Fans of the rom-com genre have themselves a rom-com that remembered to put a heavy emphasis on the rom. Kat Coiro’s Marry Me has arrived on all home video formats and stars Jennifer Lopez and Owen Wilson as a perfectly imperfect match.
J. Lo is portraying a version of herself, here known as Kat Valdez—a multi-platinum selling artist known the globe over for producing tracks that make you want to move. In Marry Me, the film’s moniker stems from a hit song recorded by Valdez, with her fiancé, a fellow singer Bastian (played with just the right amount of bravado from Colombia native and a singing superstar in his own right, Maluma). The plan is that the pair will put on a show at “the most famous arena in the world,” i.e., Madison Square Garden (MSG), perform the blockbuster track, and then exchange vows in front of 20,000 live fans and millions more streaming on the internet.
Quite the endeavor, huh?
Well, it is not without glitches and a doozy arrives in the form of a breaking entertainment news study that Bastian has been stepping out on Kat. To say that sends our protagonist into a tailspin is a fair way to describe it. Most people don’t marry a man carrying a “Marry Me” sign named Charlie Gilbert (Wilson). He happens to be attending the show with his BFF Parker (Sarah Silverman) and his 8-year-old daughter Lou (Chloe Coleman). What’s a guy to do? With a supportive nod from his daughter, Charlie heads onto the MSG stage and marries a pop star who he had previously never met except what he heard on the radio and saw on MTV—kidding, seriously, when was the last time MTV played a video?
The thing is, despite the swinging for the fences premise of Marry Me, or perhaps because of that elaborate premise, Wilson and Lopez have chemistry to burn and Coleman is adorable. All three parts were written by screenwriters John Rogers and Harper Dill (from the graphic novel by Bobby Crosby) by folks who cared about them and sought this unlikely of scenarios to work within the framework of the landscape they had created.
Much of the heavy lifting seems effortless from Wilson and Lopez. His awe-shucks demeanor and her glamourous, yet still very much the “Jenny From the Block” intertwine as beautiful as musical harmony when it’s done with passion and precision. Lopez is not playing herself, obviously, but the performance seems natural because of the countless similarities—such as being married three times and producing Latin-inspired pop music with unmistakable melodies that are irresistible in their banger-ness.
Lopez likes her rom-coms and has made more misses than hits over her career. Lately, she has been choosing her film projects wisely. The Bronx native even garnered Oscar buzz for 2019’s Hustlers in between Las Vegas residencies and 2018’s Second Act—both films played to her strengths Now, with Marry Me, she has a romantic comedy with an emphasis on the romance. In this film, she is perfection.
Kat seemingly has it all, but success is empty without someone special to share it with. That is sorely missing, as painted by filmmakers, screenwriters, and the actress through her talents.
When a couple is in that—for lack of a better word, courting—stage, a person’s quirks are what endear us to them. So, it only makes sense that these two believably would potentially fall for each other as they traverse the planet because it happens so organically.
Wilson plays a math teacher, doing his best to pick up the pieces for the sake of his firecracker daughter, Lou. He is doing that, and much more. So, of course, his priorities will be making this attractive insanity workable only as long as his family doesn’t suffer. Yeah, nobody is suffering in Marry Me, except maybe Bastian.
Occasionally, audiences need a film that makes us collectively smile and leaves us with a sense of hope that when all is said and done, all we do need is love. Marry Me is that movie and Happy Valentine’s Day to the planet.
There is a bevy of bonus features on the Marry Me Blu-ray. Other studios need to pay attention to this as it’s been a little bit on the disappointing side in terms of the volume of items to dive into with recent releases. That is not the case here, by a longshot.
There’s a true making-of, Behind the Camera: The Making of Marry Me. Clocking in at nice five-and-a-half minutes, the featurette looks at the crux of the story, Coiro’s direction, and how the chemistry was immediate with Wilson and Lopez. There’s also a nice part of this making-of where the cast and crew talk about filming in New York City and the difference that makes to the true ambiance of a film.
As this film centers on a pop star and an unlikely romance, a featurette on the music of the film had to be there, and thankfully, Turn It Up: The Music of Marry Me is part of the Marry Me Blu-ray bonus features. It does a nice job of examining the role that music plays in the film and how it is as much a part of the storytelling process as the screenplay itself.
The person delivering those tunes, Lopez, is the focus of Jennifer Unveiled. Kudos to the superstar for sitting down for an almost 12-minute piece that puts the spotlight solely on her. She’s interviewed for the featurette where she discusses her role in this film and what it was about it that made her say, “yes.” The bonus feature also features fellow cast members and the film’s director talking about the magic of the star.
There is an immense concert scene that opens the movie. Ever wondered how they film those kinds of moments in the movies? Married with Style answers all those questions centered around how one shoots an enormous concert sequence that feels authentic. After all, it is a safe bet that every soul that witnesses this film has been to at least one!
There are eight deleted scenes and a nice gag reel that shows off the lighter side of moviemaking. You’re not going to want to miss the On My Way Lyric Video that will let you channel your inner J. Lo as the lyrics rock across the screen.
The final featurette we can recommend is Live at Madison Square Garden. The almost five-minute featurette looks at why getting Lopez for the film was a real coup because there are merely a handful of actresses who can say they’ve literally lived the part they’re playing. She also discusses the arrival of co-star Maluma, who makes a true talent announcement with his role in Marry Me.
Ever want to get inside the head of a director and get a play-by-play of their thought processes while making a particular film? For a helmer such as Coira, the audio commentary part of a Blu-ray release comes off as such a joy, it is a delight to hear her and producer Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas wax poetic about making the film, as well as talk about some of its biggest challenges.
Film Grade: B
Bonus Features: B+