Thursday, November 8, 2018

Destination Wedding movie review


I very much enjoyed Destination Wedding, as it worked for me in a bunch of ways.

Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder have great chemistry as the two leads (and essentially only characters in the movie). Sure, the movie is like a stage play, but it's reminiscent of Birdman in that it's better/best served as a movie; and similarly, it's about two less-than-likeable-but-very-endearing people.

DW flips the classic Hollywood romance story, where two folks are in a remote location and "fall in love." Here, the characters are highly opinionated, intelligent and flawed. There's no real "romance" in this romance movie - but there are connections and understanding; it's genuine human interaction (by two of society's "outsiders.")

Plus excellent word play and comedy. Have I praised the intelligence of this movie, yet?

Another element I really appreciated was the restrained cinematography - everything is shot crisp, with intent. Yes, pretty much every shot is a wide duo, but there's strategy in the execution that I rarely see in other movies, and relates to the narrative (journey of the characters). And, mild spoiler, but there's a specific shot around half-way into the movie involving a hill that has one of my favorite visual gags in a long time.

Beyond the acting, writing and visuals, I generally enjoyed the music by William Ross and presentation. I would gladly spend another weekend with Lindsay and Frank if it were done like this, wherever their journey takes them.

Conclusion: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. It's a tight 90-minute film that does lose a little steam around the 2/3rds mark, but the general pacing and overall execution won me over.

Streaming on Amazon Prime, as of this writing.

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