“Destination Wedding” was turned on for one reason.  I watch all of Keanu Reeves movies.  This means I’ve sat through some pretty terrible goings.  Not as consistently bad as Nic Cage, but there have been some pretty massive blunders along the way.  A romantic comedy featuring a wedding and the very polarizing Winona Ryder?  I must be a masochist.  But maybe not.

Synopsis

Frank and Lindsay meet on their way to a “destination wedding” and are immediately annoyed by each other.  Though their mutual disdain is palpable as the wedding activities bud, they realize their disdain travels much further than each other.  They both hate the bride, the groom, the wedding, themselves, and still each other.  As the weekend continues and their isolation from the rest of the cheerful crowd becomes apparent they form a bond of indignation.  This results in some awkward conversation and hilarity.

Review

If there was a romantic comedy that at least appealed to my senses, the cynical twosome thrown together in “Destination Wedding” were at least speaking my language.  Their general apathy for love, the institution of marriage, and the whole mythos of modern day “happiness” and relationships was spot on in congruence with my own personal bias.  Keanu’s character “Frank” spoke to my general dissonance with modern day society.  However, as someone who has found love and happiness in a dank world I guess it touched my soft spot.  A little.

The heavily dialogue driven interaction between Ryder and Reeves was unlike real conversations people have, but the chemistry between the two made it charming.  Even so, the dialogue wasn’t always successful in being quirky and the characters not particularly likable.   But, it was invigorating to hear what would typically be a thought bubble above a characters head, or even just the basic observations about ourselves we choose to ignore.  Frank and Lindsay embrace this.

What would happen if people were brutally honest with each other and themselves?  What would happen if you actually fell in love with a real person?  No facades, pretenses, all the bullshit and the disingenuous romance?  The social commentary on the presumptuousness of a “Destination Wedding” and modern relationships in general gives a voice to many of us that find the “fantasy” life so many dream about entirely unremarkable.  Making it, in it’s own way, very romantic.

The predictability of the end still isn’t overly gushy, but it’s sincerity is there.  It fulfills the same concept both of our two main characters were so harshly rebelling against, but on their terms.  And then we’re hit with the annoying sense of hope that these type of movies often provoke: that there is someone for everyone.

Do I Recommend it?

Yes, and no.  I don’t think traditional romantics would enjoy it.  It takes too many jibes at the genre and threatens the concept of conventional romance.  For those nihilist and realist junkies that take great comfort in their cynicism you’ll certainly have a bias towards this storyboard.  I take great satisfaction in the general boorishness of these two.  This is not for your mainstream loving RomCom fans, but that’s exactly why I enjoyed it.

2.5/5 Stars and streaming on Amazon Prime right now!