Face it, Kevin Hart is on a roll when it comes to stardom
these days. The stand-up comedian has made it to the big time, moving from
ensemble pieces to starring roles these days. But like any stand-up who takes
on the big screen there are hits and misses along the way. While this film
didn’t do huge at the box office perhaps that will turn around with the release
on DVD. Once word gets out how funny the movie is it’s sure to make a splash.
Josh Gad stars as Doug Harris, a man about to marry Gretchen
(Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting), the woman of his dreams. The problem is he’s
represented himself as having plenty of friend when in fact he has none. Even
grade school acquaintances are unwilling to show up to be even a groomsman. Two
weeks until the wedding Doug is faced with the problem and aided by the wedding
planner who’s seen this problem before.
Doug is sent to meet with Jimmy Callahan (Hart), a best man
for hire. For a fee Jimmy will make sure he has groomsmen, become his best man
and plan all the accessories that go along with this event. With the short
amount of time and the number of groomsmen involved Jimmy isn’t sure he can
pull it off. No one in his line of work has ever done a group this big. But
he’s up to the challenge and sets out to gather a team.
Along the way Jimmy has to know everything he possibly can
about Doug, creating more than one backstory to fill in the rest. He also has
to learn about Doug so he can create the perfect toast as well as be able to be
with him at events like the rehearsal dinner and more. The thing is, even
though he stresses to Doug that this is a business arrangement and nothing
more, Jimmy finds himself becoming friends with Doug as well.
The humor in this film runs throughout and covers all sorts
of styles. The buddy film is evident in the back and forth between Gad and Hart
with their friendship taking place quickly but logically as well. There is the
gross out humor in the team that Hart assembles with each one having their own
quirk. There is the predicament humor found in the situations the duo find
themselves in when dealing with Gretchen’s family (one of the funniest scenes
comes from this involving fire and a grandmother played by Cloris Leachman).
And then there is the overabundant use of language, perhaps the least funny
element in the movie. Dropping the F bomb in a movie 40 years ago might have
been surprising and played for laughs but these days its overuse slows things
down and doesn’t fit right.
Hart has proven that he has the acting chops to carry a
movie as the solo lead. This film does him credit in that right as he plays the
helping con man who saves the day for guys in need of his services. While he
may not seem to care he actually feels for each of the men he helps. Hart makes
this believable and that’s not easy to do with a character who only knows his
client for less than two weeks. Gad also turns in a solid performance here as
Doug, a man successful in business but who feels his self-worth is non-existent
when it comes to women. Having the chance to marry someone as beautiful as
Gretchen seems like a dream come true. Now if he can just get past the wedding.
My guess is this movie won’t go down as the next best thing
since sliced bread but it does offer plenty of laughs if you can get past the
language. Popping the disc in I didn’t know if it would have anything to offer
and I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was more than one moment when
I had to pause the movie until I finished laughing. It was fun, the ensemble
was good together and the two leads brought to life an implausible situation. I
know it’s worth watching once and for myself, chances are I’ll be watching this
one again down the line. It was that funny.
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