Origin and release year: United States (2024 – Mother of the Bride)
Starring: Brooke Shields, Benjamin Bratt, Chad Michael Murray, Miranda Cosgrove, Sean Teale, Rachael Harris, Wilson Cruz, Tasneem Roc, Dalip Sondhi, Michael McDonald
Director: Mark Waters
Screenwriter: Robin Bernheim
Synopsis: Lana’s daughter Emma returns from London and announces that she’s getting married next month. Things become more complicated when Lana learns that the man who stole Emma’s heart is the son of the man who broke hers years ago. (IMDb)
This is yet another story about an influencer who loses herself in the world of likes and sponsorships but comes to see the light and value of real-life relationships. Based on just that, the story is pretty cliche and you can tell how it ends from the jump.
The film was gorgeous and filmed in scenic Thailand so it was lovely to look at. It was cute and aesthetic but was nothing to write home about. It wasn’t deep. There wasn’t any high-level cinema to it, which is fine we guess. However, the plot leaves much to be desired since it’s a pretty surface-level story. The acting was kind of flat, too.
Emma (played by Miranda Cosgrove) seems like a character without any real motivation. She’s excited about all the sponsorships she’s getting and lets that could her judgement in a wedding where everything should be her choice, but to be honest, we’re never really sure what she wants anyway. There’s no conflict in that regard and she just goes with everything – we guess this is the point of her character but it makes her very uninteresting.
The same goes for her relationship, her and her male lead RJ (played by Sean Teale) don’t even really seem to like each other that much? There’s very little chemistry between them. Also, even her beef with her mom seems non-existently forced. She mentions in the film that her mom annoys her but that she’s a good mom – which doesn’t seem like a deep enough conflict for them to be fighting with each other over every little wedding detail the way they did.
However, Brooke Shields managed to carry the film with her portrayal of maternal instinct, but it just felt like every other actor wasn’t bouncing off of her energy well enough for any of the film’s payoff to feel worth it. Her male lead Will (played by Benjamin Bratt) also just seemed like a very ‘go-with-the-flow’ character without much of a backbone and honestly, despite this couple having the better chemistry, it was still pretty boring to watch.
The film was filled with all of the cliche rom-com tropes we’ve seen time and time again but without any of the actual humor or heart-fluttering moments.
Other than that? Chad Michael Murray was hot. That’s about it.
Honestly, if you need something to play in the background, then we’d suggest watching this movie. Otherwise, you can skip it. It’s the kind of movie you half-watch when you just want to switch off and not think about a thing at all.
What did you think of Mother of the Bride? Let us know in the comments!