Un mariage malgré tout!

At first glance, one might think this is a purely gay movie. If you define a gay movie as the presence of gays and gay relationships, then it might be, as you define it. But actually it is more than that. Wedding wars is one heck of a wholesome and sensible film with a nice story, an excellent script, and a good direction and music.

Wedding wars tells of the wedding of Ben and Maggie and the preparations attendant to it. While it may be said that the theme of the movie is all about wedding preparations, the film actually focused on politics and brother-to-brother relationships and how these affected the wedding plans.

Ben and Shel are close brothers since childhood who drifted apart when Shel confessed that he is gay. Shel thereafter pursued a party-planning career and met his lover Ted who is an Assistant District Attorney at Maine. Ben, on the other hand, became the campaign manager for Governor Welling who is running for reelection at Maine. In this career he met the Governor's daughter, Maggie whom he is now marrying.

In the course of their discussions about their impending wedding, Maggie suggested that Shel be their wedding planner. Despite Ben's hesitations, Maggie prevailed and so Ben visited his gay brother, Shel who, upon learning of Maggie's request, immediately accepted the responsibility. Everything about the wedding preparations is going well as the couple-to-be and Shel really starts bonding until the incumbent Governor Welling, who, ever since, did not oppose gay relationships, made a surprising political stand on television that he is supporting a constitutional amendment banning gay marriages – with a view to gaining popularity in time for his reelection bid. Incidentally, the author of that speech is none other than Ben. Shel, upon learning this, became so disgusted with his own brother that he declared a strike and picketed at the gate of the Governor's residence just two weeks before the wedding. "Why can he plan for Ben's wedding while Shel, on his part, can never ever make plans for his own wedding someday?" The characters of the story became divided as Maggie and her Mom practically sided with Shel understanding perfectly how he felt about Ben and Maggie's father.

How far this situation will take all of them is the very meat of the story. Suffice to say that I admired the movie for its lack of pretenses. It is full of love, understanding, honesty, and a heart for others. Although the plot of the story is simple, the issues involved are of significant magnitude as it touched on political and social issues transcending beyond personal and familial matters. I really liked the way that wedding changed things for the characters

John did a wonderful job as a gay man who stood up for what he believed. Shel(Stamos)is asked to plan his brother's(Eric Dane) wedding to the governor's daughter. The problems begin when Shel finds out that his brother doesn't believe that gay couples should not have the same rights as straight couples. That cause him to make a stand for what he believes in, and he goes on strike to protest the governor's position. He slowly begins to gain support from people around the country who feel the same way as he does. John's a great actor who doesn't always get the respect that he deserves. Everyone should see this film as it handles a tough issue in a light-hearted way, without it being tossed in your face. A fresh, funny and enjoyable film. Very well written. Bravo John!

When I heard that John Stamos was going to be playing a gay man in a new A&E movie, I was a bit perplexed. Stamos normally plays the macho alpha male...could he play a convincing gay man. Yes...why yes he can! His performance as Shel, a party planner, is some of his best work, ever. He's sexy and vulnerable, funny and earnest all at once. It would be really easy for this movie to teeter over the line from slightly campy to really silly, but Stamos helps keep things in balance.

Opposite Stamos is Eric Dane as Shel's brother, Ben. Ben is a rather uptight campaign manager for Maine's fictional Governor, Conrad Welling (played masterfully by James Brolin). Ben also happens to be engaged to the Governor's daughter, Maggie (played by Bonnie Somerville). While planning Ben and Maggie's wedding, he discovers that Ben wrote the Governor's speech in favor of constitutionally banning same-sex marriage. The resulting battle mirrors the real-life battles being waged over this issue, but is a lot funnier. It's cliché to say that this movie has a lot of "heart," but that's exactly what it has. A lot of that heart is provided by Sean Maher as Shel's boyfriend Ted, who isn't quite sure how he feels about the whole situation.

Without belittling the issue of same-sex marriage, Wedding Wars is able to take a complex and controversial subject and looks at it with humor and warmth. Don't miss it!

Enjoyed this film and how the entire story went around in circles trying to explain coming out of the closet, parents approval and too much comedy and making fun of a very serious subject. Kristopher Anderson,(Drag Queen #2) gave a great performance along with James Brolin,(Conrad Willing). One of the men finally came out and told his mother and father that he was gay and upon hearing this news, the mother asked the son, "Do you think because I made you watch Ice Skating on TV that this has created this situation with YOU?" Through out the entire picture you have all kinds of silly situations created just because some one is gay and Proud of how they have found themselves in this big world. Apparently the director had difficult in presenting this picture to the general public and wanted this film to entertain Straight people and the Gay Community. Have seen better pictures on this subject, but it was a nice try.

Wedding Wars is one of the first attempts to look at the same sex marriage struggle on a political level albeit it is done in a slyly humorous vein.

John Stamos an openly gay man is a wedding planner and he's about to perform a labor of love, he's to organize the wedding of his brother who is marrying the daughter of the governor of his state. That governor is James Brolin who in his campaign for re-election has come out against same sex marriage.

The important thing to remember here is Brolin is a fairly liberal fellow, but sees where the political current is running and decides not to swim against it. Stamos is upset with this turn of events though by someone who had been held out to him as gay friendly and decides to do something about it.

He stages his own one man strike and his withdrawal from the wedding and picketing of the governor's mansion soon gets a lot of media attention. He doesn't win the immediate political war, but he does win the renewed love and respect from friends and family, including a brother who's life was made miserable by all the fuss.

There are many things that can birth a political activist, nothing quite succeeds as when an issue involving who you are and the limits placed on your rights because of it, hits one unexpectedly. Stamos does not play a gay stereotype, he could easily have opted for that. His character grows and develops in proportion to the political awareness.

Wedding Wars succeeds in delivering the message that rights and respect are not won from the closet. It's a nice made for TV film with a timeless message.