4.25.2008

Margot at the Wedding (2007)

So, just this week, fellow Armchair Critic Jim asks me about my grading system, and what constitutes the different letter grades. I go through what they are in my mind, and he feels a little differently about the "mediocre" category. Hey, to each their own, and that's fine by me. Then, he asks me if I truly disliked Apocalypto so much, and couldn't even get through watching the DVD, why wasn't it just an F, and not an F+. I replied that because it had some visual interest at some points, it wasn't totally bad, and I'd reserve an F for those totally dismal films that failed in every department. While I can't find this type of film too often, after all, it's on the other end of the bell curve and an A+ review is a rarity around here, I'll tell you that Margot at the Wedding is such a truly awful film.

How can a film featuring such veteran actors as Nicole Kidman, not to mention Jack Black be so dismal? Imagine a film based around some estranged friends and family gathering around a wedding that few think should be taking place. The house guests are all thrown together, and all they do is gossip about each other. they keep mentioning characters that are nearly impossible to keep straight. They throw in random sexual scenes, like the neighbors in the backyard in the buff, that serve no purpose other than shock value, and don't even make any sense given the minimal plot. The thing drudges along at the speed of a full dumptruck, stuck in reverse, going uphill, and running out of gas. Unfortunately, after wasting an hour of my life on this, I realized "who cares" and I ejected the disc to a feeling of relief. Don't waste any time on Margot at the Wedding, as it is a waste of two veteran actors who have done far better work elsewhere. I can understand Jack Black getting involved with this, but seriously, Nicole Kidman? What was she thinking?

Overall Grade: F

Reviewed by Jonas

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