27 Dresses

Katherine Heigl stars as Jane – the bestest friend a friend could ever have, especially if she is getting married. Jane loves the pomp and circumstance of weddings so much that she has become the go-to girl for all of her pals. Specifically, she has been the bridesmaid 27 times. However, time 28 might be her undoing.

Jane is madly in love with her boss, George (Ed Burns), but can’t find a way to take the relationship to the next level. On a spur of the moment visit, Jane’s model-looking sister, Tess (Malin Ackerman), blows into town, likes what she sees in George, and the two start a torrid affair leading to a whirlwind courtship and engagement.

Will Jane be able to handle it when Tess starts living out her fantasies and asks the sister to be her bridesmaid?

27 Dresses somehow retains some charm and wins your attention even though it is a catalogue of every cliché known to moviegoers. Writer Aline Brosh McKenna and director Anne Fletcher give us the montage of Jane trying on all 27 bridesmaid’s dresses; two people fussing, feuding and fighting so much we know they are destined to fall in love before the final credits roll; unrequited love driving our hero insane; the big misunderstanding that puts true love in jeopardy; singing along to a classic rock song; the sassy friend (played by the always awesome Judy Greer) and more. However, the acting ensemble makes it all palatable.

Heigl and James Marsden as Kevin - a newspaper’s wedding reporter who discovers Jane and follows her for a story (and more, if you know what I mean, but more in the sweet and lovable way, if you know what I mean) - have a nice chemistry together that elevates even the most mundane and predictable of scenes. Heigl, who looks like a model in her own right, finds a way to make the audience relate to her as the sadsack pursuing a love she could never have, while Marsden has a very intangible likeability I have trouble putting my finger on.

Progressively, in each movie I see him, Marsden gets better and better. He might not be the star of a 3-hour Oscar-winning epic, but he has good comic timing, entertaining reactions to the craziness around him and plays within his abilities without every going too crazy or over the top. I guess you can say that he gets it, understands his role in the movie and realizes what is expected to make the audience happy. Heigl is much the same as she handles the physical comedy well enough, picks the right moments to be zany and chooses the exact right time to show the vulnerability that will make the audience sympathize with her.

McKenna’s script has some flourishes of strong dialogue as Kevin and Jane battle it out, and Fletcher delivers a professional, polished finished product.

27 Dresses is rated PG-13 for language, some innuendo and sexuality