Jeri Jacquin
Coming to theatres from writer/director Kristin Scott Thomas, John Micklethwait and Vertical comes a story of women with connected history at MY MOTHER’S WEDDING.
Royal Navy Captain Katherine Frost (Scarlett Johansson) is about to head home for Mom Diana’s (Kristin Scott Thomas) wedding, well her third. Katherine’s father was Navy pilot John Frost who died when she was young leaving Diana, Katherine and sister Georgina (Emily Beecham) on their own. Frost’s best friend Johnny Monson becomes Diana’s second husband and they have daughter Victoria (Sienna Miller) who is an actress. Follow so far?
Well, now Diana is set to marry Geoff Loveglove (James Fleet) and the daughters have come together to witness and celebrate as only this family can. That doesn’t mean the get-together does come with extra baggage as Katherine deals with partner Jack (Freida Pinto) and son Marcus (Fflyn Edwards), Victoria deals with her love life as an actress and Georgina just tries to find answers with her own family and husband Jeremy (Joshua McGuire).
As the wedding approaches, there are memories all around the women but the questions become who remembers what, how much of it do they really understand and are the answers going to be what they hoped for? That’s what family gatherings are all about and sometimes there are tears for a different reason all together. Gotta love getting together to celebrate right?
Johansson as Frost is a woman trying to move up the military ladder knowing that it all comes at a price. Returning for her mother’s wedding, the family home brings up memories of her father and the time they had together. That’s a difficult thing to share as sister Georgina doesn’t remember much and Victoria wasn’t born. Feeling alone in it all, it seeps into her relationships and the cracks are showing. Johansson does such a beautiful job portraying a woman wearing many, pardon the pun, hats in all her relationships.
Beecham as sister Georgina has very few memories of her father but is too busy dealing with her own family problems and her marriage. I loved watching Beecham’s character literally bloom before our very eyes. Admittedly, I went from rolling my eyes at Georgina to yelling and cheering for her. That’s the sign of an amazing character and Beecham brings it all to the screen. Miller as Victoria is the sister that manages to annoy just a tad with her actress ways. Always trying to solve problems in her own unique way, Miller captures her sister issues while wondering where her own love life may be headed. I loved watching Miller be the flighty sister but with a heart.
Thomas as Diana is happy to be marrying once again, finding love a third time and all the fun that comes with it. She is well aware of her daughters and their differences but that isn’t going to stop her from having a wonderful wedding day. Thomas gives us a look at a mother who has clearly seen it all and wants what’s best for her daughters by allowing them their memories without her input – until she has to. A bit flighty like Victoria, it proves the casting is pure perfection.
Pinto as Jack wants more from Katherine making it clear that everything isn’t about her career. Being the homebody, for Jack, means her needs need to be equally as important. Pinto is charming and absolutely lovely in this role and I’m so pleased to see her again on the screen. Edwards as Marcus knows of his mother’s career, now it is time to actually understand it, but not before having wedding cake. McGuire as Jeremy has problems of his own to deal with but is more interested in what he wants than what his family wants. Fleet as Geoff clearly is in love with Diana and even though the women can get a little testy at times when they are together, he is supportive and so darn charming.
Other cast include Mark Stanley as Charlie, Jamie Schneider as Tom, Josephine Jones as Daisey, Ziggy Gardner as Skylar, Lydia Jones as Clara, Samson Kayo as Steve and Michael Spicer as Ted.
Vertical Entertainment is a global independent distributor that offers a unique wealth of experience minus the studio costs. They have won a Film Independent Spirit Award for Best Actress for Molly Shannon’s role in OTHER PEOPLE and the film won a GLAAD Award for Outstanding Film Limited Release, Best International Film for Babak Anvari’s UNDER THE SHADOW, a BAFTA and three Independent British Independent Film Awards as well.
Director Thomas says of her film, “At its heart, MY MOTHER’S WEDDING is about allowing characters to breathe-to be imperfect, humorous, and heartbreakingly genuine. As an actress, I’ve forever sought roles that empower and celebrate the complexities of female characters. In MY MOTHER’S WEDDING, I endeavor to do just that. I hope my film leaves audiences debating the complexities in a family, marriage, motherhood and fate.”
Adding thoughts is producer Finola Dwyer, “Three sisters come back to the family home for their mother’s third wedding. You can tell from the start that it’s a fractious relationship. So, you’re going to be in for fireworks! The house is full of memories and the three of them have never really come to terms with the deaths of their fathers.”
Anyone who has been to a wedding knows that although it is a time for celebrations, it is also a time for dysfunction in the families to eek out. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a wedding where I learned something about the inner workings of unresolved tensions. Here are three sisters who have three very different memories of growing up but need to learn that everyone sees things differently, especially children. Where these three have gone wrong is acknowledging that they love one another despite seeing things differently.
The whole story is engaging and it feels like family while we, the viewers, are sort of eavesdropping on their conversations and memories. The twists and turns provide us with nods of “yep, I get it”, “are you kidding me?” and finally, “I need to call me sister!”. I was pulled in immediately and went for the ride that Thomas, Johannson, Beechum and Miller took me on without hesitation. The next family wedding is in two weeks, I’m ready!
In the end – celebrate love all over again!
