Director: Victor Levin
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Winona Ryder, Dj Dallenbach, Greg Lucey, Ted Dubost, D. Rosh Wright
Rating:Â 15
Running time: 86 mins
Release date: Friday May 10th, 2019
AVENGERS: ENDGAME pretty much is going to be the film of choice for millions of cinema-goers over the next few weeks, so resistance is pretty futile for any film daring to step into its shadow.
However, that doesn’t mean to say that people will not be spoilt for choice and if the latest Marvel film is sold out to the seat across the country, there will always be alternate programming that will tease people into another screen.
It is amidst this landscape that we welcome DESTINATION WEDDING. Now, this is a film that has been on the radar for some time, not least due to the intriguing reunion of BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA co-stars Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder, who have both had recent success respectively with the JOHN WICK franchise and the Netflix hit series STRANGER THINGS.
Related: Watch Keanu Reeves’ John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum screening interviewÂ
Frank (Reeves) and Lindsay (Ryder) first meet at an airport terminal gate, waiting for a flight which they discover is taking them to a wedding over three days with people they know very well – and don’t really have much desire to hang out with, despite the hotel having greetings and gifts awaiting their arrival.
Their flight reservations bring them together, as does the rooms in the hotel where they are linked by a door that bolts. Before long, their pairing brings its fair share of complex emotional revelation towards each other – and the wedding they are attending…
Now, there isn’t really a great deal in this romantic comedy to make it on the level of a FOUR WEDDINGS or a WHEN HARRY MET SALLY, with which it shares parallels. Caption cards attempt to put it in the realm of classic Woody Allen films like ANNIE HALL and MANHATTAN, but this is never going to achieve the level of award or status as that film at the present time.
The real reason for watching this film, particularly to the ‘Generation X’ demographic that warmed to both leads with films like REALITY BITES and MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO in the early 1990s, is Reeves and Ryder, who remain a stirring screen pairing, particularly Ryder who has been off the big-screen way too long for one reason or another. At times, she encapsulates the very vulnerability that made one fall in love with her at the time of HEATHERS.
Writer-Director Victor Levin (MAD MEN, MAD ABOUT YOU) holds the film together and gives the script some real honest reflection and pathos. At times, the film could actually work equally well as a stage two-hander, with simplistic locations and stage directions, but there are a fair amount of laughs along the way and hopefully, the film will grow to become a well-liked addition to both leads’ filmographies.
DESTINATION WEDDING is a quiet, but assured comedy. Have you seen the movie yet? Will you be watching it when it arrives in cinemas? As always, we like to know your thoughts, so leave a comment below, tweet us @filmandtvnow or drop us a comment on our Facebook page.
DESTINATION WEDDING is released in cinemas on 10th May 2019 from Vertigo Releasing.
