Sideways is probably the best written, most brilliantly acted version of the classic “bachelor party gone awry” plot you‘ll ever see. Set in the beautiful wine country around Santa Barbara, CA, two men muddle through discovering themselves before one of them gets married. Hugely popular when it came out, Sideways won an Academy Award for screenwriting, and was nominated for a handful of others. This is one wedding movie everyone will enjoy. Best served with a chardonnay.
Cheers!
Although 1939’s Gone With The Wind, takes place at the start of the civil war, Scarlett O’Hara’s wedding dress would have fit right into the assortment of giant confectionery creations that went down the aisle in the 1980s.
But other than that, this film is the type of motion picture they just don’t make anymore*. Grand and sweeping, this civil war epic will seem familiar- but only because every film that’s been made since has borrowed something from it. If you’ve seen it before, see it again. It’s a revelation how much they were able to do in 1939, and a little depressing that we’ve not lived up to the great promise of the medium. OK, film school lecture over. Dismissed!
Steel Magnolias opens in the hustle and bustle of a wedding. This is a great way to introduce an audience to a movie’s major players, since as we all know nuptials certainly do bring out a cast of characters in every family!
If I had to choose one classic movie wedding – it would likely be the one in Steel Magnolias. It introduced countless girls in the eighties, me included, to the notion of having wedding colors (and to the possibility of them being mercilessly mocked.) I also believe it brought the groom’s cake some cool points above the Mason-Dixon line. To the chagrin of event designers, there were suddenly armadillo and football jersey cakes popping up at weddings nationwide.
But ultimately, Steel Magnolias is a well-acted story of women supporting one another through life’s trials and tribulations. You’ll get some laughs but don’t be fooled. Get out your handkerchiefs for this one.
-Dinah