Stars:
** 1/2
Rating: PG-13 for language and mature themes
Run Time: 1 hour, 47 minutes
After all
the hoopla of the holidays – when somber fare rules the silver screen –
“Dresses” is a refreshingly frothy change of pace.
Thanks to
Katherine Heigl, who parlays a little “Knocked Up” charm into a Meg Ryan-esque quest
for her happily-ever-after.
Its sloppy
seconds for perpetual bridesmaid Jane Nichols (Heigl) who eats, sleeps and
breathes the elusive enchantment of weddings. Jane is such a fan that friends
and acquaintances look to her for all manner of arduous nuptial planning.
Consequently it’s always the bridesmaid, never the bride for an earnest second
fiddle who focuses on everyone else’s happiness at the expense of her own.
To make
matters worse this sincere singleton toils in the taffeta ghetto while
nurturing an unhealthy crush on her clueless but hunky boss George (Edward
Burns). Salvation arrives in the form of Jane’s glamour-puss sister Tess (Malin
Akerman), a flighty supermodel who’s just what the doctor ordered for support
and distraction.
At least
that was the plan. Tess and George fall head over heels on sight, leaving Jane
with a clunky finish to her knight-in-shining-armor fantasies and yet another
invitation to duty as a not-so-merry maid.
Enter
classic spoiler Kevin (James Marsden), a cynical New York journalist who meets
Jane at a friend’s wedding (natch) and considers her plight perfect fodder for
his popular “Commitments” column. Will Kevin get more than he bargained for?
There’s
absolutely nothing new to this Cinderella story that telegraphs its routine
complications with blithe indifference to its formulaic forerunners.
Fortunately the conventional elements are cobbled together with perky panache,
from the quippy sidekick (the irrepressible Judy Greer) to some witty scripting
(co-ed mojito and burrito tasting anybody?) and a hilariously tipsy bar
rendering of “Benny and the Jets”.
Heigl is a
surprising master of the physical comedy while radiating a girl-next-door appeal
that’s hard to resist, even when packaged with an overdose of winsome window-dressing.
And then
there are the dresses, twenty seven to be exact, frilly testament to the
romantic secondary and homage to the nice girls who don’t always finish last.