Il matrimonio di Betsy

Alan Alda has worked with Woody Allen on several occasions, and it struck me watching this movie that he was trying for a Woody-ish ensemble piece. But, despite a fine cast, this is no Crimes and Misdemeanors.

The various plot strands are not woven together sufficiently well; some of the characters can be almost forgotten about during lengthy periods off-screen, including the eponymous Betsy. Ally Sheedy and Antony LaPaglia provide the film's brightest moments with their unlikely romance (although not so unlikely in the movies, of course!).

Eddie Hopper (Alan Alda) owns a small construction business. The latest project falls through and he decides to go into debt to finish the house. At a family gathering for grandpa (Joey Bishop)'s birthday, his daughter Betsy (Molly Ringwald) announces her engagement to boyfriend Jake Lovell (Dylan Walsh). They want a small intimate wedding. To his wife Lola (Madeline Kahn)'s dismay, he gets into a competition with Jake's rich corporate raider father and ends up paying for an extravagant wedding. He asks Lola's sister Gloria (Catherine O'Hara)'s sleazy cheating developer husband Oscar Henner (Joe Pesci) for help. Oscar introduces him to mobster-like Georgie (Burt Young) who in exchange for a loan installs his nephew Stevie Dee (Anthony LaPaglia) to manage the home construction. Stevie Dee is taken with the house and Eddie's elder daughter cop Connie (Ally Sheedy). Then there is the wedding with fashion student Betsy's unconventional style and conflicting non-religious sensibility. The shootout doesn't help either.

Alan Alda wrote, directed, and starred in this movie. It's not that funny and overloaded with story from every other character. The saving grace is that I like everybody starting with Alda. He has an easy charm and the family has a loving chemistry. The wedding dysfunction works some of the time but it is simply not funny enough. As for the Razzie nominations of Molly Ringwald and Ally Sheedy, I don't get it. Ringwald's character can be a little annoying but that's about it. Sheedy and newcomer LaPaglia are actually endearing together and I love their budding relationship. Somebody at the Razzies must have had it in for this movie.

Like "Parenthood" and "Moonstruck," Betsy's Wedding is a funny, feel-good movie about a wonderfully eccentric family and their hilarious trials and tribulations - it's about everything but their daughter's wedding!

This movie has it all! The mob, crazy romances, and outrageous revenge schemes! The cast is so wonderful and I give a thumbs up for Mr. Alan Alda's direction. I loved Madeline Kahn as always, Ally Sheedy was her sexiest, Molly Ringwald was great, and a special gratitude for Catherine O'Hara and Joe Pesci for making me roll of my seat laughing.

If your a fan of "Father of the Bride 1 and 2" or "Runaway Bride," your sure going to enjoy "Betsy's Wedding."

SCANDAL. LUST. DISASTER. INTRIGUE. ...and the invitations haven't even gone out yet!

Enjoy the show!

Alan Alda wrote, directed and stars in this tale in which he portrays a father who wants the best wedding reception and party possible for his soon to be wed daughter, Betsy (Molly Ringwald). He's even willing to go so far as to let the wedding be financed by the mob. Fairly amusing and plenty of big stars in small or costarring parts help to propel it.

I have to admire Alan Alda for writing a film that contains characters we can actually relate to. Characters who seem like normal, everyday people and not farcical Hollywood creations. The problem? The film hardly goes anywhere. And I only got a few laughs. I'm not asking for "The Naked Gun." I'm not asking for a new gag every two minutes. But this film just didn't have enough humor to classify itself as a comedy. It needed an extra dose of energy, and I feel Alda should've stayed in front of the camera. Because his direction is flat, and the whole movie just seems like one big home video. Though the movie is only a little over ninety minutes, I felt some scenes belonged on the cutting room floor.

The cast is superb and first-rate, and they could've shined with a funnier script. Joe Pesci is the best of a lot, in a role quite different from his usual wise-cracking, tough-guy-from-Brooklyn act. Other talents are Catherine O'Hara, Anthony LaPaglia, the late Madeline Kahn and Molly Ringwald.

My Dad used to say, whenever he would watch a bad comedy, "I guess they call it a comedy, since there's no tragedy in it." That's how I can classify "Betsy's Wedding." No tragedy, but the laughs are scarce.

P.S.: Look fast for Samuel L. Jackson as a taxi dispatcher.

My score: 5 (out of 10)