Movie Review: The Wedding Year

In low-budget projects like this, success often hinges on the cast’s talent, and let me assure you, the ensemble in The Wedding Year can act!

‘Tis the season for gifts, love, and Hallmark movies! 

As a card-carrying member of the Home Alone movie era, rest assured the holidays haven’t truly commenced until I’ve discovered and made a list of all the cheesiest, corniest romance movies I want to watch and rewatch the entire season. The latest addition to my lineup is The Wedding Year.

After binge-watching season two of Abbot Elementary and witnessing Tyler James Williams deliver a stellar performance, I naturally went on a deep dive into his filmography to see what my boy has been up to since his golden days in Let It Shine. That’s when I stumbled upon 2019’s The Wedding Year, featuring Modern Family’s Sarah Hyland and Step Up’s Jenna Dewan – all my childhood favorites in one movie. I squealed! So, it was a no-brainer; I had to include it in my Christmas movie marathon.

Sure, it’s your typical rom-com, complete with clichés, but there’s a charm in a movie that embraces the cliché and perfects it, steering clear of unnecessary complications. I appreciate it when a romantic film sticks to a simple script, and The Wedding Year does just that.

The story revolves around Mara (Sarah Hyland), an amateur photographer skeptical of marriage due to her parents’ failed marriage. She is surprised when she connects with Jake (Tyler James Williams), her Tinder date and a budding chef from a large family that staunchly believes in marriage, babies, and forever. Against Mara’s initial reservations, everything falls into place, and they click and begin dating.

Just like my life right now, Jake and Mara find themselves inundated with wedding invitations, including some from Mara’s sister and Jake’s brother. But they are broke, and being a wedding guest is expensive, so they narrow down their acceptance to seven weddings over a year. The weddings bring out the quirky, cheesy, and cringe-worthy aspects of their personalities, but against all odds, they fall in love. Jake eventually proposes, but the question remains: is love alone enough for a successful marriage?

In low-budget projects like this, success often hinges on the cast’s talent, and let me assure you, the ensemble in The Wedding Year can act! Anyway, Anna Camp reenacts her vomiting scene from Pitch Perfect, and Sarah Hyland is chaotic just like in Modern Family! The real magic, though, is how they managed actually to keep her disheveled and her wardrobe unfashionable the entire time, a real feat for someone as gorgeous as she! 

That’s all I’ll say about The Wedding Year. So, get cozy, grab a bowl of popcorn, and prepare to spend the next hour and a half falling in love with the grown-up Cyrus DeBarge!