DVD Review: Made of Honor (2008)

Made of Honor
Starring: Patrick Dempsey, Michelle Monaghan, Kevin McKidd
Directed By: Paul Weiland
Written By: Adam Sztykiel, Deborah Kaplan
Released: 2008
Grade: C-

Made of Honor is a very predictable romantic comedy that really doesn’t do much to bring out the romance or the comedy. There really aren’t any notable funny moments. The guy trying to get the girl is supposed to be the romantic element of the film, but is really just selfishness. Even the other relationship that is shown in the film seems extremely lackluster and hollow. I guarantee that you already know nearly everything that will happen in this movie and without a doubt the outcome. It is not presented in a way deriving from any creativity or made to be all that appealing. Worst of all they try to spin it by making this manly womanizer a maid of honor, as if that makes this film some new revelation.

The film opens up on a flashback to the college years of Tom (Dempsey), who is at a wild party and is about to have another one of his one night stands. The person he is looking for is not there and he ends up drunk and in bed with her roommate, Hannah (Monaghan). Hannah is completely repulsed by him and sees right through his act, as a senior preying on vulnerable freshmen girls. They exchange insults and since Tom is so impressed with her brutal honesty they start a friendship. 10 years later they are still friends and have become very close to one another. She is a painter and Tom is living off of the money he gets from inventing the coffee collar. Tom hasn’t lost his habits of hooking up with different women every night. He even holds himself by a set of rules such as he can’t see the same girl two nights in a row, but can only see the same person once a week. Also, he can’t call a girl until at least 24 hours after he gets their phone number. He also refuses to go to or bring a girl he has hooked up with to any family or holiday events. Tom figures that his relationship status is perfect. He is single and can have sex with a different girl every night of the week. Then when he is done with that he can spend time with Hannah. He gets a differentiating sex experience every night, yet is also able to have a friend and an emotional connection through Hannah.

However, when Hannah goes to Scotland for 6 weeks on business, Tom learns that without her he has no one he can connect to. They have a hard time really even having a conversation since they are on opposite schedules. Tom realizes that he has feelings for Hannah and plans on telling her when she gets back home. Hannah has something to tell Tom too. She found companionship while she was in Scotland through a duke of the country named Collin (McKidd). After just knowing each other for a month they are engaged to be married and the wedding is just 2 weeks away. Hannah asks Tom to be her maid of honor, claiming when he gets married she expects to be his best man. Tom agrees only because he is taking this chance to get close and to impress Hannah. Meanwhile, he is having Collin’s background checked out in hopes he can find some dirt on him that he can use to win Hannah over. It turns out that after the wedding, Hannah is planning on staying in Scotland. So if Tom can’t win her over he will lose her forever as a potential girlfriend and as his best friends.

The acting was probably the best part of the film. Patrick Dempsey did well enough, although the script and his role didn’t allow for the compassion towards him that we were supposed to feel. Michelle Monaghan did very well as she conveyed a talented, kind women who exerted depth and unlike Dempsey looked for meaning around her. Kevin McKidd gave one of the worst performances as his portrayal was empty and flat. His screen time felt more robotic than human as there was no real emotions there making it hard to like his character. It was great seeing Busy Phillips here, but the role of Hannah’s cousin who was bitter and angry for being wronged by Tom before, seemed somewhat beneath her. The role didn’t give her much range and although she did well with what she had, she is capable of so much more as an actress.

Since Tom is the maid of honor there are continuous jokes and speculations about him being gay. While they are in Scotland, he even has to wear an extremely short quilt, that exposes him and is meant to make an example that he is girly. There really is no reasoning for this and since it isn’t done in a comedic sense, it just shows that this was the film’s failed comedic relief. I also find the part about Tom inventing coffee collars fairly unbelievable. Especially since he gets money for every one that is used. Considering how cheap these are to make, nearly all of the money would be going to him, which doesn’t seem very likely.

We are given a love triangle in Maid of Honor, but neither man seems like an appropriate match for Hannah. Tom really just comes across as selfish, wanting the one thing he has always taken for granted when it is no longer there. Once he has that who is to say that he wouldn’t take Hannah for granted or get bored sexually since he is has come so accustomed to sleeping with such a variety of women. Hannah deserves someone who will really appreciate her and fully commit themselves to her. I am not sure Collin is any better since there is no companionship in that scenario. It really seems like him and his family are trying to take so much control and change her in to what they think the ideal Scotland bride should be. I saw absolutely no connection for them. Especially, since they only knew each other for a month and a half, why would she give up her whole life, move away from her work, friends, and family for someone she really doesn’t know? The relationship seems like nothing more than a vacation fling, but it really should have ended when it was time for Hannah to come back to New York. We are supposed to be rooting for Tom, which still seems undeserving and hasn’t proven himself to us or Hannah, yet this is meant to be a difficult decision between him and Collin, who might be an even worse choice for her overall life. Really the best thing seems like it would be for Hannah to stay friends with Tom, leave Collin in Scotland, and go back to New York to pursue her art.

Even in a lot of romantic comedies they at least have the romantic language down right in that big speech that grabs the heart of the man or woman being chased after. That can easily be made to be believable and heart warming enough to make us disregard our disbelief and get swept up in the sincerity. Writers, Adam Sztykiel and Deborah Kaplan couldn’t even give us this, not even one line. The sweep the woman off her feet speeches were painfully familiar and dully generic. It is the same thing we have heard a million times before, with less beauty of the language. At least there is one moment where Hannah calls Tom out for being so bland, yet things aren’t improved after that when we are meant to believe that they have. I have seen worse, but Made of Honor uses stale jokes and dialogue, mostly underdeveloped and undeserving personalities, and gives us a lesser version of superior romantic comedies we have seen before.