The Wedding Singer

Last updated

The Wedding Singer
The Wedding Singer film poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Frank Coraci
Written by Tim Herlihy
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Tim Suhrstedt
Edited byTom Lewis
Music by Teddy Castellucci
Production
companies
Distributed by New Line Cinema
Release date
  • February 13, 1998 (1998-02-13)
Running time
96 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$18 million [1]
Box office$123.3 million [1]

The Wedding Singer is a 1998 American romantic comedy film directed by Frank Coraci, written by Tim Herlihy, and produced by Robert Simonds and Jack Giarraputo. The film stars Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore, Christina Pickles and Christine Taylor, and tells the story of a wedding singer in 1985 who falls in love with a waitress. The film was released on February 13, 1998. Produced on a budget of US$18 million, it grossed $123 million worldwide and received generally positive reviews from critics. It is often ranked as one of Sandler's best comedies.

Contents

The film was later adapted into a stage musical of the same name, debuting on Broadway in April 2006 and closing on New Year's Eve of that same year. Jon Lovitz would reprise his role as Jimmie Moore in the episode of the same name of The Goldbergs , set during the events of The Wedding Singer, with Sandler, Barrymore and Billy Idol appearing through the use of archival footage. The film marks the first collaboration between Sandler and Barrymore, and is followed by 50 First Dates and Blended (the latter also directed by Coraci).

Plot

Robbie Hart is a wedding singer in Ridgefield, New Jersey in 1985, whose own wedding to his fiancée Linda is approaching. He meets and befriends Julia Sullivan, a new waitress at the reception hall where he works, and promises to sing at her wedding, though her fiancé, businessman and bond investor Glenn Gulia, has yet to set a date.

On Robbie's wedding day, his sister Kate informs him as he waits at the altar that Linda has changed her mind about the wedding, leaving him humiliated and emotionally devastated. Later that day, Linda visits Robbie and reveals that she fell in love with him for his ambitions of being a rock star, and hates the idea of being married to just a wedding singer.

Robbie sinks into depression, causing his friends and family to be concerned. His best friend Sammy convinces him to return to work, but he gives a depressed performance that is panned, and decides to give up wedding gigs and reneges on his promise to sing for Julia when Glenn finally sets a date.

However, Julia convinces him to help her with the planning and their friendship blossoms. During a double date with Julia, Glenn, and Julia's cousin Holly, Robbie learns from Glenn that he cheats on Julia frequently and plans to continue after they are married.

Julia and Robbie are increasingly confused by their deepening feelings for each other. When Holly tells Robbie that Julia is marrying Glenn for his money, he unsuccessfully pursues a job at a bank. Julia is dismayed at his materialism, and when he accuses her of the same, she becomes angry with him. Depressed, he decides to follow Sammy's example of only having shallow relationships with women, in response to which Sammy confides that he is unhappy, and encourages Robbie to tell Julia how he feels.

Meanwhile, Julia confides in her mother that she has fallen out of love with Glenn and has developed feelings for Robbie, and bursts into tears thinking about becoming "Mrs. Julia Gulia". Robbie arrives to declare his feelings, and sees her through her bedroom window in her wedding dress, where she is happily looking in a mirror pretending she has just married Robbie, but Robbie assumes she is thinking of Glenn.

Heartbroken, Robbie leaves to get drunk and finds Glenn in the midst of his pre-wedding bachelor party, arm in arm with another woman. After a heated exchange, Glenn punches Robbie and mocks him. Robbie stumbles home to find Linda waiting for him wanting to reconcile, and passes out.

The following morning, Linda answers the door and introduces herself as his fiancée to a crestfallen Julia. She runs to Glenn, who is sleeping off the events of the previous night, and tells him she wants to be married immediately. He half-heartedly offers to take her to Las Vegas.

Robbie awakens and, after shaking off his hangover from the previous night, rejects Linda's reconciliation, having realized how shallow she is during his time with Julia, and kicks her out. At the 50th wedding anniversary party of his neighbor Rosie, to whom he has been giving singing lessons, he realizes he wants to grow old with Julia and, with Rosie's encouragement, he decides to pursue her. Just then, Holly arrives and informs him of Julia's encounter with Linda, so Robbie rushes to the airport and gets a first class ticket to Las Vegas.

After telling his story to his empathetic fellow passengers, which include Billy Idol, Robbie learns that Glenn and Julia are on the same flight. With the help of Billy and the flight crew, over the loudspeaker, he sings a song he has written called "Grow Old With You", dedicated to Julia. As Robbie enters the main cabin singing, Glenn tries to assault him only to be thwarted and shoved into a lavatory by the flight attendants with assistance from Billy and a large fan.

Robbie and Julia admit their love for each other, and share a kiss. Billy, impressed by Robbie's song, offers to tell his record company executives about him. Later, Robbie and Julia are married, and a band led by David Veltri performs at their wedding.

Cast

Other notable appearances include future Queens of the Stone Age musician Michael Shuman as The Bar Mitzvah boy, screenwriter Steven Brill as Glenn's buddy, the film's own writer Timothy P. Herlihy as Rudy, a bartender, model Shanna Moakler as a flight attendant, and Al Burke played the large Billy Idol fan. Also appearing uncredited were Steve Buscemi as David Veltri, Jon Lovitz as Jimmie Moore, and Brian Posehn as Man at Dining Table #9. and Chauntal Lewis as Stuck-Up Girl at Bar Mitzvah.

Production

Adam Sandler had an idea for a comedy about a wedding singer who gets left at the altar, and suggested it to Tim Herlihy. Inspired by the radio show "Lost in the '80s" Herlihy decided to set the film in that decade. Herlihy had not set out to do anything different and thought the script was similar to his previous collaborations with Sandler. The changes came naturally, and he attributed the differences to his recently having gotten married, as well as the chemistry between Sandler and Barrymore. [2] Herlihy was aware that Sandler's previous films had lacked a female perspective, and emphasized the importance of Barrymore. He explained that she was so great in her scenes that test audiences did not complain about Sandler not being in every scene as they had done for his previous films, and as a result more of her scenes survived and were included in the final film. [3] Carrie Fisher, a frequent script doctor, was brought on to make the female part more balanced. [4] [5] Judd Apatow and Sandler also performed uncredited rewrites of the script. [5] [6]

Director Frank Coraci was friends with Sandler since they went to college at NYU and could hardly believe that he and his friends had the opportunity to make films together. Coraci had also gotten over his own experiences of romantic heartbreak a few years earlier and was able to look back on it differently and instead allow it to be funny. Coraci was a fan of director John Hughes and mentioned his films as an important influence. [7]

Barrymore approached Sandler about working together on a film, saying they were "cinematic soulmates" before they had even worked together. [8] Barrymore had a great relationship with Coraci, and praised him for balancing the broad comedy with the important moments of emotion and intimacy. Sandler would often make Barrymore laugh out of context, so that even after a long day, her laughs on camera would be real. In addition, she would not read or hear the songs until the first shoot so that her reactions would be more spontaneous. [8]

Principal photography took place in California from February 3 to March 25, 1997.[ citation needed ]

Reception

Box office

The film had a budget of $18 million and made $123.3 million worldwide in ticket sales. [1] It opened in second in the US with $18.8 million, [9] behind holdover Titanic .

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 72% based on 69 reviews, with an average rating of 6.3/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "It's decidedly uneven -- and surprisingly sappy for an early Adam Sandler comedy -- but The Wedding Singer is also sweet, funny, and beguiling." [10] On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 60 out of 100 based on 21 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [11] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale. [12]

Leonard Klady of Variety wrote: "Director Frank Coraci and scripter Tim Herlihy work in concert to maintain a quality of farce rooted in human comedy." [13] Roger Ebert gave the film a negative review and wrote: "The screenplay reads like a collaboration between Jekyll and Hyde." [14]

Boy George responded to the film, saying that when he saw Alexis Arquette doing an impersonation of him and singing "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" he thought it was hilarious. [15] [16]

The film has frequently been ranked as one of Sandler's best comedies. [17] [18] [19] [20]

Soundtrack

Two soundtrack albums for the film, called The Wedding Singer and The Wedding Singer Volume 2, were released in 1998. While the film had the actors performing many of the songs, the soundtrack albums, for the most part, contained the original versions of the songs instead, as well as the songs that were in the background during the film and original songs and dialogue from it. Only for "Rapper's Delight" was its rendition (by Ellen Dow) used, in combination with the original recording.

The track listing of the first album is:

  1. "Video Killed the Radio Star" (originally performed by The Buggles), performed by The Presidents of the United States of America
  2. "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me", performed by Culture Club
  3. "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic", performed by The Police
  4. "How Soon Is Now?", performed by The Smiths
  5. "Love My Way", performed by The Psychedelic Furs
  6. "Hold Me Now", performed by Thompson Twins
  7. "Everyday I Write the Book", performed by Elvis Costello
  8. "White Wedding", performed by Billy Idol
  9. "China Girl", (Originally performed by Iggy Pop), performed by David Bowie
  10. "Blue Monday", performed by New Order
  11. "Pass the Dutchie", performed by Musical Youth
  12. "Have You Written Anything Lately?"
  13. "Somebody Kill Me", written by Adam Sandler and Tim Herlihy, performed by Adam Sandler
  14. "Rapper's Delight" (medley), performed by Sugarhill Gang and Ellen Dow

The track listing of the second album is:

  1. "Too Shy", performed by Kajagoogoo
  2. "It's All I Can Do", performed by The Cars
  3. "True", performed by Spandau Ballet
  4. "Space Age Love Song", performed by A Flock of Seagulls
  5. "Private Idaho", performed by The B-52's
  6. "Money (That's What I Want)", performed by Flying Lizards
  7. "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)", performed by Dead or Alive
  8. "Just Can't Get Enough", performed by Depeche Mode
  9. "Love Stinks", performed by The J. Geils Band
  10. "You Make My Dreams", performed by Hall & Oates
  11. "Holiday", performed by Madonna
  12. "Grow Old With You", written by Adam Sandler and Tim Herlihy, performed by Adam Sandler

Songs and renditions that appeared in the movie, but were not included in the soundtrack albums, were:

Certifications for "The Wedding Singer" soundtracks
RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [21] 2× Platinum140,000^
Canada (Music Canada) [22] Platinum100,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [23] Gold100,000*
United States (RIAA) [24] 2× Platinum2,000,000^
Volume 2
Canada (Music Canada) [25] Platinum100,000^
United States (RIAA) [26] Gold500,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Musical adaptation

In 2006, a musical adaption of the same name was released on Broadway starring Stephen Lynch as Robbie and Laura Benanti as Julia. The show has had two national tours in 2007-2008 and 2009-2010 respectively. It was nominated for five Tony Awards and eight Drama Desk Awards and received generally good reviews. In this show, the airplane scene with Billy Idol was replaced with a scene in Las Vegas where Robbie meets a Billy Idol impersonator, and they and a group of other impersonators including Ronald Reagan, Cyndi Lauper and Imelda Marcos come to convince Julia to give up Glenn. In addition, Robbie's neighbor Rosie is changed to be his grandma with whom he lives and who asks him to write a song out of a poem she wrote for the 50th anniversary party. Also Robbie's friend, Sammy, was changed from being a limousine driver to being a part of Robbie's band. The show only ran on Broadway for 284 performances but has become a popular show among community theaters and high schools.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drew Barrymore</span> American actress (born 1975)

Drew Blythe Barrymore is an American actress, producer, talk show host and author. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she has received several awards and nominations, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for nine Emmy Awards and a British Academy Film Award. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2004. She is also the Chief Gifting Officer for Etsy as of January 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Sandler</span> American comedian and actor (born 1966)

Adam Richard Sandler is an American actor and comedian. Primarily a comedic leading actor in films, his accolades include nominations for three Grammy Awards, five Primetime Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2023, Sandler was awarded the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.

<i>The Waterboy</i> 1998 film by Frank Coraci

The Waterboy is a 1998 American sports comedy film directed by Frank Coraci. It was written by Adam Sandler as well as Tim Herlihy and produced by Robert Simonds and Jack Giarraputo. Sandler also stars as the title character while Kathy Bates, Fairuza Balk, Henry Winkler, Jerry Reed, Larry Gilliard, Jr., Blake Clark, Peter Dante, and Jonathan Loughran play other characters.

<i>Happy Gilmore</i> 1996 film by Dennis Dugan

Happy Gilmore is a 1996 American sports comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan, produced by Robert Simonds, and starring Adam Sandler in the title role, Christopher McDonald, Julie Bowen and Carl Weathers.

<i>50 First Dates</i> 2004 film by Peter Segal

50 First Dates is a 2004 American romantic comedy film directed by Peter Segal and starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore, with Rob Schneider, Sean Astin, Lusia Strus, Blake Clark and Dan Aykroyd in supporting roles. It follows the story of Henry Roth, a womanizing marine veterinarian who falls for an art teacher named Lucy Whitmore. When he discovers she has amnesia, and forgets him when she falls asleep, he resolves to win her over again each new day.

<i>Big Daddy</i> (1999 film) 1999 film directed by Dennis Dugan

Big Daddy is a 1999 American comedy-drama film directed by Dennis Dugan, written by Steve Franks, Tim Herlihy, and Adam Sandler from a story conceived by Franks, and produced by Sid Ganis and Jack Giarraputo. The film stars Sandler, Joey Lauren Adams, Jon Stewart, Rob Schneider, Dylan Sprouse, Cole Sprouse, and Leslie Mann, with Allen Covert and Josh Mostel in supporting roles. The plot follows a 32-year-old man who gets dumped by his girlfriend for not accepting responsibility and then tries to be responsible by adopting a five-year-old boy who appears on his doorstep.

<i>Billy Madison</i> 1995 film by Tamra Davis

Billy Madison is a 1995 American comedy film directed by Tamra Davis. It stars Adam Sandler in the title role, Bradley Whitford, Bridgette Wilson, Norm Macdonald, Darren McGavin, Mark Beltzman, and Larry Hankin. The film was written by Sandler and Tim Herlihy and produced by Robert Simonds, and was Macdonald's feature film debut. It made around $26.4 million worldwide and debuted at number one at the box office.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Lynch (musician)</span> American comedian, musician and actor (born 1971)

Stephen Andrew Lynch is an American comedian, musician and actor who is known for his songs mocking daily life and popular culture. Lynch has released four studio albums and four live albums along with a live DVD. He has appeared in two Comedy Central Presents specials and starred in the Broadway adaptation of The Wedding Singer. Lynch released a double-disc album, Lion, on November 13, 2012. In 2016, he released a live concert video, Hello Kalamazoo. He released his studio/live album My Old Heart in 2019.

Happy Madison Productions, Inc. is an American film and television production company founded in 1999 by Adam Sandler, which is best known for its comedy films. Happy Madison takes its name from the films Happy Gilmore and Billy Madison, written by Sandler and Tim Herlihy, and distributed by Universal Pictures.

Allen Stephen Covert is an American comedian, actor, writer, and producer. He is best known for his starring role in the 2006 comedy film Grandma's Boy, and his supporting actor role in the movie Strange Wilderness (2008). He is a frequent collaborator of actor and friend Adam Sandler with prominent roles in such films as Happy Gilmore (1996), The Wedding Singer (1998), Big Daddy (1999), Little Nicky (2000), Mr. Deeds (2002), Anger Management (2003), 50 First Dates (2004) and I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (2007).

<i>Click</i> (2006 film) 2006 film by Frank Coraci

Click is a 2006 American comedy film directed by Frank Coraci, written by Steve Koren and Mark O'Keefe, and produced by Adam Sandler, who also stars. The film is based on "The Magic Thread", a folk tale included in The Book of Virtues. Sandler plays Michael Newman, a workaholic family man who acquires a magical universal remote that enables him to control reality. The film co-stars Kate Beckinsale as his wife Donna and Christopher Walken as Morty, the eccentric stranger who gives Michael the remote.

Timothy Patrick Herlihy is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, producer, and playwright.

<i>The Wedding Singer</i> (musical) 2006-2017 musical based on 1998 film of same name

The Wedding Singer is a musical with music by Matthew Sklar, lyrics by Chad Beguelin, and a book by Beguelin and Tim Herlihy. It is based on the 1998 film of the same name. The musical revolves around Robbie, who sings at weddings, his failed relationship with his former fiancée, and his romance with a new love, Julia.

<i>Music and Lyrics</i> 2007 American film

Music and Lyrics is a 2007 American musical romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Marc Lawrence. It focuses on the relationship that evolves between a former pop music idol and an aspiring writer as they struggle to compose a song for a reigning pop diva.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frank Coraci</span> American film director and screenwriter

Frank Coraci is an American film director, actor and screenwriter best known for his work with actor Adam Sandler.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billy Idol</span> British-American singer and songwriter

William Michael Albert Broad, known professionally as Billy Idol, is an English-American singer, songwriter, musician and actor. He first achieved fame in the 1970s emerging from the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of the group Generation X. Subsequently, he embarked on a solo career which led to international recognition and made Idol a lead artist during the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" in the US. The name "Billy Idol" was inspired by a schoolteacher's description of him as "idle".

<i>See You in the Morning</i> (film) 1989 film

See You in the Morning is a 1989 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Alan J. Pakula, and starring Jeff Bridges, Alice Krige and Farrah Fawcett. It features music by Nat King Cole and Cherri Red. The film's music was composed by Michael Small.

<i>Blended</i> (film) 2014 American film

Blended is a 2014 American romantic comedy film directed by Frank Coraci and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. Written by Ivan Menchell and Clare Sera, the film stars Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore as two single parents who went on a blind date together and never wanted to see each other again afterwards. To their surprise, they both end up at the same African safari resort with their children and are forced to stay together. The film's ensemble cast also features Bella Thorne, Emma Fuhrmann, Terry Crews, Joel McHale, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Kevin Nealon, and Shaquille O'Neal. South African cricketer Dale Steyn makes a cameo appearance as himself.

<i>The Ridiculous 6</i> 2015 film directed by Frank Coraci

The Ridiculous 6 is a 2015 American Western action comedy film directed by Frank Coraci and written by Tim Herlihy and Adam Sandler, and starring Sandler, Terry Crews, Jorge Garcia, Taylor Lautner, Rob Schneider, and Luke Wilson. As Happy Madison Productions' first Western film, the plot follows six men who discover that they share the same bank-robbing father and thereafter set out to reunite with him.

<i>Hubie Halloween</i> 2020 American science fiction comedy-horror film

Hubie Halloween is a 2020 American mystery/horror-comedy film directed by Steve Brill, co-written by Tim Herlihy and Adam Sandler, and starring an ensemble supporting cast consisting of Sandler, Kevin James, Julie Bowen, Ray Liotta, Rob Schneider, June Squibb, Kenan Thompson, Shaquille O'Neal, Steve Buscemi, and Maya Rudolph. The film follows a Halloween-loving delicatessen worker who must save the town of Salem, Massachusetts from a kidnapper as various hijinks occur.

References

  1. 1 2 3 The Wedding Singer at Box Office Mojo
  2. ↑ Smith, Zack (March 26, 2008). "The Wedding Singer". Independent Weekly . Archived from the original on April 18, 2008.
  3. ↑ Patches, Matt (July 23, 2015). "Adam Sandler's Go-To Writer Says Their Movies Are One Big Accident". Esquire. Archived from the original on November 3, 2019. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  4. ↑ Barrymore, Drew (2015). Wildflower. New York: Dutton. p.  93. ISBN   9781101983799. OCLC   904421431.
  5. 1 2 Sciretta, Peter (December 29, 2016). "Carrie Fisher Script Doctor: From Hook To Wedding Singer". SlashFilm.com. Archived from the original on April 13, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  6. ↑ Adams, Sam (2011). "Carrie Fisher". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on April 13, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2021. There were a lot of ones that I had fun on. The Wedding Singer.
  7. ↑ McCabe, Katie (July 14, 2011). "Director Frank Coraci: Confessions of a sentimentalist". www.thehollywoodnews.com. Archived from the original on April 15, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  8. 1 2 Jacobs, Matthew (May 22, 2014). "The Secret Of Drew Barrymore's Relationship With Adam Sandler". HuffPost. Archived from the original on April 13, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Weekend Box Office Results for February 13-15, 1998". Box Office Mojo . Archived from the original on July 22, 2019. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
  10. ↑ The Wedding Singer at Rotten Tomatoes
  11. ↑ "The Wedding Singer". Metacritic . Archived from the original on April 14, 2018. Retrieved December 1, 2018.
  12. ↑ "WEDDING SINGER, THE (1998) A-". CinemaScore . Archived from the original on December 20, 2018.
  13. ↑ Klady, Leonard (February 12, 1998). "The Wedding Singer". Variety . Archived from the original on July 13, 2021. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  14. ↑ Ebert, Roger (February 13, 1998). "The Wedding Singer movie review (1998)". Chicago Sun-Times . Archived from the original on March 16, 2021. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  15. ↑ Boy George – Alexis Arquette Did Me A Solid In 'The Wedding Singer' (VIDEO). TMZ.
  16. ↑ PIRNIA, GARIN (March 18, 2021). "11 Fun Facts About The Wedding Singer". Mental Floss . Archived from the original on April 13, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  17. ↑ "All Adam Sandler Movies Ranked". Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  18. ↑ Fox, Jesse David (October 8, 2020). "What Is the Best Adam Sandler Movie?". Vulture. Archived from the original on June 15, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  19. ↑ "Every Adam Sandler Movie Ranked Worst To Best". ScreenRant. December 6, 2020. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  20. ↑ Cook, Meghan. "The 10 best and 10 worst Adam Sandler movies of all time". Insider. Archived from the original on July 13, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  21. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1998 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association . Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  22. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Various Artists – The Wedding Singer - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Music Canada . Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  23. ↑ "British album certifications – Original Soundtrack – The Wedding Singer". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  24. ↑ "American album certifications – Soundtrack – The Wedding Singer". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  25. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Various Artists – The Wedding Singer Volume 2 - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Music Canada . Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  26. ↑ "American album certifications – Soundtrack – The Wedding Singer, More Music". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved April 28, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.