Comedic Kevin Hart returns to the big screen with yet another of his flicks. And while this is one of his better efforts, The Wedding Ringer stands as just another cliché comedy no one will remember in a few months’ time.

Starring Kevin Hart, Josh Gad, and Kayley Cuoco in lead roles, the film talks about Jimmy (Hart), a man whose job is to be a fake best-man for hopeless friendless grooms-to-be; a wedding ringer. Enter Doug Harris (Gad), a soon to be wedded goof in need of a wedding ringer to pose as his best friend and best man Bic, after having convinced fiancé Gretchen Palmer (Cuoco) of Bic’s existence. 

Kevin Hart does a good job as Jimmy/Bic. It’s a sort of role that is quite fitting of Hart‘s personality, and he doesn’t hold back. It’s interesting with comedy roles; some people think everyone can do them, and most people can, but a certain percentage of people can achieve the feat of being naturally funny despite the existence of scripted jokes. It’s in the nuances of their ways, and the intricacies of their characterization. In that, Hart succeeds. 


Portraying a desperate friendless groom, Josh Gad is exactly what you’d expect: a once bullied white, successful business man with a kind heart seeking a best man, and ultimately, a best friend. In other words, BORING.

As for Kaley Cuoco, she initially comes off as a nice girl you’re happy Doug is going to end up with, only to discover she’s a materialistic, all-consuming, raging bitch. I’m shocked. Hold me. How did I not see this coming? Ha. She becomes so annoying and unrelatable (not assuming she was to begin with) at one point that you just want to shove her face into her wedding cake.

That’s the whole problem with the movie: it’s as predictable as they come. I mean, if you were to sit down right now and seriously try to figure out the plotline of the movie, 95% of you will be right. 

And that’s fine. This is what we call a genre film in cinema — a crappy one. It’s not meant to be an amazing thought-provoking film. It’s just one of those light-hearted comedies you watch once with a group of friends. You can expect every detail of it and how it’ll end. It’s just passing entertainment. The thing is it’s bad at being so. For example, 22 Jump Street was just entertainment, but it’s damn good at being entertainment. 

The film had its laughs, its “emotional” moments, and its outrageous physical comedy, but it ultimately failed to impress. I couldn’t be asked paying much attention to the last parts because it wasn’t anything I couldn’t assume — even if I weren’t watching.

The script was mediocre and suffocated audiences with tedious monologues and cliche dialogue. But at least it wasn’t horrible. It was perfect for this sort of movie.

The score was chock full of mainstream hits, and I didn’t really mind. They supported the movie well, and at least they were alright mainstream hits, not that crap that’s on the radio most of the time. The song during the end-credits was pretty catchy!

All in all, The Wedding Ringer fails to impress. Even though it’s just a feel-good movie to kill time, it suffers from excessive cliche syndrome. And quite honestly, I can think of better time killers for you to watch.

RATING: 34/100

Image Sources: metacritic.com, tribute.ca, officialtrailers.org, flickeringmyth.com, teaser-trailer.com

Subscribe to read more movie reviews and film related news. Also, don’t forget to like my Facebook page and follow my Twitter account @LATBFBlog for exclusive content, upcoming reviews, competitions, and more!