Written and directed by Michael Winterbottom of āThe Tripā movies, āThe Wedding Guestā does a good job of disguising from the audience what the film is truly about. It starts out as a thriller of intrigue and deception, but builds into a cherished friendship and, dare I say, a relationship between two people who least expected to be in one; especially with one another. Iād like to add that the title is incredibly misleading. In fact, if one were to go by the title, someone would be upset at what they might think theyāre venturing into. They could assume perhaps a comedy or romance is in order, yet I assure you this is anything but a farce or a love story. Itās a beautifully shot suspense by cinematographer Giles Nuttgens (Colette, Hell or High Water) which manages one hell of a unique look at the areas where it was shot.
At first, youāre on a trip through India and Pakistan with a man you havenāt yet been introduced to, but you are aware of what heās doing and youāre certain heās up to no good. He gets on a plane, rents a car, grabs duct tape and buys some guns. If itās a wedding heās planning on crashing, who isnāt he happy with?! You might speculate it’s the groom at this point. Jealousy?
The genre āthrillerā for which the movie is tagged is half correct. While watching, you could be somewhat disappointed in how itās playing out because, on occasion, the film itself canāt decide what category to fall under. I must add that by the time itās over, youāll glance back on the film as a whole and say to yourself, āWell done, Winterbottom.ā That said, you still canāt ignore where the film ultimately has a hiccup or two. While it does its job of entertaining you, there are areas of the script that are a bit ho-hum and hard to overlook. Most importantly, Winterbottom needed to get to the point quicker. Regardless, you’ll excuse this. Mostly because of the cast.
Dev Patel (Lion, Slumdog Millionaire) and Bollywood film and stage actress, Radhika Apte, give outstanding performances. Their characters, Jay and Samira, are trapped in a seemingly dicey and ever slippery situation, but both are well aware of the game they’re playing and are quite adept in the art of manipulation. Their firsthand knowledge of a good con keeps them ahead of the game and also has them skeptical of one another. Jay finds out Samira isnāt quite as innocent as she seems. Though heās guarded, he eventually feels something stir and wishes he had met her under different circumstances.Ā
The plot is that Samira lives in Pakistan where her family is going to make her marry someone she doesnāt love. Jay has been hired to kidnap Samira from her impending nuptials before itās too late. Heās to bring her to the man she loves so they can run away and be together. This is where the title comes in. Though it’s lucky for her that Jay nabs her before the wedding happens, heās not exactly a guest. In what is originally sold as a real kidnapping, youāre worried for her safety when Jay busts into her home. He isnāt aware that heās helping her out of an arranged marriage, so the audience doesnāt learn this until right away either. When the true motive is introduced itĀ all starts falling into place.
As Iāve mentioned, itās sometimes slow but the more and more you get to know them, the more and more sexual tension builds. You want to see them together and before you know it youāre vested in their relationship. In the end, you come to the conclusion that Samira was more than likely the mastermind behind everything all along. Jay, as well as countless other men, may well have been a fly buzzing to close to her trap. Though you donāt see it at first, thereās some real genius in this film. ‘The Wedding Guest’ is unpredictable, daunting and has a creatively disguised wolf in sheepās clothing. What more can you ask for from your noir?
In Phoenix find it playing at Camelview at Fashion Square!
