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In his films Canadian filmmaker Bruce Sweeney has always displayed an unusual outlook on everyday life, one that is everything but glamourous. With Last Wedding he abandons the rural settings of Dirty and Live Bait for the more urban lifestyles of downtown Vancouver.
Noah (Benjamin Ratner, looking very much like Steve Guttenberg), is about to be married to high-strung Zipporah (Frida Betrani), even though heıs only known her six months. His best pals, Peter (Tom Scholte, looking very much like Daniel Stern) and Shane (Vince Gale, looking somewhat like David Caruso) are skeptical and not very enthusiastic about the event, but are supportive nevertheless.
Of course the marriage is a disaster as Zipporahıs violent and manipulative ways soon surface. But Peter and Shaneıs lives aren't bliss either. Peter, a university professor, begins an awkward affair with a student behind the back of his long-term live-in librarian girlfriend (Nancy Sivak). Shane, meanwhile, is a disenfranchised architect who canıt accept the fact that his live-in, Sarah (Molly Parker) has just landed a job with the cityıs top architectural firm.
Last Wedding rises above many other thirtysomething-relationship-crisis movies thanks to Sweeney's cutting wit and the endearing performances by the six leads. In fact, every sequence is surprisingly involving and never predictable considering its maudlin premise.
As to the thesps, they're all terrific. Ratner eases himself into the role of the nervous groom-to-be who quickly turns into the terrified spouse. Betrani is also perfect in the role of the unstable Zipporah, a wannabe country singer with a very bad temper. Scholte is the comic relief in Last Wedding, but his vulnerability as the philandering prof soon transforms into pathos. Perhaps the least convincing performance is that by Gale, who doesnıt convey comfortably the insecurities of the frustrated Shane. As to veterans Sivak and Polly, theyıre delicious fodder to their male counterparts.
Although Last Wedding isn'ıt particularly original in concept, it is made up of enough memorable moments and unusual situations to make it arthouse worthy. Bruce Sweeney's latest societal study is certainly worth checking out.
Angela Baldassarre
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