If there was a radio dial studio heads could spin to tune in an excellent viewing experience, Shotgun Wedding would be that favorite song that you can sing along to, albeit with a little interference bleeding in from time to time. But for all “mehs” in the criticsphere, Director Jason Moore’s Shotgun Wedding movie exceeded our expectations; this is JLO like you’ve never seen her before – the year 2004.
When pirates crash Darcy (Jennifer Lopez) and Tom’s (Josh Duhamel) wedding, interrupting an already pretty miserable affair with both of their parents coming with baggage and unapproving of the couple’s union, the bride and groom embrace their inner Liam Neeson (if Neeson was Columbo) and slowly unravel the sinister reason criminals have targeted their special day on a secluded private island in the Philippines.
The journey will test their resolve and remind them why they fell in love in the first place.
Credit: Amazon Prime
Director: Jason Moore
Producer: Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, Jennifer Lopez, Benny Medina, Todd Lieberman, David Hoberman
Writer: Mark Hammer, Elizabeth Meriwether, Mark Hammer
Starring: Jennifer Lopez, Josh Duhamel, Jennifer Coolidge, Sonia Braga, Cheech Marin, Selena Tan, D’Arcy Carden, Callie Hernandez, Desmin Borges, Steve Coulter, and Lenny Kravitz
A Shotgun Wedding movie with JLO that isn’t in Vegas
Darcy and Tom have spent a small fortune to have the “perfect wedding.” Unfortunately, as their family and friends gather, old grievances bubble up, and the pair find out their special day is really about everyone else. Tom’s mother (the hilarious but always cringy Jennifer Coolidge) won’t even let him sleep with his fiance the day before the wedding in one of the most uncomfortable moments in the movie. She also gives JLO a rusty wedding knife as a gift. Oof. Things get so bad, the pair start flirting with the idea that they may have rushed the whole thing.
To make things worse, Darcy’s ex-boyfriend Lenny Kravitz (his name is Sean but he plays Lenny Kravitz) shows up in a rockstar vest and no shirt, passively aggressively putting Tom at unease by publicly boasting about his relationship with Darcy’s father and his unending affection for Darcy, while sprinkling inside jokes into public toasts that Tom doesn’t understand. He’s Kevin Rawley from Meet the Fockers.
Of course, these are just the opening shots; the real threat hasn’t even reached the shore. The couple will have to deal with a dozen pirates, too. They just don’t know it yet.
Jennifer Lopez in a movie about Shotgun Weddings
Jennifer Lopez is no stranger to romantic comedies, weddings, or forbidden love-type stories. But Shotgun Wedding almost feels like a burlesque of romantic comedies and Jason Statham money shots rather than a true attempt at the genre…which may be a good thing, given most romantic movies these days have grown a little too conventional or just plain uninspired.
Jennifer Lopez, though, surprisingly, is the one cast member who appears out of place here, playing the apprehensive but somehow confident (figure that out) bride clumsily and never quite selling the funny moments. It’s possible that I just don’t appreciate her in these types of roles since I was more of a fan of her in films like Out of Sight and The Cell.
In a film like this, she feels more interchangeable, as if you could cast any number of females in the same part and you’d get the same result, more or less. Josh Duhamel does somewhat better, but not by much, since both starring characters are underdeveloped, despite their presence in nearly every scene of Jason Moore’s Shotgun Wedding movie.
We also get a glimpse into the goings-on of the pair’s family and friends, including Tom’s super weird mother and her obsession with meaningless traditions, his sister (Callie Hernandez) hooking up with the best man, divorcees with new partners trying to get along (Cheech Marin and Sônia Braga), and, of course, Darcy’s ex-boyfriend Lenny Kravitz (we can’t call him Sean, he’s Lenny Kravitz) who weaseled his way into an invite.
Regretfully, they don’t have much to do but complain as the film moves along, though, as they’re captured and held hostage by the end of the first act. Still, some manage to stand out. Jennifer Coolidge has such perfect comedic timing that she shines even with only a few seconds on screen.
Everyone looks like they’re having a blast in Jason Moore’s Shotgun Wedding movie, and who can blame them? – most of the island scenes were filmed in the Dominican Republic. The ensemble cast makes the most of the material, but it’s pretty clear this one was never going to the box office. While there are plenty of laughs and fun sprinkled throughout, the production feels more like a TV movie than a large-budget Hollywood film. That’s not to say the crew didn’t do their part, the special effects, backdrop, the pace; all of it works. It’s just…thisclose.
IMDb has given 5.7 /10 to Shotgun Wedding Movie.
Streaming This Weekend gave Shotgun Wedding a projected audience score of 69. It is currently sitting at 65 on Rotten Tomatoes.
Bottom line: It’s not a stinker, but I’d consider it a one-and-done, a throwaway comedy, formulaic and goofy with some unique themes. When the bad guy’s motivations are revealed, they seem a little manufactured, and there never appears to be any genuine feeling of fear. The danger, as it were, is constantly humorous and light enough that the stakes are almost comical. It could have been more thrilling if the bad guys had taken out a few noteworthy wedding attendees (we have a few in mind). And it may be one of the film’s most serious flaws: it is far too safe.
In this humorous, adrenaline-fueled adventure, “Till Death Do Us Part” takes on a whole new meaning as Darcy and Tom must save their loved ones—if they don’t kill each other first.
Jason Moore’s Shotgun Wedding movie is available now on Amazon Prime.