THREE MANY WEDDINGS Proves Comedy Is Universal

This movie is part of the Spanish Film Festival, which takes place during May.

As one of the many films chosen to play at the Spanish Film Festival in 2014, Three Many Weddings (original title Tres Bodas De Mas) is a wild Spanish-language romantic comedy following a month in the life of Ruth (Inma Cuesta), the puppy-eyed lab scientist longing for love. When Ruth wakes up one morning from a drunken night of random love-making, she is faced with three wedding invitations – all from ex-boyfriends. While most normal people would be repelled by the thought of going to ANY of their ex’s weddings, director Javier Ruiz Caldera gives a third-person viewing of Ruth’s most awkward interactions as she manages to attend all three.

The premise appealed to my funny bone, however I wasn’t sure reading subtitles through the whole film would allow me to appreciate the comedy. It was nice to be proven wrong.

In-Your-Face Hilarity

The first scene in the film was a clear indication that I was going to adore the rest. We meet Ruth, with her sad eyes hiding behind a pair of enormous glasses in the midst of being dumped by current boyfriend, Pedro (Berto Romero). While it appears she and Pedro are privately conversing about her inability to take control of anything in their relationship, a minute later the camera pans out and we see that they’re seated at a table full of people all gracelessly listening in. And to make matters worse, they are sitting at a wedding reception. Talk about uncomfortable.

Any and every raunchy situation one can dream up was mentioned or eluded to, which made this movie enjoyable for adult audiences. What made it work was the terrific duo of Dani (Martiño Rivas) and Ruth, both at work as her intern and when he accompanied her to the ex’s weddings. They both proved to be likable, charismatic characters. I felt myself rooting for Dani by the end!

I appreciated the lack of plot depth. It was an easy movie to watch and enjoy because it tapped into everyone’s basic comedic instinct. An example of this was during a bathroom scene when Ruth was asked to hold someone’s baby for a moment. A stream of runaway pee, an accidental crack to the poor baby’s head, and I was doubled over in laughter.

Relentless Vulgarity

If I’m being negative about anything, it’s that the film went overboard with the raunchy humor. Character dialog was completely unfiltered and in some instances, the sexual content was shoved down our throats. For instance, why did Dani have to keep bringing up watching porn? It made no impact to the story and seemed out of place; like the writers thought, “Hmmm, we have an empty conversation. Let’s make people more uncomfortable!” Discussions were peppered with indiscretions for no apparent reason.

Another example of this is Jonás’s (Quim Gutiérrez) confession to Ruth at the transgender wedding. I sat squirming once I learned of his and his girlfriend’s crippling sexual encounter…. OUCH. Was that necessary?

Funny In Any Language

Having little experience with foreign films, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised with the entertainment value. I could compare the humor level to that of American films like American Pie, The Girl Next Door, and Zack and Miri Make a Porno, to name a few.

This just proves that comedy is universal. Everyone has a different sense and reaction to certain types of humor (slapstick, vulgarity, sarcasm, silliness, etc.) and for me, this movie hit each one.

Go See It For Yourself!

While some of the movie went overboard with filth, Three Many Weddings was a fun and clever story with an excellent cast. This review was difficult to write since there was a plethora of seriously funny scenarios on which to comment; but including them all would ruin the film for future viewers. After all, I have to leave something to the imagination!

Have you seen this quirky comedy yet? After reading this, will you go out and find it? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!