The Wedding Singer

The Wedding Singer is a movie that has a really special place in my heart. For starters it is one of my favourite movies and includes some fantastic 80s songs, but I also directed the stage version of it in 2008. It is still the show I enjoyed directing and performing in the most, and I met my beautiful wife during the show... so it was pretty good all round!

Enough about me though... this is all about popcorn movies. The Wedding Singer is a movie that is perfect for popcorn because the plot is thin and predictable and the characters are complete stereotypes, but the director and actors are completely unashamed of this... in fact, they revel in the cheesiness and it makes the movie all the better for it. 

Adam Sandler is one of those actors that annoys me and makes me laugh in equal measure. However, his portrayal of the Mr Nice Guy, looking-for-love, ageing wedding singer Robbie Hart is probably the best of his movie roles. The role of Robbie allows him to show his sensitive side, his warped aggression and musical ability which is really quite impressive.

For the movie to work, it was also imperative that he had believable chemistry with his leading lady, and he had this in spades with Drew Barrymore. They a such a perfect match for each other that it is easy to forget that their attraction to each other is merely a by-product of good acting and writing.

However, the thing that really makes this movie stand out from the crowd is the supporting cast and 80s setting. There is no particular reason for The Wedding Singer to be set in the 80s but the decade of decadence makes the perfect setting for such a fluffy film. The fashion, the hairstyles, the music, the lame references to playing records on CD players... are perfect for The Wedding Singer.

The support cast is also top notch. I have always loved Allan Covert and his cameo appearances in Sandler's movies, but he finally gets a big role in The Wedding Singer. He is fantastic as the sleazy but loveable Sammy and it makes me wonder why he doesn't get more bigger roles. Christine Taylor is also great as Holly and Matthew Glave is wonderfully horrible as Glenn Gulia.

However, there must be a tie for the title of biggest show stealer. Ellen Albertini Dow is the rapping granny does well and Steve Buschemi has some truly bizarre and hilarious moments. Alexis Arquette is both disturbing and entertaining as George and he would have been the king (or queen) of the show stealers had it not been for the appearance of Billy Idol.

Idol's acting ability seems tested despite the fact he is playing himself. However, his acting skills are nothing compared to the girl pictured above who has to pretend to find him attractive. Despite this, the final scene with Billy is a gem and still one of my favourites ever. So naturally, this is the clip I'm going to show for my latest Popcorn Movie Night selection.