Best Men (1997)

There are some movies so bad,that when you watch them on video or TV,you wonder, "Why did they bother with this?" "Why didn't they shelve it?" That's what I wondered when I caught this unoriginal,cliché' filled movie on late night TV.The first hour of this movie (including commercials) is truly a mess and completely unbelievable. While I can see the possibility of a man getting out of jail and going to his waiting bride, I could not buy how he and his friends end up helping their buddy "Hamlet" (Billy)in the bank and keeping their fellow towns-people hostage. Even more ridiculous is that because the guys are "nice",they end up basically helping them too.Dean Cain is really the only convincing male actor of the five (at least in the first 1/2). Although his coming out of the bank,with guns blazing is just plain stupid,along with the fact that he's wearing guns under his tuxedo in the first place.Andy Dick seems to only be able to play one character his whole career,a strange,nerdy kind of Matthew from "News Radio" boy-man. He really has no place here and his "tell off the wife over the phone" scene has been done way too many times in movies and TV shows,it's completely unoriginal.As is most of this blatant small town rip-off of "Dog Day Afternoon" (which they at least acknowledge their ripping off). We get a sheriff who's the father of wanted criminal "Hamlet". We also get the cliché' of the crowd cheering for "Hamlet" like he's some kind of Robin Hood folk hero! "I went to high school with that guy!" Says one of them,then they're chanting "Hamlet" over & over.So,we get the "you we're never there for me dad" plot,which has also been done in movies TV shows. Which made it hard to be sympathetic,but not just in that case,I couldn't sympathize with any of these characters. Even after finding out about their personal downfalls.The Vietnam vet is so much a cartoon that what could have been a great character is wasted. As are the acting talents of Drew Barrymore. Her presence in all this is spread quite thin. Then there's the expected FBI converging on the town,with the leader who just wants to blast the bad guys away. He and the sheriff are of course at at odds with each other and the other big city FBI men make fun of the small town's people. "They should be used to shot gun weddings here." (Referring to Barrymore and her boyfriend wanting to get married in the middle of a hostage situation.) I really only got into the movie when the more truthful and real elements came into play. When Andy is the first to get shot and then the FBI shooting up Cain and "Hamlet's" get away bus in a scene somewhat similar to the ending of Clint Eastwood's,"The Gauntlet". "Hamlet" and father make amends just before that and Dad let's his son get away. (Oh please!) Then the final two biggest rip off's of all. Barrymore and soon to be husband are given the stolen money by "Hamlet" and they fly of in the Vietnam Vet's helicopter and escape scott free. Shades of "D.B. Cooper"! Dean Cain and "Hamlet" then have one bullet each in their guns after the bus crashes and their all shot up. Just like the final scene in "Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid" they come running out together and Cain takes down the leader of the FBI,who he swore he'd take out. All the supposed "reasons" these characters have for letting themselves into this mess are contrived and flimsy at best. I would say if this movie had been made a long time ago and had there not been "Dog Day Afternoon",it might seem more plausible but even the intense last half,which did hold my interest,is not enough to like this movie.Four stars for the final,intense attempted getaway chase scene and "Hamlet's" very well spoken Shakespearian quotes,which do fit in here and the movie thankfully taking a needed turn into reality. Otheriwse,I'd never bother with "Best Men" again. (END)

What a train wreck.Watching the opening credits the audience is granted some manner of false hope; Wilson, Cain, Flanery, Dick, Ward, and Barrymore...not to mention direction from the talented Tamra Davis. Add in music by Mark Mothersbaugh and you might think you were in for a really entertaining hour and a half. You'd be wrong.Instead this is 90 minutes of your life you'll be wishing you had back. This movie fails miserably in spite of its passable cast. The script is miserable tripe, with each member of this derelict wedding party recounting their own unique story, one more cliché than the next.The supporting cast features a bevy of film stereotypes; the distant father, the crazy veteran, the villainous FBI agent...even a black security guard named after a ball player! How embarrassing.Beyond the bad script, sub par performances, weak story, and average direction, Best Men never really decides where it wants to go. Comedy, dark comedy, action-adventure, drama; as it flounders it never achieves any of these goals.Don't be fooled by the stars, this is grade A loser not worthy of its cast or its director.

Great movie..it has comedy, drama, unexpected events, love and real interaction among friends..people you know slightly and total strangers who interact and mesh well in the storyline. Good cast; and for all of you Dean Cain fans, he shows a buff chest. Drew adds an interesting twist to the bride-to-be. Luke Wilson is again great in his role, he gives real depth to his role. The male stars interact like they actually know their roles and the little quirks in their relationships just seems to draw you more into the story and Drew is believable as the bride to be and has a friendship with each of the 5 male stars. I seldom recommend movies, but this is definitely one I plan on seeing a few times just because it was written so well I know I probably missed a few things the first time.

Imagine, you have 90 minutes to fill by means of a movie. This movie is supposed to be a thriller, black-humoured, exciting and deep in character. You have five main characters and a couple of supporting characters and now, please press all of them into these 90 minutes and include a background story about each of them. The result is a movie like Best Men with a challenging idea standing at the beginning and apart from that, over-loaded with characterizations created along one of those books on 'How to Write a Damn Good Screenplay'. The dialogues lack ideas because there is no time to develop them, so they have to be reduced to standard phrases. If stretched, however, they would be boring. Another result is that the characters all have exciting and heart-rending pasts but regarding their present situations they remain flat. Maybe they had better not tried to realize that attractive idea.