Four Weddings and a Few Bumps in the Road...

The title of this blog post sums up the story of the film, Four Weddings and a Funeral, directed by Mike Newell, starring Hugh Grant, John Hannah, and Andie MacDowell. This film takes 74th place in Time Out London’s list of 100 Best British Films (www.timeout.com), and as someone completely ignorant to the spectrum of British films in existence, I think it is worth this recognition. Four Weddings and a Funeral is not the typical romantic comedy, despite that Hugh Grant plays a starring role. Rather, this film uses romance and comedy as vehicles for revealing the often-sad truths of life, in an ironically optimistic way. What’s more, this film seems to be as British as they come. It combines a lighthearted attitude (that some may interpret as too “Hollywood”) with the European film attitude of “Life’s imperfections are what make it beautiful.”

Four Weddings and a Funeral presents a touching combination of humor and despair to which the average person can relate. It combines family, friendship, love – both reciprocated and unrequited, heartbreak, and death. But instead of solely focusing on these topics through the romantic relationship of Hugh Grant’s character, Charlie, and his opposite, Fiona, the film also explores these topics through friendship and family. For example, the relationship between Charlie and his deaf brother is particularly striking for a few reasons: it is a true example of undying love, and it portrays Charlie’s brother’s deafness as mundane and often humorous. Along those lines, this film does a remarkable job of finding humor in the most difficult parts of life, while at the same time honoring them for being difficult.

The quintessential British-ness of this film was most evident in its comedy and was enhanced by the presence of the starring American outsider, Fiona. Unlike American comedy, which tends to be full of ridiculous punch lines, Four Weddings and a Funeral is funny because it doesn’t try too hard. As we say in improv, be obvious and the comedy will follow. This film completely resonates with that improv maxim because it is obvious and everyone can relate to it: everyone has been late and rushed to get out the door, everyone has danced like a fool, everyone has that one crazy friend, everyone falls in love, everyone has experienced loss, and so on. Adding the contrasting American outsider, Fiona, enhances this beautiful, often wacky, British-ness because she finds it attractive. What tops things off is the fact that this cool, independent American winds up falling in love with English charm, love, and friendship. Fiona’s move underscores an overarching message of the film that the people we love keep us grounded and help us finds the laughter in life.

In short, watch this film if you are looking for a romantic comedy with depth. It will make you laugh, but it will also make you cry if you want it to. Personally, I appreciated the contrast between my laughter and tears because it reinforced for me the idea that laughter and tears can express quite similar emotions. They each aid in emotional catharsis: when we have had enough of one, we often find our way to the other. Four Weddings and a Funeral is an honest film that does exactly what it tries to do. It shows us real life and helps us laugh about it.