...a disappointment as Robin Williams is just too tame to be entertaining.
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"License to Wed" is the latest in a string of less-than-stellar films for comedian Robin Williams. The recent "RV" and "Man of the Year" were less than impressive and Robin´s recent forays into thrillers and dramas have not been received warmly by the theater-going public. The actor has always had his ups and downs, but it seems a long time since he had the success he did with films such as "Mrs. Doubtfire," "Good Morning, Vietnam" and "Aladdin." Williams is an actor with a great range of talent and has shown his ability to handle more than comedy with films such as "The Fisher King," "Dead Poets Society" and "Good Will Hunting." It just seems that Williams has far more missteps in the past decade than he has had success. There have been too many films like "Death to Smoochy" and "License to Wed."
Former teen pop starlet Mandy Moore is Sadie Jones. Television´s "The Office" star John Krasinski is Ben Murphy. The two had met in a coffee shop and since been long-time partners. Ben is an awkward sort, but Sadie comes from a well-to-do family and is the controlling partner in the relationship. During her parent´s wedding anniversary, Ben steals his soon-to-be father-in-laws thunder and proposes to Sadie. Sadie´s father makes a remark about this and pretends to be overjoyed at the news as he apparently feels Ben is beneath his daughter. Sadie is excited and although Ben wishes for a wedding in the Bahamas, Sadie tells him she has always dreamed of having the wedding at home and having longtime pastor Reverend Frank (Robin Williams) preside over the wedding.
They visit Reverend Frank and discover that he is booked up for two years and cannot marry them until then. After they show disappointment in this fact, Frank quickly remembers that he has a spot open in just three weeks. They agree to get married on that date and do realize that this puts a bit of a strain on things as they will have to speed everything up and rush to get preparations completed for the wedding. Frank also demands they take part in his premarital program that will help them become better spouses to one another. His young assistant (Josh Flitter) provides them with the thick course guides and the rules are outlined. One of the rules of the course is that they are not permitted to engage in any sexual acts. The have no choice but to accept the three week date and take part in the course.
As time passes, the course creates rifts between Ben and Sadie and they begin to nag at each other and expose each others´ character flaws. Ben belittles her parents and even after discovering that Reverend Frank had even bugged their room, they cannot agree on much of anything and their relationship crumbles. Part of the course involved unusual group sessions where they pretended to be each other and situations where Frank forced them into conflict. The course seems to be a sick game for Frank and he continues to put them in situations where an unhappy outcome is guaranteed.
Eventually, Sadie flees to the Caribbean islands and Ben is left behind to try and come to terms with everything that has happened and how he has made mistakes. He did not write his vows and instead created a flip book of a monster truck jumping through a fire hoop. He also screwed up the ring and had the word ´fart´ on the ring instead of ´part.´ Frank exploited every flaw and destroyed their relationship. However, it seems that this was all part of Frank´s grand plan and he boards a plane with his assistant and sets out for Jamaica. Ben decides to track down his beloved fiancée and write his vows in the sand. Sadie first rejects any attempt by Ben to communicate, but after missing him and realizing that she does in fact want to marry him they are married by Reverend Frank who simply claims he is ´everywhere.´
When I first saw previews of "License to Wed" I thought this was a film with a lot of potential for Robin Williams. It appeared to be the kind of film where his manic humor could be left to run unchecked and zaniness and hilarity could run amuck. There were some genuinely funny jokes in the trailer and I especially liked the MC Hammer joke. Unfortunately, this proved to be a film where the trailer revealed all of the funny parts and Williams was more creepy than funny and his character´s stalking was more disturbing than hilarious. Robin Williams tries to hard these days to play it safe. He doesn´t need an R-rating to excel at tickling funny bones, but he just seems to lack the edginess that made him a star in the first place. In his more recent years, he is too tame to be funny and "License to Wed" is a fine example of how a comedy that isn´t permitted to be funny can ultimately be quite boring.
The remaining cast members are a mixed bag. I personally did not care much for the performance of John Krasinski. He should stay with "The Office" and not try too many more feature films because he is not an actor that is ready to have a major role in a major film. I just found him to be bland and uninteresting. I also could not see his whiny and disorganized character mixing well with the likes of Mandy Moore´s character. Mandy Moore was a pleasant surprise and showed that with a few more film roles she could be an affable and capable leading lady. I typically shy away from teen pop stars and their films, but Ms. Moore has successfully made the jump to being an actress. With Meg Ryan moving past the ´young and cute´ age where she ruled romantic comedies, Hollywood needs a new ´it´ girl and I could honestly see Mandy Moore filling shoes of that size. Nobody else notably stood out in any way with the exception of Eric Christian Olsen. Why didn´t they just spring for Owen Wilson?
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[release]22246[/release]