27 Dresses (2008)

 

27 Dresses - 2008

Coming up next we have 2008's "27 Dresses", a film about a woman who has been twenty-seven times a bridesmaid but never a bride.  When the man she secretly loves becomes engaged to her sister, she's got to find a way forward and, perhaps, find her own happily ever after.

The film's cast includes Katherine Heigl, James Marsden, Edward Burns, Malin Akerman, Judy Greer, Melora Hardin, Maulik Pancholy, Krysten Ritter, and Peyton List.

Jane Nichols is a woman with a passion.  She loves weddings.  In fact, she has been a bridesmaid at twenty-seven of them.

During a mishap at one of the weddings, she meets writer and love-cynic Kevin Doyle.  After he sees her safely home, he finds her event planner in the taxi cab they shared.

He shows it to his boss.  They're both very intrigued by the fact that she has been in so many weddings, and Kevin is given inspiration for future stories.

Jane becomes very upset one day when her boss (and secret crush) George becomes enamored with her sister Tess.

She's forced to watch their relationship play out, maintaining her silence and becoming increasingly uncomfortable and a bit resentful.

Even Jane's best friend Casey is shocked at their behavior, reacting in disgust at their public displays of affection.

Jane is dealt the ultimate blow when Tess and George suddenly announce their engagement and ask her to be the wedding planner.  She's also forced to suffer the unpleasantness of Tess using their mother's own wedding dress for her special day.

Kevin is assigned to cover Tess and George's wedding for his newspaper, and he comes to interview Jane.  She's not thrilled, because she hasn't enjoyed the interactions she's had so far with him.

Over the course of the interview, Kevin gets a glimpse of Jane's bridesmaid dress closet and is intrigued.  Initially reluctant to give him a better view, Jane opens up and even starts to enjoy herself.

We are then treated to quite the fashion show of wedding dresses.  There is some major variety, and Kevin is both amused and repulsed by some of the selections.

By the end of the film (and after a bunch of obstacles leading up to this moment), Kevin and Jane realize that they are each other's happily ever after.

And Jane is especially gratified that all of the brides who asked her to help them have stepped up and are there for her (in the dresses they made her wear).

Cast rundown:

   Katherine Heigl..............................Jane Nichols

   James Marsden..............................Kevin Doyle

   Edward Burns................................George

   Malin Akerman...............................Tess Nichols

   Judy Greer.....................................Casey

   Melora Hardin.................................Maureen

   Maulik Pancholy..............................Trent

   Krysten Ritter.................................Gina

   Michael Mosley................................Bar Guy

   Peyton List.....................................Young Jane

And that's it for 27 Dresses.  The wardrobe department said that their first designs for the bridesmaids dresses owned by Jane looked too good on Katherine Heigl, and they had to work really hard to design outfits that wouldn't compliment her.  Katherine Heigl plays the older sister of Malin Akerman, however Akerman is older than Heigl.

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New Year's Eve (2011)

 

New Year's Eve - 2011

Happy New Year's Eve!  I know you're all thrilled to be joining me in saying "So long" to 2020 and "Hello" to 2021.  It's been a crazy year, but I'm thankful for everyone of you who tuned into the blog.  Today's film is a specially-themed installment.  2011's "New Year's Eve" brings us a bunch of interconnecting storylines that revolve around New Year's Eve.  There's new love, old love, chance meetings, and resolutions.  There's even a bit of a mystery.

The film's impressive ensemble cast includes: Jake T. Austin, Halle Berry, Jessica Biel, Abigail Breslin, Matthew Broderick, Jon Bon Jovi, Robert De Niro, Josh Duhamel, Zac Efron, Hector Elizondo, Cary Elwes, Carla Gugino, Katherine Heigl, Cherry Jones, Ashton Kutcher, John Lithgow, Ludacris, Barbara Marshall, Kathleen Marshall, Penny Marshall, Jack McGee, Seth Meyers, Lea Michele, Alyssa Milano, Larry Miller, Sean O'Bryan, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michelle Pfeiffer, Ryan Seacrest, Yeardley Smith, Hilary Swank, Sofia Vergara, Common, Til Schweiger, and Sarah Paulson.

The setting of our film is New York City.  Christmas has concluded and it's New Year's Eve.  The city pulsates with excitement.

Executive Claire Morgan is in charge of making sure the ball drops in Times Square.  However, things don't go as expected.  On top of all of this, she's got somewhere to be.  She hands over the duties to someone else so she can be at her appointed place at midnight.

James and Grace Schwab and Griffin and Tess Byrne are two couples who are expecting babies.  Both of them are trying to win the race to be the first to have a baby in the new year.  That title comes with a prize of $25,000.

The question is: will a baby be born or will it be a twin set of "Valentine's Day" DVDs?

Shy and introverted Ingrid Withers has her world turned upside down when she meets a messenger named Paul.  He inspires her to quit her job and tackle some of the things on her resolutions list.  With Paul's help, she takes a trip around the world and saves a life.

Caterer Laura Carrington is working the biggest party in town.  She's also got a complicated relationship with rock star Danny Jensen.  However, by the time the New Year arrives, things seem to be heading in the right direction for them.

Hospital nurse Aimee is torn between her duties at the hospital (making sure a patient who is alone and dying has someone with him) and being at a New Year's appointment she's made.

Randy and Elise meet in an elevator.  The elevator gets stuck and the two have to spend a lot of time together.

Kim is a single mother who worries about her teenage daughter Hailey.  Kim's struggling to give her daughter more freedom, and she is very reluctant to allow her to meet friends alone in Times Square at midnight.

Sam crashes his car on his way into the city.  He's got to make an important speech at a company party, and he's got no way to get there.  A friendly family allows him to hitch a ride in their RV.  On the way, he tells them that he's also going to meet a woman he fell in love with last New Year's Eve.  The two agreed to meet the following year, and he is wondering if she will be there.

When he's just about ready to give up hope, the woman, whose identity has been kept a secret from us for the entire film, arrives.  They ring in the New Year together.

Cast rundown:

   Jake T. Austin....................................Seth Anderson

   Halle Berry........................................Nurse Aimee

   Jessica Biel.......................................Tess Byrne

   Abigail Breslin...................................Hailey Doyle

   Matthew Broderick.............................Mr. Buellerton

   Jon Bon Jovi.....................................Danny Jensen

   Robert De Niro..................................Stan Harris

   Josh Duhamel...................................Sam Ahern

   Zac Efron..........................................Paul

   Hector Elizondo.................................Kominsky

   Cary Elwes.......................................Stan's Doctor

   Carla Gugino.....................................Dr. Morriset

   Katherine Heigl.................................Laura Carrington

   Cherry Jones.....................................Rose Ahern

   Ashton Kutcher..................................Randy

   John Lithgow.....................................Jonathan Cox

   Ludacris...........................................Brendan

   Barbara Marshall...............................Nurse Helen

   Kathleen Marshall..............................Stage Manager Charlotte

   Penny Marshall.................................Herself

   Jack McGee......................................Grandpa Jed

   Seth Meyers.....................................Griffin Byrne

   Lea Michele......................................Elise

   Alyssa Milano....................................Nurse Mindy

   Larry Miller.......................................Harley

   Sean O'Bryan...................................Pastor Edwin

   Sarah Jessica Parker..........................Kim Doyle

   Michelle Pfeiffer................................Ingrid Withers

   Ryan Seacrest..................................Himself

   Yeardley Smith.................................Maude

   Hilary Swank....................................Claire Morgan

   Sofia Vergara...................................Ava

   Common.........................................Soldier

   Til Schweiger...................................James Schwab

   Sarah Paulson..................................Grace Schwab

And that's it for New Year's Eve.  I hope you had as much fun as I had this year on the blog.  It's been a blast!  I have a few ideas for some new features/segments, but they are still being kicked around inside my head.  Thanks again for joining us!  And Happy New Year!

One of the funny moments I love in this film comes when Penny Marshall sees a young woman and asks if she's an actress.  The young woman says, "Yeah!  I've played a nurse, a cop, a teacher..."  Penny interrupts her and says, "How about playing a waitress and get me another drink?"

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