Robert Altman offers his unique take on the institution of marriage with this raucous comedy about a wedding reception that quickly turns chaotic. When the Corellis and Brenners--two completely opposite families--convene to watch their children tie the knot, everything seems too good to be true. But when the Brenner family matriarch dies before the reception has even begun, the boozing Dr. Jules Meecham (Howard Duff) decides that they better wait to break the news to friends and family, and as everyone continues to celebrate, it becomes evident that things aren't what they appear to be on the surface. Affairs are initiated and alcohol is ingested, leading up to a thunderstorm--and the most shocking secret of all. Altman assembles a who's who of American comediennes with this star-studded farce in which he compassionately mocks marriage and family life.
The many members of two wealthy but very different American families--one from the South, the other from the Midwest--gather to celebrate a wedding. Chaos soon erupts, however, when the groom admits that he has slept with the bride's sister, and the elderly matriarch of one clan dies right before the ceremony begins. And that's just the tip of the iceberg...
Released theatrically in New York City September 1978.
DVD Features:
Keep Case
Full Frame - 1.33
Widescreen - 1.85
Audio:
(unspecified) - English
Writer
Allan Nicholls: Screenwriter/Producer/Actor
Writer
Patricia Resnick: American Screenwriter
Writer and Conception
John Considine: American TV/Film Actor
Writer and Conception
Robert Altman: Director/Screenwriter/Film Producer, NASHVILLE (1975)
Director of Photography
Charles Rosher, Jr.: Cinematographer, film and TV, '70s-'90s, son of Charles Sr.
Review 1:
"...Good fun....A WEDDING is irresistibly and uncomplicatedly funny..."
Source: Sight and Sound
p.57 12/01/1978
Review 2:
"One of Robert Altman's greatest ensemble patchworks..."
Source: Uncut
p.135 08/01/2005
Review 3:
"Carol Burnett burns brightest as a beleaguered matron blindsided by a sudden flirtation."
Source: Sight and Sound
p.92 09/01/2005
Review 4:
"A WEDDING is one of Altman's exercises in large-cast, shaggy-dog storytelling."
Source: Entertainment Weekly
p.61 04/21/2006