Review: Jennifer Lopez Leans on Her Fame in 'Marry Me'
Jennifer Lopez is very good for Megafame.
It might sound more like a circumstance than a rare ability, but that's because she never lets on the work behind it. The same goes for her abilities as a romantic comedy heroine. She may not always have the best material, but her allure for this genre is undeniable and even underestimated 25 years after her breakthrough role in "Selena." The only time we as a culture seem to single out a performance of hers is when she's in something more "serious" like "Out of Sight" or "Hustlers." .
That's what makes “Marry Me,” her new romantic comedy with Colombian star Maluma in her and comedy veteran Owen Wilson's feature film debut, so inspiring. The film opens Friday in the United States in theaters and on the streaming service Peacock TV, the day after its debut in theaters in Mexico.
The film allows Lopez to delve into her unique experience as a very, very famous person within the construct of the genre that best fits her. Though she's also saying something that she, as pop star Kat Valdez, is the most believable thing in the entire movie, a brilliant, above-average fantasy about the perks of an arranged marriage.
“Marry Me” doesn't really give away any dark secrets of fame, but it does work with Lopez's hopelessly romantic persona within the realm of PG-13 rated movies.
Her Kat is a Lady Gaga-esque singer who has had some bad luck in the love department, at least one divorce and a 48-hour marriage. She is about to marry the musical star Bastian, played by Maluma, who has several scenes and musical numbers in the film, as well as looking great as JLo's partner. Their wedding will be watched by 20 million people as they perform their hit single “Marry Me,” but just before Kat takes the stage in stunning jewelry, she (along with the rest of the world) sees a video of her future husband cheating on her. . As she already has the wedding dress and is in the middle of the show, she looks at the public and finds Charlie (Wilson), whom she chooses to marry. It is the most pre-established romantic comedy that has ever existed and that is a film that shows off its love for the genre with clear references to classics such as “Pretty Woman” (“Pretty Woman”) and “Notting Hill” (“A place called Notting Hill ”).
Though she doesn't know it when she chooses him, luckily for Kat, Charlie is a nice divorced dad with a 13-year-old daughter and a nice apartment in Brooklyn, a bulldog, and a job as a high school math teacher. His background is minimal, his breakup was on good terms, he doesn't have a dark side and his mistakes...are not explored. Is the eventual and inevitable connection believable? No not at all. But you buy into it because Wilson is charming as a downcast guy and accomplishes enough with very little.
Directed by Kat Coiro, who piloted the brilliant series “Girls5Eva,” and written by Harper Dill (“Mindy Project”) and John Rogers (“Catwoman”), “Marry Me” feels like a creation of those times when which studios spent more than $20 million on the genre. Fast-forward thanks to her cast, which includes Sarah Silverman doing a great job as Charlie's co-worker; John Bradley of “Game of Thrones” fame, who cuts a fine figure as Kat's manager, Collin; and Michelle Buteau as a very Hollywood-esque assistant.
There are some hilariously and absurdly placed product ads, as well as some celebrity cameos, from Hoda Kotb to Jimmy Fallon (whose show is always in the background on TV and whose alter ego is much ruder than in real life). Why James Corden isn't in the movie is perhaps the biggest mystery of all.
“Marry Me” rests on the shoulders of Lopez, who looks as bright and glamorous as ever. The star of Puerto Rican origin, as they say, understood the assigned task.
“Marry Me,” a Universal Pictures and Peacock TV release that debuts in theaters and streaming in the United States Friday, has a PG-13 rating (warning parents that it may be inappropriate for children under 13) from the Association Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA).
