The Wedding Ringer is a must see!!!

Wedding cinematography and videography will not be the only focus of this blog. I want to focus on all aspects of cinema. Whether it is film releases, education, or product reviews, I designed this blog to be much more than wedding cinema. I have always wanted to be a movie critic! Well…..I was a movie critic, I went to film school. For those who have not attended a school of the arts, you will find your best and worse critics there. If you can survive your peer’s critique, you’ll be fine.I am starting another new series on the blog called Movie Review Wednesday. For this week’s Movie Review Wednesday, I want to touch on the one film that may fit every wedding blog on the Internet, “The Wedding Ringer”. It is rare I leave a movie theater and say “I would pay to see this again”, but this movie did that for me. It had everything you could want in a comedy movie, but it had a deeper message. It was a blockbuster hit, grossing $21 million. Possibly because the funniest man on the planet right now, Kevin Hart was the lead of the film, but surprisingly if you have watched this film, you would discover Josh Gad was the true comedy relief. It was surprising to see a Kevin Hart movie where he didn’t steal the show for me.CinematographyBeing a cinematographer, I analyze cinematography before I analyze anything else. It was clear, director Jeremy Garelick and lead cinematographer, Bradford Lipson did their share of homework on how weddings are filmed today. I was surprised to see dolly shots, jib shots, and steadicam shots. Although these are standard shots see in almost every film, it was a surprise to see them during the wedding scenes. The framing and composition reveals there was research done. You truly see the cinematography shine in the wedding scenes. Other than that it was a basic shot list, which is normal in romantic comedies.StoryI must be the first to admit, I am not a big romantic comedy fan. Sometimes they can be a hit or miss when it comes to storytelling. No matter how big your budget is, you can’t cover up a bad script. This was different.When you break down the basis of the story, it isn’t about a man who is marrying a woman for the wrong reasons…well it is, but that was not the universal meaning in my opinion.It was not about an average looking guy marrying a beautiful model type girlfriend…well that’s true too.But the overall meaning of the film is no matter how successful you are in life, if you have no one to share it with, than you are missing the true meaning of happiness. Bic was a fixer, but he truly had the problem. It had nothing to do with a woman; it was more about a friendship. The best man is a symbolism of your best friend or the closest person you know. John Gab’s character hired a best man in Kevin Hart, but Kevin Hart was the one who was missing a best man in the end. Deep I know, but hey what can I say? I LIVE FOR CINEMA……LOLThe best part of the film for me was how the antagonist was introduced. There is always a protagonist and an antagonist. Throughout this film, I wondered would we see the antagonist, but Jeremy Garelick decided he would not reveal the true antagonist until he absolutely had to. I can’t tell you who it is, but watch the movie and find out.CharactersDo we really need to judge the characters in the film like this? It is a comedy! As long as they’re funny, everything is good. But there was a clear character development in the lead characters. Both started one way and ended another way. Once again, I don’t want to ruin the film for those who have not watched.Wedding Industry RelationsThere were several noticeable wedding industry terms that were used in the film. The opening titles all had that standard wedding industry glow to them. You know the white letters with the gold outer glow. I personally don’t use that style of titles in my films, but when you see the title, it is clear they have a wedding feel to them. Bic (Kevin Hart) named all his packages after groom’s accessories. Most people in the wedding industry have a bronze, silver, and gold package. Bic simply added the groom’s accessories to his. The film also included wedding traditions such as a bachelor party, and a rehearsal dinner. It’s the small things that make me happy. LOLTakeawaysMy overall grade for this film was an A. I was satisfied with the story, the acting, the comedy, and the cinematography. I don’t want to spoil it for you! I could’ve went in deeper, but most film reviews tell you too much about the film. I don’t want to ruin that for you. See how much I care? If you haven’t see “The Wedding Ringer” yet, it is a must see. So go do it! ☺