The Groomsmen (2006)

Paulie (Ed Burns) has been living with his girlfriend, Sue (Brittany Murphy) for three years. Now the lady is pregnant and they are about to walk down the aisle. For the ceremony, Paulie has asked his brother Jimbo (Donal Logue) to be best man. Jimbo, however, seems to be going through a personal crisis. His wife (Heather Burns) has reported a loss of communication, several job switches, and weight gain to her brother, TC (John Leguizamo) who has come to Long Island for the wedding. Also invited are local "best buds" cousin Mike (Jay Mohr) and Dez (Matthew Lillard), the only one of the group who has kids already. There are a number of problems for each man, not just Jimbo, although he argues with Paulie so much that his best man status is in jeopardy. TC has a big revelation while Mike can't seem to get over a broken relationship. Even Sue creates doubt as to the timing of the marriage, for she is a bit mad that the nursery isn't finished and, yes, that Paulie doesn't bring her flowers anymore. Will the wedding take place and the men stay friends? First, this will not be my favorite Ed Burns film but its head and shoulders above most of Hollywood fare. Its polished, complicated script has much to say about everyday life and how we endure. Then, too, what a dream cast, all doing fabulous work! As for the Long Island scenery, it is so beautiful the viewer is enchanted. Some parts are funny, as when Dez tries to get his sons to help carry the groceries by pretending to throw away their favorite cereal. Other parts are touching as most of these men have strong bonds with their aging fathers and their longtime friends. So, while I prefer Looking for Kitty and Sidewalks of New York, The Groomsmen is a fine choice for those who love quality cinema.

The Groomsmen is a heartfelt story of one man wavering on the road of his life. Love takes his heart, but is he ready for the leap ahead? The bonds of friendship strengthen his spirit, but conflict threatens to break them apart. Doubt steals across his mind, but moments of life shed light over the promise of time. And through brilliant storytelling and direction are we carried across the trials that he and those beside him must confront, and characters conflicted and defined shine like a brilliant sun through the heart and soul of a talented cast. And once again, we remember a beautiful talent that adds so much to a powerful storyline, Brittany Murphy, and she will be forever missed.

Let us sincerely hope, that the rest of the world will not conclude, that the five brothers/friends of the Groomsmen are representative for the average American adult. I cannot believe they are. These five don't know how to cope with anything. 35 and only then come out of the closet? Solving infertility by picking up a whore? Come on. The Groomsmen basically is a soap. We see an endless chain of relational problems. As soon as one is solved - or just disappeared - the next one pops up. Thr idea is to hold our attention. As far as I am concerned: it doesn't. To give the soap a male touch there is a lot of stereotypical "f*** **u". As even Burns got bored of it, he adds the well known gesture with a certain finger in one scene. Acting is decent, there are less than a handful nice jokes, plot is absent, characters are quite uninteresting. Of course end good, all good. All in all a quite forgettable movie. If you want to know how it is to be a male 35, watch Kramer vs Kramer instead.Note the talented John Leguizamo. In The Alibi his talents were much better used.

Where do you start with this mess? The best stuff - TC. The scene between Matt Lillard and Ed Burns in which he tells him how his life has changed since having kids. As a father, this is the truth. Jessica Capshaw is such a beauty. I actually felt bad for Jay Mohr that he never got to reconcile with her, but how could you blame her. Mohr's character is horrible, and what a waste of a comedic talent, too. (In the DVD, there is a section called "Jay Mohr's takes", which you would expect to be funny, but is anything but. The worst stuff - Unfortunately the rest. The soundtrack is like a bad sampling of 80's music - Loverboy, Billy Squier, Greg Kihn. And who said Leguzamo (sp) can sing? How could the other band members put up with is irritable vocals, or were they dubbed? I know that Ed Burns likes to use local talent and that's fine, but get some who can act.