Kiss the Bride

In case you've been wondering what Burt Young and Talia Shire have been doing lately, Kiss the Bride will let you rest assured that they are still churning out roles in Italo-American crowd pleasers. If you aren't particularly interested in what Burt Young and Talia Shire have been doing lately, then there's absolutely no reason to watch this film. Director Vanessa Parise's Kiss the Bride, is a shamelessly derivative, utterly superfluous contribution to the current inundation of ethnic wedding films. It should be coming soon to your nearest cable station. That's where it belongs.

I don't understand why movies try to portray characters of a certain religion when they don't know anything about the religion. I saw the sign of the cross made with the left hand, heard that the church is wrong in teaching that marital intercourse should not be enjoyed (what?!? the Church doesn't teach that at all!), and a supposed Catholic conservative couple get married outside the Church. It takes minimal knowledge to know these and yet they didn't bother to figure it out. It was a cheesy, brainless movie otherwise. If you are looking for a predictable movie that doesn't require your full attention, then this could be what you are seeking.

I saw this film at the Sarasota film festival last year. it was the opening film. I was excited to see it since it was the opener of the festival but was quite shocked to see how pitiful the storyline was! It was a complete ripoff of My Big Fat Greek Wedding! I am so surprised that such an amatuer filmmaker got to have the opening film!! The jokes were weak, acting was poor, storyling was cliche and boring, characterization was missing, and I left questioning how this film got made...

I watched this movie on a commercial channel. Despite the commercial interruptions, I was surprised and impressed with the writing and the Direction. Filled with talented actors (Talia Shire and Burt Young of "Rocky" fame team up again, this time as husband and wife) who deliver, this film reminded me of "The Big Chill", because it is an ensemble effort, and it works. Allisa Milano (bit part) gives a great performance as an angry love interest, and the rest of the cast takes turns delivering strong performances that resonate emotionally. I believed the stories that these actors told; they developed characters that are familiar to us all. A bit smarmy, and perhaps predictable, nevertheless this movie has high entertainment value, for those who enjoy a good chick flick. A good movie to watch with someone you care for. ~abc

In Rhode Island, in the Italo-American family Sposato, Danni (Amanda Detmer) is going to marry Geoffrey Brancato (Johnathon Schaech). Danni is virgin, lives with her parents Santo (Burt Young) and Irena (Talia Shire) and is the third and 'the good daughter' of her family. Her three sisters come for her wedding: the older Nikki (the gorgeous Brooke Langton), a successful TV starlet, who works in a TV show very similar to 'Baywatch'. Nikki brings her boy-friend and manager Marty Weinberg (Johnny Whitworth) to be introduced to her family. Chrissy (Vanessa Parise), who deals with investments in Wall Street; and the rebel younger Toni (Monet Mazur), who plays in a rock-and- roll band with her lesbian lover Amy Kayne (Alissa Milano). Together, they have meals in the restaurant of Tom Terranova (Sean Patrick Flanery), the former and first love of Nikki. Many discussions in the breast of the Sposato family show wounds not healed, when the characters expose their real feelings.

This lovely low budget movie is a gem about themes related to family, relationship, love, feeling, religion and sex. I respect, but do not understand the unfair 'IMDB User Rating' of only 5.6, specially after seeing the 'Demographic Breakdown', the 'Arithmetic Mean' of 7.8 and the 'Median' of 9. The story about a Latin Catholic family is wonderful and the performances of the beautiful cast are excellent. There is romance, comedy and drama in right doses. I was particularly impressed with the beauty of Brooke Langton, and the wonderful smile of Vanessa Parise. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): 'O Beijo da Noiva' ('The Kiss of the Bride')