Days after you see Our Family Wedding, you might still be unsure what you thought of it. The movie about marriage and family, as the title suggests, is uncharacteristically wholesome for Hollywood. The fact that it barely fits into the PG category—let alone PG-13, which is where it’s rated—is actually a selling point. More violent and vulgar choices abound in movie theaters around the country, but “Our Family Wedding” is a stand-out for its mild undertones.
With an unusually strong ensemble cast that crosses racial boundaries and takes some of the greats from both the Black and Latino acting communities, there is no shortage of talent in basically every scene. However, some of the pairings of actors miss the mark a bit. Scenes featuring the father of the bride (Carlos Mencia) and the father of the groom (Forest Whitaker) don’t quite hit the right tone. Mencia’s comedic timing and confidence carries such scenes, while Whitaker seems to play down his typically strong presence and prowess as a seriously accomplished actor. The dynamic eases a bit toward the end of the movie, but the two never really find their footing with each other.
America Ferrara (Lucia Ramirez) and Lance Gross (Marcus Boyd) do well as a cute young couple starting out in life and eager to get married. But their chemistry doesn’t take over the story at any point, even in scenes where they are alone.
The real dynamite in Our Family Wedding is the rich myriad of relationships between characters who are not getting married. The father-son dynamic between Boyd and Whitaker is mesmerizing, as Director and screenplay co-writer Rick Famuyiwa helps the audience see the father’s unrealized hopes and dreams in his young son. Similarly, the father-daughter relationship between Ferrara and Mencia is so real and moving that you forget you’re watching two actors who aren’t related. Mencia plays Ferrara’s father, completely selling that the two share a lifetime of memories. It’s one of the great accomplishments of the film that Famuyiwa so deftly shows the world through the eyes of a parent worried to death that his child might be making the mistake of a lifetime, by getting married too young and unacquainted with her mate.
Our Family Wedding is also full of comedic moments, lending very little time to anything too overt. It has ridiculous comedy without being tasteless. The multi-ethnic supporting cast deserves much of the credit for this particular triumph. The great Lupe Ontiveros is funny and politically incorrect as the disapproving Mexican grandmother who would rather see her granddaughter marry a nice Mexican boy. Some of the relatives and friends on the groom’s side are similarly stereotypical in their comments and attitudes about race and getting married in general. It all comes off just short of being cliché—surprisingly pleasant in light of how hard this is to actually pull off.
The movie is good fun and not too heavy, while it still provides some good food for thought—especially if you or someone you know is about to get married!
[etRating value=“ 3.5”]
With an unusually strong ensemble cast that crosses racial boundaries and takes some of the greats from both the Black and Latino acting communities, there is no shortage of talent in basically every scene. However, some of the pairings of actors miss the mark a bit. Scenes featuring the father of the bride (Carlos Mencia) and the father of the groom (Forest Whitaker) don’t quite hit the right tone. Mencia’s comedic timing and confidence carries such scenes, while Whitaker seems to play down his typically strong presence and prowess as a seriously accomplished actor. The dynamic eases a bit toward the end of the movie, but the two never really find their footing with each other.
America Ferrara (Lucia Ramirez) and Lance Gross (Marcus Boyd) do well as a cute young couple starting out in life and eager to get married. But their chemistry doesn’t take over the story at any point, even in scenes where they are alone.
The real dynamite in Our Family Wedding is the rich myriad of relationships between characters who are not getting married. The father-son dynamic between Boyd and Whitaker is mesmerizing, as Director and screenplay co-writer Rick Famuyiwa helps the audience see the father’s unrealized hopes and dreams in his young son. Similarly, the father-daughter relationship between Ferrara and Mencia is so real and moving that you forget you’re watching two actors who aren’t related. Mencia plays Ferrara’s father, completely selling that the two share a lifetime of memories. It’s one of the great accomplishments of the film that Famuyiwa so deftly shows the world through the eyes of a parent worried to death that his child might be making the mistake of a lifetime, by getting married too young and unacquainted with her mate.
Our Family Wedding is also full of comedic moments, lending very little time to anything too overt. It has ridiculous comedy without being tasteless. The multi-ethnic supporting cast deserves much of the credit for this particular triumph. The great Lupe Ontiveros is funny and politically incorrect as the disapproving Mexican grandmother who would rather see her granddaughter marry a nice Mexican boy. Some of the relatives and friends on the groom’s side are similarly stereotypical in their comments and attitudes about race and getting married in general. It all comes off just short of being cliché—surprisingly pleasant in light of how hard this is to actually pull off.
The movie is good fun and not too heavy, while it still provides some good food for thought—especially if you or someone you know is about to get married!
[etRating value=“ 3.5”]
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