27 DRESSES is formulaic and predictable, and I have no problem with that, given that I really enjoyed this movie and, in many moments of watching it, grinned the big grin of having fun. Katherine Heigl makes the whole thing work, and, combined with her terrific stint in [[ASIN:B000TZJBPQ Knocked Up (Unrated Widescreen Edition)]], I no longer think it's a fluke that she's this good a comedienne. She's tall and beautiful, yet her most appealing quality is that she doesn't at all mind looking goofy. And, in those horrible, horrible bridesmaid outfits, Katherine Heigl looks dang goofy.
Jane Nichols (Heigl) was eight when she found her purpose in life - which is being the sensei of averting wedding day disasters. Jane grows up self-effacing and accomodating and very, very responsible. And years later she's still in love with weddings, still can't say no to attending one, can't say no to organizing one. And all those awfully garish bridesmaid dresses she's worn? She keeps them in her closet.
For a long while now Jane has quietly pined for her boss George (Edward Burns), a perfectly perfect outdoorsy entrepreneur type who is also a vegetarian and a Big Brother to a Latino kid. And because you have to put the heroine thru her paces, Jane's gorgeous, spoiled younger sister Tess (Malin Akerman) blows into town and instantly bags Jane's boss. So hell hath no mean disposition like a woman having to organize the nuptials of her much mooned-over boss and her younger sister.
As if that's not enough torture, Jane keeps running into Kevin, a cynical newspaper writer who just annoys the living hoolies out of her. Kevin's disdain of all things weddingy immediately antagonizes Jane (to him, weddings are all about "the forced merriment, the horrible music, or the bad food"). But what Jane doesn't know is that Kevin's beat is the matrimonial column and that he's angling to write a piece on her and her serial bridesmaid lifestyle. Thing is, as played by James Marsden, Kevin isn't as slimy and calculating as you'd suppose. Not the least, dude also sings a mean rendition of "Benny and the Jets," even if the words are made-up gobbledy-gook. The ol' Cyclops really surprised me with how well he dives into his romantic leading man role, and with how funny he is. The "Benny and the Jets" bar scene is the best moment in this film.
27 DRESSES has just a bit of that FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL vibe going on, only from a woman's perspective. It's a pretty funny film, even managing to plant a few gentle digs at the wedding industry. And, to come full circle with the title, I dig what Jane does with those 27 dresses, there at the end. Katherine Heigl has a talent for this type of role. She's good enough of an actress - and she endears herself to the audience with that yearning, self-sacrificing thing she does - that you can't help but feel for her (and maybe even squirm with her) as she sadly sees her sister's fling with her boss evolve into something more serious. I think I need to see Katherine Heigl in more romantic comedies.
Malin Akerman (WATCHMEN's Silk Spectre II) is good in her thankless role of the younger self-absorbed sister Tess and Judy Greer again knocks it out the park with her snarky best friend take (she also rocked that role in [[ASIN:B000CEV3KU 13 Going on 30 (Fun & Flirty Edition)]], which starred Jennifer Garner, another girl not afraid of looking silly. Edward Burns, though, plays such a nice guy here that he ends up a pretty dull and boring dude.
Special Features: three deleted scenes, featuring Jane hailing a cab only to have someone jump into it ahead of her, Jane trying on her bridesmaid dress for Tess's wedding, and Tess accidentally almost sending Gatsby (George's huge pet) to doggy heaven; "The Wedding Party" - the Making Of featurette; "You'll Never Wear That Again" - the costume design featurette; "Jane's World" - the set design featurette; and "The Running of the Brides" focuses on New Jersey's Filene's Basement bargain store and its hectic annually-held one day wedding gown sale.
27 DRESSES is a chick flick, and it's familiar and you see where it's going - but I'm saying that Katherine Heigl is so likeable that you end up forgiving the been there/done that storyline. All the girls I know (all three of 'em) love this movie. If you're a dude, you'll score high points if you pop this in the player on date night. Although, if it's date night, you should probably take her out for lobster or something, instead of staying at home watching movies...