Wedding Crashers
Directed by David Dobkin
By Noel Dix

You really can't go wrong if you pair a Wilson brother with the comedic likes of Vince Vaughn. In this case it's Owen Wilson finally playing the role of the leading man who gets the girl, but even though Wilson lands the coveted role, it's Vaughn who absolutely steals every scene he graces.

John (Wilson) and Jeremy (Vaughn) have no shame in crashing weddings for the sake of getting drunk and, more importantly, getting laid. Their rituals are well documented in a great opening montage of multi-national ceremonies, all including fast-paced one-liners, intoxicated dances and cheap tactics to bed the bridesmaids. Then the pair decides to crash the biggest do of them all, involving the family of the next president of the United States, William Cleary, played by the always incredible Christopher Walken. It was going to just be another crash on a larger scale, but John and Jeremy get dragged deeper into the family when they both get involved with Cleary's hot daughters.

This is when the film begins to fall victim to “recycled plot” syndrome. Before the two friends get roped into the lives of the Cleary family it looked as though Wedding Crashers could have been a fresh idea, but it's a classic case of a man torn between a bundle of lies and true love. Add the jealous fiancé and a last minute disruption attempt at the alter and this film becomes a paint-by-numbers affair with little doubt as to its outcome.

Thankfully the unoriginal outline is filled in with hysterical rants by Vince Vaughn, who rapidly spins a web of incredible insults and comebacks that haven't been seen since Swingers. Owen Wilson takes a backseat in Wedding Crashers, as he plays straight man to Vaughn's comedic assault, but he still manages to throw in some nice moments to balance things out.

Rachel McAdams does an excellent job portraying a radiant and down-to-earth girl, which always makes you wonder why they insist on casting intelligent female characters with chauvinistic boyfriends that are destined to be left behind? In the end it really doesn't matter though, Wedding Crashers doesn't succeed in being original and most likely won't be remembered ten years from now, but with some strong leads and tear-producing moments of comedy, it's as good as these no-brainer films get. (Alliance Atlantis)

March of the Penguins - Dir. by Luc Jacquet
Despite the fact that it can't fly, the penguin is hardly the laughing stock of the bird world (that seat is reserved for the vilest scum of the earth: the vagrant pigeon). Penguins are such fascinating and somewhat furtive creatures that French filmmaker Luc Jacquet chose to drag a film crew to the farthest southern part of the earth to capture their story. ...Read More
Bad News Bears - Dir. by Richard Linklater
Batman Begins - Dir. by Christopher Nolan
Bewitched - Dir. by Nora Ephron
Dark Water - Dir. by Walter Salles
Exils - Dir. by Tony Gatlif
Fantastic Four - Dir. by Tim Story
Genesis - Dir. by Claude Nuridsany and Marie Pérennou
Graveyard Alive: A Zombie Nurse In Love - Dir. by Elza Kephart
Head-On - Dir. by Fatih Akin
Herbie: Fully Loaded - Dir. by Angela Robinson
Land of the Dead - Dir. by George A. Romero
Ma mere - Dir. by Christophe Honore
Metallic Blues - Dir. by Danny Verete
My Summer Of Love - Dir. by Pawel Pawlikowski
Rock School - Dir. by Don Argott
Saraband - Dir. by Ingmar Bergman
Save the Green Planet - Dir. by Jang Jun-Hwan
Saving Face - Dir. by Alice Wu
The Devil's Rejects - Dir. by Rob Zombie
The Island - Dir. by Michael Bay
The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill - Dir. by Judy Irving
Yes - Dir. by Sally Potter
Grizzly Bear - Vogue Theatre, Vancouver, BC October 14
Before the release of 2009's Veckatimest, Grizzly Bear stood at a career watershed of sorts. Critical darlings without much mainstream success, they could very well have continued in the direction set with 2007's Friend EP and become perennial indie overachievers, in the vein of the Li... Full Review
Hostage Life - Centre Of The Universe
It's unfortunate the words "maturity" and "growth" are stigmas in the world of punk rock. They would be the perfect descriptors for Toronto, ON-based Hostage Life's tertiary release. Maintaining the adage that a band never realize their true potential until their third album, the quintet prove thems... Full Review
The Brütal Legend of Tim Schafer
Game designer Tim Schafer is not a well-known man, at least not to the mainstream. But like Buffy creator Joss Whedon, Schafer's a full-blown hero amongst the geek-pop set, his name synonymous with creative vision, critical acclaim, fervent fans and, alas, sub-par sales.... Read More
Social Networking
• Be our friend on MySpace
• Be our fan on Facebook
• Tweet us on twitter
Viewing the July 2005 Issue: • Contents Page • News • Click Hear • Articles --> On the Cover  •  Front Five  •  Points  •  Comics  •  Questionnaire  •  Research  •  Technology  •  Timeline • Music Reviews --> Recently Reviewed  •  Aggressive Tendencies  •  Beats & Rhymes  •  Destination Out  •  Frequencies  •  Pop Rocks  •  Wood, Wires & Whiskey  •  Concert Reviews  •  NXNE Reviews • Motion Reviews --> Recently Reviewed  •  Dvd Reviews  •  Film Reviews  •  Music DVD Reviews • Music School --> Label Life  •  Meet & Greet  •  Need to Know  •  What I Play • Contests • Contact --> About Us  • Advertising  • Distribution  • Getting Reviewed  • Getting Published  • Letters To The Editor  • Partnerships  • Subscriptions • Exclaim! Radio --> Aggressive Tendencies Radio  • Beats & Rhymes Radio  • Frequencies Radio  • Destination Out Radio  • Groove Radio  • No Future Radio  • Pop Rocks Radio  • Wood, Wires & Whiskey Radio • Exclaim! TV • Home & Latest Issue • Browse Issues