Patrick Dempsey fans should like this lighthearted romantic comedy fare doing a role reversal on My Best Friend’s Wedding, but other than that there is nothing else much that would draw anyone else to this standard fare. It is by no means a bad movie, just pedestrian, déjà vu, insipid fare that does not do itself any favors by drawing comparisons to Julia Roberts’ My Best Friend’s Wedding being based on a similar premise, but with role reversal this time around with the guy being the one out to spoil the wedding and win his best friend’s heart in the process. Julia Roberts was at least made of steel and went all out to win her man’s heart, but alas Patrick Dempsey does not even put in any effort to win his lady love’s heart and sort of sleepwalks through a role written just for him. This effort will not be winning him any new fans and just about keep his existing fans satisfied for the first quarter of the movie or thereabouts.
I discovered Patrick Dempsey when I was a kid in 1987’s Can’t Buy Me Love (and this is a movie that you have to watch!!!) and even liked him since he did a great job playing the nerdy kid in high school and with Amanda Peterson for company it made the movie the perfect date movie for kids in high school. Sadly Patrick Dempsey disappeared after this and my only memory of his was in 1991’s Run and in 1995’s Outbreak. Thanks to Grey’s Anatomy, Patrick Dempsey’s career has seen an upswing of late and the result is such mundane movies like Made Of Honor cleverly substituting for Maid Of Honor.
Coming to the story, Patrick Dempsey and Michelle Monaghan run into each other in college when Patrick Dempsey is dating Michelle Monaghan’s roommate. Fast forward to present day and both are now the best of friends and in Patrick Dempsey’s own words he has the best of both worlds with a truckload of girlfriends, tons of cash, and Michelle Monaghan as his best friend with no romantic involvement between them. Patrick Dempsey is the archetypical dream guy for all. He is handsome, very rich and single, and very obviously living it up. The only introduction we have to his family is at his father, Sydney Pollack’s wedding who has been married and divorced so many times that he does not remember if he is marrying his 6th or his 7th wife. In fact the scene plays out with his bride to be circling the church in the bridal car while both the lawyers are haggling over the prenuptial agreement. This idyllic life of Patrick Dempsey takes an ugly turn when Michelle Monaghan informs him that she is going to Scotland for 6 weeks on work and Patrick Dempsey realizes he is going to have a tough time without Michelle Monaghan and says so in as many words. Once Michelle Monaghan is out of the picture and in Scotland, Patrick Dempsey starts missing her badly and realizes that he is very much in love with her. He decides and confides in his friends that he is going to declare his love to Michelle Monaghan as soon as she is back and settle down with her.
To his utter consternation Michelle Monaghan returns from Scotland with Kevin McKidd, a rich aristocrat from Scotland whom she has met and fallen in love with during her trip to Scotland. Michelle Monaghan and Kevin McKidd declare they are engaged and are getting married in 2 weeks time after which Michelle Monaghan will move permanently to Scotland. Michelle Monaghan asks Patrick Dempsey to be her Made/Maid Of Honor and Patrick Dempsey agrees to it believing it will give him time to spend with Michelle Monaghan and maybe change her mind and discover she loves him instead of Kevin McKidd. Patrick Dempsey does have his work cut out for him since Kevin McKidd is rich, an aristocrat and of royal lineage, and simply put he happens to be the perfect male specimen. This leads to a couple of funny incidents during a competition held in Scotland when the wedding party arrives there. There are other funny incidents too like when the Made Of Honor, Patrick Dempsey has to hold the bridal shower for Michelle Monaghan.
As expected Patrick Dempsey does end up winning his one true love in life Michelle Monaghan, but not before Kevin McKidd floors him with a right to the jaw. The ending is a foregone conclusion and the only thing that could make this an enjoyable trip for the viewers would have been the journey getting to the climax, but this is where Made Of Honor fails with lame gags and halfhearted attempts at comedy. The movie never really explains the friendship between Patrick Dempsey and Michelle Monaghan and it is a bit unconceivable how an intelligent young woman like Michelle Monaghan and a rich playboy like Patrick Dempsey could end up as the best of friends since she so obviously abhors his type right from college. There is a fair bit that Made Of Honor does not delve into or explain and requires the viewers to just go along for the ride, however, the ride will be enjoyable only if you are a Patrick Dempsey fan or are in the mood for some lighthearted romantic romp of a movie which will not be very taxing, you know basically the watch and forget kind of a movie. While Made Of Honor may not score on all fronts, you could still do worse with some of the latest Hollywood big budget extravaganzas, so it should end up as a safe bet for those in the mood for some lighthearted romantic entertainment.
Tags: Kathleen Quinlan, Kevin McKidd, Made Of Honor Review, Michelle Monaghan, Patrick Dempsey, Paul Weiland, Sydney Pollack