Robbie Hart Will Sing His Way Into Your Heart

Generally speaking, I’m not a big fan of Adam Sandler movies. They tend to be low-brow affair filled with crude humor and possessing little redeeming value. But The Wedding Singer is atypical of his films, a tender romantic comedy devoid of most of Sandler’s manic antics. This is not to say that he’s a Jim Carrey; in fact, most of his movies since The Wedding Singer are worse than those that preceded it. But this film is an oasis, and I consider it one of my favorite romantic comedies.

The film opens on Sandler’s Robbie Hart doing what he does best, which is entertaining guests at wedding receptions. He’s a pretty talented musician and singer, but more than that, he has a true passion for the institution of marriage and a knack for knowing just the right words to say to everyone in attendance. He’s an empathetic fellow, and we watch as he uses his skills to save a wedding from the sabotage of a jealous sibling (Steve Buscemi). He’s in an especially exuberant mood because he is about to get married. During the course of the evening, he meets a waitress named Julia (Drew Barrymore), who also has a wedding coming up. It’s a chance encounter that arrives at just the opportune time, though neither one realizes it yet.

Robbie’s happiness melts away when his fiance Linda (Angela Featherstone) leaves him standing at the altar. When she finally shows up to explain herself, it only makes Robbie feel worse, and he’s left with a crippling rage and cynicism that he takes with him to his next gig, resulting in his expulsion from the wedding singer circuit. At least he still has some meaning in his life in the form of Rosie, a sweet and fiesty woman to whom he is giving singing lessons in preparation for her upcoming anniversary celebration. He also has the friendship of Sammy (Allen Covert), a perpetual bachelor who is tiring of life in the fast lane. Eventually, he brings himself out of his funk and begins playing bar mitzvahs and acting as wedding advisor to Julia, whose sleazy fiance Glenn (Matthew Glave) wants nothing to do with the planning of an elaborate wedding.

The more time Julia spends with Robbie, the more she finds in common with him, and she begins to question whether marrying Glenn is the right thing to do after all. She is clueless about many of her fiance’s less desirable traits, but Robbie is painfully aware of Glenn’s philandering and lack of respect for Julia. Meanwhile, her flirtatious sister Holly (Christine Taylor) has taken a bit of a shine to Robbie, and somewhere in the mix Linda returns, prepared to settle for Robbie since she isn’t getting any younger. He must decide what the proper course of action is, and Julia must determine whether she would rather have the rich, parent-approved sleaze she thought she knew or the sweet, sensitive musician barely scraping out a living.

Barrymore and Sandler have both been obnoxious in other roles, but they’re both adorable and incredibly likable here. Their chemistry with one another is evident, and even though both are engaged when the film begins we’re rooting for their relationship within minutes of the movie’s opening. Covert and Taylor make their roles fun and supportive, and they’re both good for some comic relief. This is a funny movie, but not in the way that most Sandler movies are. It’s tender and understated, played more for romance than for laughs. And many of the laughs are at the expense of a decade - the eighties - rather than any particular characters. It’s a movie with a good heart from beginning to end, and to my mind, it’s far and away the best Sandler movie I’ve ever seen.