an Adam Sandler fan and I don't think this movie particularly captures the '80s, especially 1985.  (It's like they threw the decade into a blender, with JR's shooting here and Miami Vice there, and a soundtrack that sounds mostly like '83, admittedly not unlike Romy & Michele.)  And yet, this is one of the better rom-coms of its era, still holding up well, although more time has passed since '98 than there had between '98 and '85.

While not all the credit is due to 22-year-old but already very experienced Drew Barrymore (John's granddaughter), I do think the teaming of her and Sandler brings out his sweetness, which affects the whole movie.  By the time an entire planeload of strangers (including Billy Idol as himself) is rooting for Sandler's Robbie to win Barrymore's Julia away from her scummy fiance, you have to have a heart of stone (or at least an aversion to rom-coms) to not yourself tear up at the "Grow Old with You" song.

This is not to say that the movie doesn't have the usual tasteless Sandler humor.  (I could've done without the ass-grabbing slow-dance, especially since it includes pubescent-adult pairings.)  There are children (the youngest about four) and old people saying allegedly hilarious and outrageous things.  Many of the '80s jokes fall flat.  Still, there is enough to enjoy here that it's worth viewing, and re-viewing.

I want to give shout-outs to three supporting cast members.  Former Marcia Brady imitator Christine Taylor is almost unrecognizable but equally good as Julia's slutty but kind cousin Holly.  Alexis Arquette is fun as Robbie's friend and bandmate George (who idolizes Boy George).  Arquette was Dick in Threesome and in a way these films show part of the the queer timeline of his/her life, since the performer would transition to female around 2006.  The absolute best cameo in the movie is Steve Buscemi's  David Veltri, two scenes (one at the beginning and one at the end) that he absolutely steals.

Incredibly, 78-year-old Sid Newman, who plays Frank, was Boy on Trolley in 1944's Meet Me in St. Louis, so I guess he beats George Burns, Groucho Marx, and Debbie Reynolds for longevity, although he's nowhere near their level of fame.  Marc Lonow, who's the Father of the Bride (I think the one who beats up Robbie), was Dave (the uptight married guy) twenty years earlier, in Thank God It's Friday.   Carmen Filpi, who's Old Man at Bar, had a small but pivotal role as Old Man Withers in Wayne's World.  Angela Paton was much more memorable as Mrs. Lancaster in Groundhog Day than she is as Faye here. Jason Cottle and Jenna Byrne, who play Scott and Cindy Castellucucci here, were in Wag the Dog as A.D. and Sharon respectively.

Nearly all of Priscilla Cory's credits read "Pretty Brunette" something, so she's Pretty Brunette Hostess here and would be Pretty Brunette High School Student in Barrymore's Never Been Kissed.  Allen Covert, who plays Sammy (Robbie's friend who idolizes Fonzie and Michael Jackson), would appear there as Roger in Op-Ed.

I don't have any other credits for rapper Ellen Albertini Dow, but she just passed away, at 101!

Nice day for a white wedding.

Threesome

Threesome
April 8, 1994
TriStar
Comedy, Drama, Romance
DVD
B+

This movie's racy title may be misleading.  Yes, it's about sex, including sex within and among three close but very different college roommates (guys named Eddy and Stuart, a girl named Alex), but it's also about love and friendship, and how those get mixed up with sex and with each other.  Appropriately enough, I first saw it the Fall after its initial release, on cable, in a dorm room.  In fact, I (by then a divorced 26-year-old) and two of the friends I watched it with went on to experience a more innocent version of the entanglements in the film.  So I can swear to you that the view of hijinks and pizza and sexual confusion is incredibly real.  (The "It's three in the morning!" "Shut up!" exchange is what would've occurred if anyone in our dormitory actually cared about us playing pranks on each other in the middle of the night.)  That the movie is set to a late '80s/ early '90s soundtrack (I lit up when Jellyfish's "My Best Friend" first played, and I still smile now), only further captures that time.

Even if you've never lived in a dorm, I think you'll be entertained.  The dialogue is witty in a college way.  That is, sometimes crude and sometimes pseudo-intellectual, but almost always funny.  There is also true poignancy in Eddy's dilemma.  (Josh Charles is perfect.)  He is a virgin but mostly identifies as gay, and yet he loves both his roommates.  (The word "bisexual" is never uttered by the way, which is a sign of the times.)  The romance is odd because I honestly don't like either Stuart or Alex (Stephen Baldwin and Lara Flynn Boyle) most of the time, and I don't desperately want any pair or triad of them to form.  But each time I watch the movie, I like seeing how it plays out.  I have watched the movie with a roomful of bisexuals by the way, and everyone fell silent during the ultimate sex/ love scene.  (It's not very graphic, but it is very erotic, tactile.)

Considering the small cast and budget, it's a very impressive movie, even today.  The lack of a strong plot (especially the ending) and some confusion about when Alex might've gotten pregnant (we know she usually uses condoms with Stuart, but the lack of graphic detail makes it unclear if they were forgotten during the three-sided sex), as well as the aforementioned not exactly sympathetic characters (even Eddy is insensitive to one poor girl Stuart brings "home"), weaken the film for me.  Still, there are things I like noticing, like how Alex does variations on '50s "costumes" in her everyday wardrobe, including a housewife when Stuart's date comes over for dinner.  My recommendation, watch the movie, unless the basic premise offends you.

Ironically, considering the name SNAFU (which by the way is also realistic, as I had to provide my college with proof that I was female and not subject to the draft), Dick is played by an Alex, Alexis Arquette, who is now a trans woman.  While still identifying as male, Arquette appeared as George in The Wedding Singer.  Writer/director Fleming (whose DVD commentary is well worth listening to) would appear as a doctor in Easy A, which has its own unique take on adolescent sexuality.

This is by the way, the 200th comedy on my blog, although like many of them, it's not simply a comedy.