These days, we could all use a laugh, and oftentimes the easiest way to get one is to simply watch a funny movie. Straightforward Hollywood comedies are admittedly hard to come by these days, thanks to studios' current preoccupation with franchises and bigger budget fare. But in January alone, we've gotten two new movies that fit that familiar mold. If One of Them Days, currently playing in theaters, represents some of the best the genre can be, then Prime Video's You're Cordially Invited is on the other end of the spectrum.
It's the kind of movie that's good for some laughs and even has some surprising depth, but it has so much going on that it struggles under the weight of it all. You're Cordially Invited unabashedly sets up its brand of humor within the first few minutes when an elderly woman drops dead while attempting to book a wedding for the beloved daughter of Jim (Will Ferrell). The untimely passing kicks off a comedy of errors that all hinges on a fairly simple, but admittedly outlandish premise: What if two weddings were double-booked for the same venue?
You're Cordially Invited's Main Premise Wears Thin
Both For The Movie Itself & The Audience
The first bride we meet is Jim's daughter Jenni (Geraldine Viswanathan), who has been the center of his life ever since his wife died years ago. To say Jim is fond of his daughter is an understatement — one scene even featured them singing a suggestive song together — so he's both struggling with her leaving the nest and determined to give her the best wedding ever. He books the same inn he married his wife at, which is the cherished childhood vacation spot of Margot (Reese Witherspoon) and her newly engaged younger sister Neve (the always charming Meredith Hagner).
Equally motivated to give Neve the wedding of her dreams, Margot books the same island venue as Jim, and due to the aforementioned death of its former manager, gets it on the same weekend as Jenni's wedding. The two parties couldn't be more dissimilar when they gather on the island. Jenni's party is characterized by a party-hard attitude and multiple shots, while Neve's is a classier affair filled with uptight and cringe-inducing family members. However, after a bit of arguing and then bargaining, Margot and Jim agree to share the space for the weekend.
I hesitate to call You're Cordially Invited mean-spirited, because I know full well that it would be boring if the characters hardly did anything dramatic. However, it isn't exactly the most heart-warming of comedies.
Naturally, the peace doesn't last for long, and soon Jim and Margot are conspiring to ruin the opposing wedding to score a win for their respective loved ones. You're Cordially Invited, directed and written by Nicholas Stoller (Neighbors, Bros), delights in taking everything to the absolute extreme. Without getting into too many specifics, one bride suffers from some intense injuries, wedding parties end up in the lake, and there's an alligator involved.
It's clear Stoller is aiming to be daring by escalating every conflict, but at a certain point it only becomes exhausting. Jim and Margot are relentless in their scheming, and though Ferrell and Witherspoon certainly commit to the silliness, you almost wish you were there with them so you could tell them to ease up. I hesitate to call You're Cordially Invited mean-spirited; I know full well it would be boring if the characters hardly did anything dramatic. However, it isn't exactly the most heart-warming of comedies, either.
You're Cordially Invited Has A Lot On Its Mind
This Is Both A Good & Bad Thing
As if the main rivalry plot wasn't enough, You're Cordially Invited has two sets of familial drama to sort through. Jim is grappling with Jenni growing up and not needing him anymore, while Margot must confront the estranged members of her family that she left behind a long time ago because she felt like an outsider. This means that among the petty sabotage, there are several emotional scenes wherein characters air out their grievances and get very, very real with each other. I appreciate Stoller's attempts to add depth to the slapstick comedy, but it's a tricky tonal balance he doesn't quite pull off.
Related
The Wedding Banquet Review: Bowen Yang's Hilarious & Heartfelt Romantic Comedy Revives What's Been Missing From The Genre
The combination of cast & storytelling makes for an emotionally gorgeous, hilarious, and touching film that you’ll want to rewatch over & over again.
There are pros to You're Cordially Invited, including the clever invitation-themed opening credits. MVPs within the cast include Jack McBrayer as the inn's anxious manager Leslie and Jimmy Tatro as Neve's exotic dancer fiancé Dixon. Both are hilarious in their own ways, making it a bit disappointing they aren't as involved with the story overall. It's firmly Margot and Jim's story and there are a few instances when Stoller smartly draws parallels between them in an effort to deepen their characters.
Witherspoon and Ferrell play off each other fairly well, but I'm not convinced they have the chemistry necessary to pull off some later developments that I won't spoil here (but honestly, it's easy to guess what it is fairly early on). Throw in some big cameos that really don't go anywhere — the trailer already revealed Peyton Manning, who does nothing — and you get a fit-to-bursting comedy that's only intermittently successful. I can be grateful that this kind of movie exists today, but maybe it is fitting that it's headed to streaming rather than theaters.
You're Cordially Invited is rated R for language throughout and some sexual references.
You're Cordially Invited
Release Date January 30, 2025
Director Nicholas Stoller
Writers Nicholas Stoller
Cast
-
-
-
Geraldine Viswanathan
Jenni
-
Pros & Cons
- Stoller's attempts at adding depth to the comedy yields some success.
- You're Cordially Invited has a solid cast, with Jack McBrayer and Jimmy Tatro among MVPs.
- There's almost too much going on to process.
- Jim and Margot's antics grow tiring.
- The story struggles to balance the silly with the dramatic.
English (US) ·