#REVIEW: “SHOTGUN WEDDING”

Review by Mr. Will Wong

It’s that time of year where we find ourselves craving anything that will lift us out of these winter blues. Prime Video‘s SHOTGUN WEDDING arrives right in time delivering that bit of lightness in our time of need.

Darcy (Jennifer Lopez) and Tom (Josh Duhamel) decide to throw a destination wedding and though the stage is perfect for their big day, there certainly is trouble lurking in paradise. Tom is a former baseball player on the down and out and his future father-in-law Robert (Cheech Marin) isn’t exactly a fan of his. Darcy has to put up with her meddling mother-in-law Carol (Jennifer Coolidge) also trying to balance all the energies and clashing personalities on her big day. Basically, nobody gets along at this wedding and signs of trouble are signaled further when Darcy‘s ex-boyfriend Sean (Lenny Kravitz) shows up and then get this, everyone is held hostage. Darcy and Tom who already are going into this wedding on shaky terms, really must bond together to save them and their guests from themselves and these bandits.

SHOTGUN WEDDING is brought to us by Jason Moore, who delivered the unforgettable Pitch Perfect. Through all the chaos here, there are some genuine laugh-out-loud moments, sprinkled with a little suspense. Lopez and Duhamel face the challenge of playing a couple fighting to find that spark again – just as they are tying the knot nonetheless.  Their aggravations towards each other are exposed the further the story progresses and their clumsy chemistry, fighting to save their lives isn’t without charm. But do we find ourselves really rooting for them? We needed to feel more of that. It is a joy seeing red-hot Coolidge make an appearance with her larger-than-life presence delivering some scene-stealing moments. And we only wish Kravitz, an interesting casting choice, had more to work with here.

On that note, the Film would have benefitted from explaining motives and intention rather than going straight for laughs. So many interesting characters and histories that really don’t go anywhere.  A quick and harmless watch and most of us know what we’re going into here anyway.

Prime Video Canada release SHOTGUN WEDDING Friday, January 27, 2023.