Marry Me plays to the Valentine season with great music, some of our favorite actors, and a few wonderful nuggets of what love and marriage is really about.
Synopsis: Music superstars Kat Valdez (Jennifer Lopez) and Bastian (Maluma) are getting married before a global audience of fans. But when Kat learns, seconds before her vows, that Bastian has been unfaithful, she decides to marry Charlie (Owen Wilson), a stranger in the crowd, instead.
This is the perfect time of year for films like this. Whether it is a date night, a Girls Night Out party, or a way to wallow in the pain of past relationship failures; this one ticks off all the boxes. Sadly though, the movie as a whole didn’t have any spark or chemistry of its own.
The premise of the film – based on the graphic novel by Bobby Crosby – is solid as is most of the dialogue. Something happens from page to screen though that caused this one to fall on hard times. I wanted out of this relationship 20 minutes into the movie. And I am a sucker for romantic comedies. This is not genre bias, or a bitter slap at love. Sadly, it doesn’t always work.
Jennifer Lopez is a wonderful actress and performer. Every scene she is in she lights up. There are several musical numbers in this one due to her character. When she is singing and dancing she is in her element and those are the best parts of the film. But when her character steps offstage it becomes awkward. Could it be bad direction? Maybe. Possibly she was told to act that way – because she is better than what we got here – or maybe the script was too personal and Jennifer felt too vulnerable in the moment to really deliver it. JLo said in an interview that this was the most a script has ever felt like her life. That could be what got in her head.
Owen Wilson is the same as we always get. Which is fine. We needed that humble, endearing, “what a great guy” character in this. He plays a single dad who cares only for his daughter and being the best math teacher possible for his young students. Social media, the lime-light, fame; none of that is of any interest. Charlie and Kat live in separate worlds. Wilson is fine but like Jenn he doesn’t really seem to be invested in the scene. He seems distracted. Again, maybe bad direction. Regardless, there is zero chemistry with him and Jenn which makes even the sweetest moments a bit stale.
To be honest the best characters are from the supporting cast of Sarah Silverman and John Bradley. I guess being single can pay off in a rom com. I think this wants to be the next Love Actually – blatant sign placement – or Notting Hill. It tried too hard though and I just can’t see this one becoming a February staple film like those in the past. Sadly, no.
Should you see it? That is the big question. Again, the message of love and marriage, what it means, and how it is defined in our country is strong here. The story is worth hearing. Marry Me opens in theaters & streaming on Peacock FEBRUARY 11. This means you can save a bit on a sitter and the box office and watch it at home. There is a win there. Or you can lower your expectations to near nil and head to the theater. If you go to watch Lopez sing and dance on the big screen then it is money well spent.
I give it 1.5 out of 5 Diophantine Equations. Numbers don’t lie and this one just never added up to much. I feel bad saying that and I will probably not get any Valentines now. I could say, it’s not you, it’s me… but that would be lying.
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