Is there money in the Best Man business? No, there isn’t. This idea can’t possibly work. Nor would anyone want it to. First off, there’s always guys like me who love weddings – free food, free booze, dancing until close and women dressed to the nines; “you want me to be your best man? You know this is a wrong number, right? Sure, I’m in …” (FF to the reception) “… you know, when I first met Jorge on Tuesday, I thought …” Then there’s the perspective of your partner: the person you’re marrying has no close friends or relatives … is this really a bad thing? There’s a slew of people who will never get in your way – the success of your marriage will depend entirely upon you and he and nothin’ else from that side of the aisle. So you improvise – one of your guy friends becomes his best man. No biggie. I don’t see any (good) reason to hide this information.
Then there are the logistics – you cannot possibly get away with being a Best Man for more than a handful of different grooms. The world is too small to get away cleanly – clergy, caterers, common guests would all know eventually and have to be in on it. I mean, who is this for, really? The partner? Well, that’s setting your marriage off on good footing. “Yes, honey, our marriage was a lie, but that doesn’t mean I’ll ever lie again…” Would you buy that?
All that being said, the premise really isn’t so bad. Jimmy Callahan (Kevin Hart) can be your Best Man for a price. The opening suggests exactly why his services are valuable – he will make you look good. He will make your bride and her family think better of you. Seriously, if you could guarantee it, his services are invaluable. And then, like a roué with commitment issues, he splits, no love lost – he faked it like a five-star call girl. Can’t say I’ve enjoyed Kevin Hart in the past, but this is a good role for him. Assuming this character actually existed, I have no trouble believing Kevin would be this guy.
Sports memorabilia entrepreneur Doug Harris (Josh Gad) has no friends. Awwww. This is really sad. And he needs eight bodies for his upcoming wedding. And he’s packed in an entire dossier of lies to cover the personal friendlessness. There aren’t five men over forty who wouldn’t find something weird about the usher names chosen (Drysdale, Carew, Garvey, Dickerson, Alzado, Plunkett, Rambis), much less a father-in-law (Ken Howard) who played football, but hey, this is a fantasy. Best man Jimmy’s alias is Army Chaplain Bic Mitchum. When his fiancée (Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting)
questions how his best man’s name can be derived from products found in the medicine cabinet, Doug immediately responds, “if your friend was named ‘Jemima Colgate,’ you wouldn’t use Log Cabin or Crest, would you?”
I liked that line. In fact, I liked a lot of this movie – not the paint-by-numbers plot or the general theme of lying, of course. I mean, I have no idea who let Jimmy and Doug crash a wedding a week prior, but their dance floor montage is quite the sight. As are the groomsmen – and it’s not enough they’re a weird, weird lot, Jimmy makes sure each has a go-to talent in case of emergency. I wish I had a go to talent in case of emergency, even if it was just a funky dance move or a third testicle. This isn’t saying much, but The Wedding Ringer is more inventive than Kevin Hart’s previous five movies combined. Do more of this, Kevin. Do less Riding Along.
Jimmy’s booming business by-and-by
Providing Best Men do-or-die
Très preferential
And always essential
For a marriage to kick off with a lie
Rated R, 101 Minutes
D: Jeremy Garelick
W: Jeremy Garelick, Jay Lavender
Genre: Groomzilla
Type of person most likely to enjoy this film: Bachelors
Type of person least likely to enjoy this film: Bridezillas
