The Wedding Ringer

Movie review by Sandie Angulo Chen, Common Sense Media
The Wedding Ringer Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 17+

Crass comedy swings between gross and better than expected.

R 2015 101 minutes
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Parents say

age 15+

Based on 5 reviews

Kids say

age 14+

Based on 12 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that The Wedding Ringer is a crass comedy about a best man for hire (Kevin Hart). Like Wedding Crashers and The Hangover, the movie uses a wedding and bachelor party as excuses for debauchery and landing a one-night stand. Nearly every line of dialogue includes a string of expletives ("f--k," "motherf---er," "a--hole," you name it), and there's some nudity in the bachelor party sequence (topless women, a dog licking peanut butter off a man's penis), as well as tons of crude references to sex. Adults drink to excess and smoke weed, there's some slapstick/pratfall-type violence, and, with few exceptions, women are stereotyped as materialistic and shallow, while men are reduced to sex-obsessed jerks.

Community Reviews

Pres
Pres Adult
April 12, 2020
age 18+

18+ Gratuitous nudity, violence, classless tasteless and FOUL

Not a family movie. Not funny. Crass and tasteless.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
1 person found this helpful.
Bingo3
Bingo3 Adult
February 10, 2019
age 18+

Not worth it

The Wedding Ringer was a confusing mishmash of gratuitous violence, sex and missed opportunities. The acting is decent and there are interesting and funny characters, like the groomsmen. The plot is compelling enough, a loner has to hire a best man, as is the backstory of Kevin Hart's character (Jimmy) seeking friendship, but that is lost in nonsensical action and party scenes. The relationships among the characters could have been played up giving this movie more poignancy and meaning. There was a lot of good material too: loner Jimmy and the loner groom; the Groom and his vapid mismatched bride; the groom and his spiteful father-in-law to be; Jimmy and the rag-tag group of comical groomsmen. Instead it includes thoughtless and gross sex scenes, including bestiality, and rampant partying with no point. These scenes do not serve to release tension or give a well-deserved break, as the main character is rich, but never seems to work. Hart has funny moments, but they are overshadowed by the movie's pointlessness, like when the groomsmen beat up a bunch of aged former-football players, including the bride's father. Yes, they were playing dirty, but the payback scene could have been done more cleverly, there is no satisfaction is seeing an old Joe Namath get punched in the face. This movie is inappropriate for teens and children. There is violence directed at a child at one point, there is little humor, no point, little meaning and no beauty. There is not enough humor to compensate for the loveless sex scenes or meaningless violence.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
See all 5 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In THE WEDDING RINGER, Jimmy Callahan (Kevin Hart) has a lucrative business as a best man for hire. For $20,000, he'll be a groom's fill-in best man for the rehearsal and wedding, giving a tearful champagne toast -- or, for considerably more, he'll add a couple of groomsmen to the mix. But what friendless, desperate groom Doug (Josh Gad) needs is the top-of-the-line, "Golden Tux" package: seven groomsmen to fill fictional roles he made up about imaginary friends, a best man who's supposedly a priest/Army chaplain to attend pre-wedding events, and a flawless performance by Callahan and his employees (including Lost star Jorge Garcia and comedian Affion Crockett) to make sure that his gorgeous fiancée, Gretchen (Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting), never finds out her rich and sweet husband-to-be has zero close friends.

Is It Any Good?

There are brief moments throughout The Wedding Ringer when it's clear that Hart is acting, rather than just relying on his rapid-fire manic riffs to get him through a scene. He's a skilled comedian, but this movie is far too uneven to showcase his talent. It bizarrely goes from being so crass and disgusting that you want to cringe (like when a dog licks peanut butter off of the groom's genitals during the bachelor party) to occasional moments when it's better than you'd expect (like the reception dance sequence). And there are a few genuine laughs (that aren't just from gross-out humor) along the way.

But in terms of messages, The Wedding Ringer has troublesome portrayals of marriage, weddings (apparently they're only for women, and men only go in order to "score" -- either with their date or, better yet, a strange woman who's willing to have a one night stand), and male friendship. With the exception of the bride's clever sister (Olivia Thirlby), who knows that something is up, the women in the movie are all shallow and materialistic and the men even shallower (even the supposedly nice groom finds a spark with a stripper, of all people). On the bright side, though Hart and Gad mostly have an annoyingly uneven camaraderie (Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau or Owen Wilson and Ben Stiller they're not), when they do occasionally hit their mark, The Wedding Ringer is passably funny.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the popularity of movies about weddings. Why do you think people like them? Do you prefer wedding comedies or dramas? What are some of your favorite wedding movies?

  • Which relationships in The Wedding Ringer are healthy? Are any of them realistic? What does the bride mean when says she's OK without love because the groom is a "nice guy"?

  • Discuss how the movie depicts male friendship. Do you think men are less likely to have close friends than women? Why? Do you think the movie portrays men (and women) in a stereotypical manner?

  • How does the movie depict drinking and drug use? Are there realistic consequences?

  • What role does the media play in making us think that the wedding is as important as the marriage?

Movie Details

  • In theaters: January 16, 2015
  • On DVD or streaming: April 28, 2015
  • Cast: Kevin Hart, Josh Gad, Kaley Cuoco
  • Director: Jeremy Garelick
  • Studio: Screen Gems
  • Genre: Comedy
  • Topics: Friendship
  • Run time: 101 minutes
  • MPAA rating: R
  • MPAA explanation: crude and sexual content, language throughout, some drug use and brief graphic nudity
  • Last updated: February 11, 2023

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    This raucous, boisterous comedy is not for kids.

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