Cordialmente invitados

I like Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon.

I like Geraldine Viswanathan too.

Hey, I even like some of Nicholas Stoller's work.

But this ain't gonna cut it! Here's another cookie-cutter wedding comedy that fails to rise above its one-line plot. This desperately needed less of the slapstick and more of the dialogue-based stuff. Some deeper themes are added in-such as being disconnected from your family, parental insecurities, and so on. Most of it isn't dug beyond the surface; every problem gets an instantly workable (cinematic) solution. Yeah, well, it's not like you're watching an "Amazon Original Movie", where Will Ferrell grapples with an alligator, for lessons on life. Stoller has written (and directed) better material before (..I'm not naming names). And yeah, I didn't care much about the Nick Jonas and Peyton Manning cameos.

I am starved for comedy movies. They seem to be nearing extinction. So I sometimes make exceptions to my "I only watch theatrically released movies" rule for a chance at some laughs.

From one perspective, You're Cordially Invited did make me laugh out loud 12-15 times. On the other hand, it feels like another barely mediocre movie that we constantly see from streaming originals.

Will Ferrell has nearly all of the funny parts. Aside from him, I found the majority of the cast unfunny. The failed comedic attempts made me cringe on several occasions. And there are so many stupid moments and things that make no sense in order to make the joke work.

Maybe I'm the wrong demographic. But aside from a few laughs, I did not enjoy this movie.

(1 viewing, 1/31/2025)

What happens when two weddings are booked on the same day, two different families from different backgrounds, will there be a compromise, or will they be chaos?

Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon do surprisingly click, both give each other time to be funny and never step over one another. But the rest of the movie tries too hard to be edgy, and the jokes don't really land. Some moments come across has more awkward than funny. Most of the other characters don't really grab your interest, but just make you want to cringe a little. Ferrell and Witherspoon are very talented, but I just wish the film had a rewrite.

... Which is pretty dang good! This was a slapstick movie, which usually isn't my genre but I love me some Will and Reese!

Silly, ridiculous, over the top, but it worked for me.

The highlight was the closing credits. That actually took it from a six to a seven.

ABOUT MY REVIEWS:

I do not include a synopsis of the film/show -- you can get that anywhere and that does not constitute a meaningful review -- but rather my thoughts and feelings on the film that hopefully will be informative to you in deciding whether to invest 90-180 minutes of your life on it.

My scale: 1-5 decreasing degrees of "terrible", with 5 being "mediocre" 6- OK. Generally held my interest OR had reasonable cast and/or cinematography, might watch it again 7 - Good. My default rating for a movie I liked enough to watch again, but didn't rise to the upper echelons 8- Very good. Would watch again and recommend to others 9- Outstanding. Would watch over and over; top 10% of my ratings 10 - A classic. (Less than 2% receive this rating). For Lifetime Movies for Chicks (LMFC), drop the above scale by 3 notches. A 6 is excellent and 7 almost unattainable.

'You're Cordially Invited': bad movie! It's as unfunny as it is unlikeable, there isn't one character that I wanted to see appear in front of my eyes; and they attempt to redeem them all at the end, which falls flat. Also, Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon aren't the best match.

The end credit singalong with Ferrell and Witherspoon is the only part of this that I'd list under (mini) positives. There are a couple of decent bits scattered in, though none of which stick in the memory as they are paired with rubbish. The near two hour run time doesn't helped either.

You're Cordially Invited is a 2025 American romantic comedy film written and directed by Nicholas Stoller.