Love, Weddings & Other Disasters

Known for directing Adam Sandler movies, Dennis Dugan's feature writing debut delivers on its title: As a piece of filmmaking, it's a disaster. At the same time, it's a spectacle to behold for those, like Mystery Science Theater 3000 fans, who like to trash talk their way through a movie. Film students should view Love, Weddings, & Other Disasters as a cautionary tale: Dugan includes four storylines that have four entirely different tones. The first is a sugary Hallmark-style premise: Sweet, adorable wedding planner meets cute with a rocker. The writing is underwhelming, and the two lack chemistry, but it's nice enough. Storyline 2 is more intriguing, despite having roots in what feels like a bad joke: An uptight caterer is set up on a blind date where his date is actually blind. Surprisingly, this thread feels like it could go the distance against any Reese Witherspoon or Kate Hudson staple. Storyline 3 would have been a perfect fit for The Love Boat, back in the day: After a brief interaction, a Boston tour guide (Andrew "King Bach" Bachelor) falls for a woman with a glass slipper tattoo and searches the city to find his Cinderella. It's unoriginal, but YouTube star King Bach delivers the full Prince Charming. And then there's Storyline 4, a sloppy sketch comedy concept that doesn't even try to make sense: A gambler tries to pay off a significant debt by going on a dating reality show and is literally chained to his "match," an exotic dancer who is "in bed" (literally at times) with the Russian mob. This one is terribly written, acted, and executed.

This movie also offers a clear example of how great/charismatic actors can elevate a bad script into something watchable. Oscar winners Keaton and Irons are magical together. Despite their characters being put in asinine situations and 85 percent of the laughs being based on Keaton's blind character walking into things, the two pros totally sell it, leaving you wondering why the producers didn't step in and cut out all of the other stories. And King Bach oozes personality despite having to deliver awkward lines about Larry King's erection (seriously). But the stripper dating game brings down the entire production. Dugan himself plays the show's obnoxious and degrading host, who spews the lamest, most offensive jokes, including relentlessly ripping a little person for his stature. You also can't help but notice the movie's dated references (see Larry King reference) and verbage, like "amazeballs." That's because Dugan wrote the script in 2004, when this kind of comedy might have worked, and it appears he didn't bother to update it. While the actors bring the flowers and enhance the aroma, Dugan's lack of effort makes this a stinker.