"Bride Wars" Review by Spaldy

I am not the kind of woman who spent her childhood dreaming of and planning for her wedding. Nor do I understand the compulsion to do so. However, I can understand the desire to want something the way you want it. “Bride Wars” is the story of two women who want what they want, it just happens to be the exact same thing.

Good friends Emma and Liv have dreamed of their wedding day since they were children. They both want a June wedding at the Plaza and when both are proposed to in the Winter, they both rush to the wedding planner of their dreams. After learning there are a handful of spots open for June weddings at the Plaza, the two best friends rejoice in their good luck, and reserve their dates. This bliss is short lived when they soon learn that the dates have been mixed up, and they both are booked for the same date at the Plaza in June. Neither wants to move their wedding, and neither is willing to give in to the other. After all their years of friendship, this is the line that neither of them can keep themselves from crossing. Each one rachets up the foul play on each other’s wedding plans, while all their friends and family watch from the sidelines shaking their heads.

What I liked about this movie is that their friends and family did not get involved in the antics. No one took sides. The fight was between these two best friends and no one else. This movie could have easily veered off into slapstick joylessness, but it managed to stay on track thanks to the emotional grounding of the friends and families of the two women. That said, this movie still had its share of issues. The laughs were relatively few, and the predictability was fairly high. Anne Hathaway had some decent comic chops, but Kate Hudson still leaves me a bit cold. Although this was her best work in a long time, that does not say much. I was however pleased by the fact that the older Kate gets, the more she looks like her mother Goldie. Now if only she can get her comic chops in order and pick some decent scripts, maybe I wouldn’t groan every time I see a movie trailer with her in it.

There isn’t a lot to love here, but there isn’t much to revile either. This is the kind of movie one sees on Lifetime or on TBS on a Saturday afternoon and somehow manages to leave playing in the background why you mop the kitchen floor. It is kind of a marshmallow picture; sweet and spongy and you are not sure if you like it or not because it isn’t quite satisfying. However, for those who like chick flicks, and for those who have girlfriends and dreams of perfect weddings, this probably is the movie for you. I personally don’t get the madness, but then again, I am the kind of girl who raced home from the movies to watch football.