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The Wedding Video fails in every aspect; from an entirely predictable storyline, to the cringe-worthy performances courtesy of Rufus Hound and Robert Webb, this Brit flick proves to be a childish and boring attempt at both comedy and romance.
Directed by Nigel Cole, who created Calendar Girls and Made in Dagenham, the film employs a structure which has potential yet the tediousness of the plot produces a movie which leaves the audience cold.
Robert Webb, from Peep Show fame, plays Tim, a stressed and sensitive groom to be, who invites his brother, Raif (Rufus Hound) to be his best man for the upcoming nuptials. Raif decides to honour the happy couple with a wedding video, filmed on his wobbly handheld camera, and seeks to capture the trials and tribulations which lead up to the big day.
Tim’s wife-to-be proves to be an old flame of Raif’s, elusive Saskia (played by Lucy Punch) was a wild teenager who caught his eye back in high school and it is clear from the outset that their past will prove a problem. Their arranging of the wedding; featuring a wine tasting and choosing the wedding dress pushes the characters closer and Webb is left out of the picture.
The film concentrates on a group of Cheshire elite. a collection of women who attempt to outshine each other with their extravagant shows of wealth and it is in their planning of the wedding, that the comedic value is meant to lie.
However, the film fails to stop a surge of cinema goers, who abandon the film after the first 30 minutes of showing. Although comparisons have been made to the hit TV series ‘Peep Show,’ it is clear that even fans of Webb will be left feeling slightly embarrassed by this unforgiving attempt at comedy.
Lucy Punch as a snobby and completely messed up bride to be, flounders at every hurdle and her annoying facial expressions do little to win audience affections. The film has a feeling of being carefully staged, moments which are meant to be hilarious, such as a dance scene between the couple which sees them falling about infront of a foreboding Russian teacher, feels frankly awkward and only prolong the agony that the film commands.
Miriam Margolyes as Saskia’s posh grandmother has moments of humour and if only she were allowed to blossom into her usual brash style, the movie might hold more weight. Even Michelle Gomez leaves the audience cold in her role as a wedding planner, insistent that everything is to the highest standard, until she mixes alcohol and medication at the wedding to disastrous effect.
The most laughs are commanded by Angus Barnett who as Vicar gets entirely carried away by the events unfolding, and his laugh is really infectious. Best known for his repeated performances in the Pirates of the Caribbean saga, he provides a welcome relief to this monotonous mockumentary at regular intervals.
The finale of the film is entirely unbelievable and proves the last straw in this sinking comedy. Rufus Hound fails to save the final scenes and leaves us wishing we had left with the cinema with the hordes whilst we still could.