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Father of the Bride

Father of the Bride

List Price: $19.99
Your Price: $14.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Charming Tale of a Wedding And Hilarious Comedy!
Review: I'm usually not fond of remakes but this is another great exception. I can watch it over and over again and I have. It has a wonderful cast Steve Martin who is always gold and can always make you laugh, paired with the wonderfully talented Diane Keaton. Also with Martin Short and introducing Kimberly Williams as "The Father of the Bride."
It's an updated film version of the Liz Taylor's classic "Father of the Bride."
It's about a father having a hard time with letting his daughter go and trying to let her go and grow up, and all the hassels of putting together a wedding and then finding out what weddings are really about two people who are deeply in love joining together as a family.
The cast is incrediable and everyone in it is totally amazing. Of course the movie is basically a Fairy Tale type of wedding. I mean a middle class family and their daughter comes home engaged to a man who's family is very rich. It has its flaws but I don't think you'll care once you get into the richness of the movie and the comedy given by the actors and actresses.
I think everyone will love this what I want to call a classic remake put together by the lovely Nancy Meyers and Charles Shyer, and with my favorite movie musician Alan Silvestri. The movie can be a bit slow sometimes, but of course always picks itseslf back up. It's one of my favorites and I remember when I went to go see it at the theaters. Lovely remake of a film. And almost everyone will love it :) I can only dream of having a wedding like this!!
As for the DVD it's okay again your typical DVD I think. It's in widescreen edition and has a theatrical trailer, and Dolby Sound, French Language Track, and a Chapter Search. All in all pretty basic not even really Special Features section that I recall.
But as per ratings I would give the movie a B+ and a DVD a C+

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Winning Comedy
Review: Father Of The Bride is a re-make of a 1950's film that starred Elizabeth Taylor and Spencer Tracy. This version stars Steve Martin as a father who can't let his little girl go when she announces that she's getting married. Her mom, elegantly played by Diane Keaton, is overjoyed. Dad, well, he doesn't know what to think. Kimberly Williams, as Annie the daughter, was a real find. She's pretty, cute, and talented. This is a role that Steve Martin seemed destined to play. He's such a brilliant comedian and comedic actor. He can play it straight just as well. He shines in this wonderful, warm, fuzzy comedy. Let's not forget Martin Short, as wedding coordinator Franc. Short is another comedy genius. He gives us an instantly memorable and classic performance. Just where exactly is Franc from?. Nobody really knows. The movie is incredible to look at. The town, the house, the car, the tree lined street. It's like the life and family one dreams of. It's a comedy winner. The sequel was just as good and sweet. Walk this bride down the aisle.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The comedy about letting go
Review: In 1950,Spencer Tracy was in the original film,the FATHER OF THE BRIDE and a young Liz Taylor was the bride. Forty-one years later,Steve Martin portrayed the father(his character is George Stanley Banks) and Kimberly Williams was Annie,the bride. Martin narrated the film,himself on camera in the first scene,dressed in the tuxedo he wore at Williams' wedding. Annie's romance with Bryan MacKenzie began six months before their wedding. Annie was studying architecture in Rome,where she met Bryan(George Newbern). According to the scene where Bryan went to the Banks' home to meet Annie's parents,Bryan went to Annie to ask for directions and one thing led to another. George left his workplace,Sidekicks,an athletic shoe factory which he runs,immediately after he was told that Annie had arrived home. For a homecoming gift,George buys her a ten-speed bike,all polished and ready to ride. Then,Annie announces her and Bryan's engagement at the dinner table to her father,her mother Nina(Diane Keaton) and her brother Matt(Kieran Culkin,MacCaulay's brother). George is very shocked,believing she's too young to get married(Annie is 22 and Bryan is 26). Bryan is an independent communications consultant,which he assembles and connects communication systems. Then,George and Nina go to the home of David and Joanna MacKenzie,Bryan's dad and mom. They toast the wedding of their respective children and other joyful events that will possibly follow(i.e. Annie's and Bryan's children). At one point in the film,a heated argument between Annie and Bryan causes them to split up and cancel the wedding. The Bankses meet with a wedding coordinator named Franc Eggelhoffer(Martin Short with a European accent). The glorious wedding day comes in early January,following a snowfall(a rarity in Los Angeles). Heaters were brought in and immediately taken out of the Banks' home,where the reception took place, since they were melting the ice sculptures. In the final scene,after the wedding,Annie phones her exhausted parents saying goodbye,"I love you" and "thank you for everything". Annie and Bryan were at the airport where they were about to fly to their honeymoon in Hawaii. Those who have seen this film may have also seen "Betsy's Wedding" and "My Big Fat Greek Wedding". It was released in theatres just before Christmas 1991. It was directed by Charles Shyer,who would direct the sequel,FATHER OF THE BRIDE PART II,four years later.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: So-so
Review: Spoiled daughter and enabling mother guilt-trip dad into paying for ridiculously expensive and overdone wedding. Forgive me if I'm not entirely sympathetic. Plus, the movie gets overwhelmed in sap, sap, sap towards the end and loses its humor. It has its moments, though, so it's worth a viewing or two, even if it's not a must-own. My favorite bits: Steve Martin as father George Banks in the supermarket removing hot dog buns from the package so as to rectify the 8 hotdogs per package vs 12 buns per package situation and the scenes with Martin Short as wedding coordinator Franck ("George, why are you wearing blue tuxahdo?" "Franck, Armani doesn't make a blue tuxedo." "Armani also don't make polyester"). The actors are a talented bunch and the presence of Martin and Keaton do a lot to hold together a movie that otherwise wouldn't have much going for it.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Father of the Bride
Review: Steve Martin is again quite humorous as George Banks in this narrative of his daughter,Annie's engagement announcement when she (Kimberly Williams)returns home from abroad. As an over-reactive father, Banks refuses to believe his little girl has grown up and he needs direction from his patient wife, Nina, (Diane Keaton)throughout the movie. Proud to be her father and refusing to accept monetary relief from his rich future in-laws, Banks reluctantly agrees to hire the expensive wedding co-ordinator, Franck,(Martin Short)that his wife and daughter have chosen. Martin and Short will keep your entire family laughing and/or crying in this hilarious yet sometimes poignant movie as you follow Franck's wedding plans and of course the big day for Annie.I recommend this movie for anyone and rate it 4 stars (out of 5) for it's emotional content and comedy.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: SOME WILD AND CRAZY GUY HUMOR
Review: Up front, I've got to admit that I'm probably less qualified to review a movie than many of the other reviewers here. I don't see that many movies, and I have no idea if a transfer to DVD is good or bad. What I do have is a good sense of what I like, and of what made me laugh or cry, love or hate, or be interested or bored.

This movie made me laugh, and a few of the scenes have rattled around in the back of my head for a long time, causing me to laugh whenever they decide to come forward.

After identifying the leads, I will give a very brief synopsis of the plot, then on to some highlights, as I remember them:

George Banks, played by Steve Martin, is the title character. Nina Banks, George's wife, is portrayed by Diane Keaton. Their daughter, the bride to be, Annie Banks, is played by Kimberly Williams. And, if a comedy can be said to have its own comedy relief, that is provided by Martin Short as Franck Eggelhoffer, Wedding Consultant.

Plot: Annie comes home from 6 months abroad and tells her parents that she is engaged to be married. George is not too happy about this, as he is not ready for his daughter to leave home. He is finally convinced to give in to the inevitable, and the wedding planning begins. The plot line follows through the wedding preparations and the wedding, itself. Like most light comedies I've seen, the plot merely provides a setting for the comedy to follow.

As in a few of my other reviews, I'm doing this from memory, so I may occasionally be "off" in the details. Forgive me my errors or omissions.

One of my impressions from early in the movie is how thrilled George is when told that the wedding will be at home. He has visions of a backyard get-together where he fires up the old barbecue and cooks burgers for everyone. Boy, is he in for a surprise.

Enter Franck Eggelhoffer, the wedding planner your mother warned you about. Each time he opens his mouth, and Nina and Annie nod their heads in agreement, George rightfully visualizes another few thousand dollars flying out the window: An enlarged back yard, a tent for a few hundred guests, thousands of dollars worth of wiring, live swans, ice sculptures, caterers, musicians, you name it. Nothing, and I mean nothing, is too much.

Franck has an unidentifiable accent that cracked me up every time he opened his mouth.

All of this proves too much for George and he goes bezerk. At his most fragile, he goes to a supermarket to buy some hotdogs and buns for an at home barbecue one evening in the middle of the planning period. One step from a straight jacket anyway, he cannot cope with the fact that there are different quantities of hot dogs and buns in their respective packages. He rants and raves and begins to tear the package of buns to shreds. Finally, the police are called and he, the respected middle-class professional from San Marino, CA, is arrested. Words don't do justice to this scene, it must be seen to be appreciated.

Then there's the day of the wedding, unusually warm as I remember. The guests are greeted by flooding caused by melting ice sculptures, swans running wild, and other colossal mishaps. Again, it must be seen to be appreciated.

The wedding does go off, and there is a final scene of father and daughter, always in separate parts of the house, desperately searching for one another for a final goodbye before she leaves on her honeymoon.

Evidently, this movie was too slapstick for some people, but in my opinion, the "wild and crazy guy" kind of humor was one of the main justification for remaking a good 1950's movie that had starred Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor as father and daughter.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Here Comes the Bride: Give Out a Laugh
Review: This movie is a classic, a 1990's update of the original Father of the Bride, starring Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor. A befuddled father is trying to deal with his daughter's engagement and marriage. What a storm in the midst of the Bank's home! George Banks, the father, is shocked with Annie's anouncement over dinner, she is going the marry a complete stranger that she met in Rome. The poor father is really loving and caring of his only daughter, and he wants only what is best for her. His sensiable wife, Nina, tries to make him understand just what a big deal the wedding really is. George gradually gives in, ready to help prepare for his daughter's dream wedding and rception. However, the off-the-wall caterer and his crazy ideas, the expense, and the rush and hurry of life in general is enough the drive him up a wall. This movie indeed has a happy, fairy-tale ending. Funny situations are pulled off in this movie, including huge dogs, a bank book, a large swimming pool, and the new in-laws. Great music "My Girl", "Chapel of Love", and other songs are included. This movies promises to deliever magic and true love to those who have it and watch it. It will capture your heart.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: No Extras, but I'm Glad The Movie is Shown in Widescreen!
Review: I haven't yet seen the original Father of The Bride movie that starred Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor but I saw this remake and I think it's a lovely movie and what a terrific cast, Steve Martin, Kimberly Williams, Diane Keaton, Martin Short, George Newbern and Kieran Culkin. I don't own this movie on DVD or video but would love to have it on DVD and I even put it on my Christmas wish list. The DVD might be bare of extra features but I'm just glad that it has the movie in widescreen, and I can overlook such a minor flaw of the DVD lacking extras! I recommend this movie and also the lovely sequel which is just as good!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wonderful wonderful feel--good film
Review: This is such a sweet story. I've seen it many times and it never gets less funny, less engaging, less touching or less real. Steve Martin is flawless; Diane Keaton is enviable and the cast of characters are both quirky and interesting. Nicely done.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Martin and Martin Both Bring their best
Review: Both Steve Martin and Martin Short bring out their best in father of the bride. The comedy gets better and better as the movie goes along. Steve Martin plays a father who is afraid of the fact that his daughter is now a woman and will be getting married. With Martin Short puttin together the wedding, and Steve Martin Dealing with the wedding, this movie will keep you laughing out loud throughout it all.


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