Plot: What’s it about?
I mentioned in another recent review of how I was more than a little let down by this past summer’s movies. When I saw the trailers for Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates, I wrote it off as another lame comedy. Little to my surprise, the film was one of the few highlights of this past summer. Not only is it an amusing film, but it’s also a lot of fun so long as you don’t overthink it. While far from perfect and more than a little predictable, there are plenty of laughs to be had and the film has its heart in the right place.
Brothers Mike (Adam Devine) and Dave (Zac Efron) are known to get more than a little wild and are big party animals. This creates something of a conflict when their sister, Jeanie (Sugar Lyn Beard) is getting married. At the insistence of their father, Burt (Stephen Root), they put out an ad seeking dates to their sister’s wedding. It goes viral and after many, they stumble upon Alice (Anna Kendrick) and Tatiana (Aubrey Plaza). The two of them are also known to party hard, but they pretend to be nice girls in order to get a free trip to Hawaii for the wedding. They lie to Mike and Dave about their lives and professions in order to have a weekend of fun. From that general outline, we have a good idea of where things are headed, but part of the fun here is the journey. The cast is all solid here, but I think Efron and Plaza are the highlights here. It’s not that Kendrick or Devine are bad, but at times they tend to overact and try too hard. Thankfully, it’s not a deal breaker, and they work nicely with the other two. Make no mistakes about it, the film earns its R rating with plenty of vulgarity and a wild bit at a massage parlor. Having said that, it also has a sweetness to it that doesn’t feel out of place. We can tell the two brothers not only care about each other, but also for their sister and her wedding to go well. The Alice and Tatiana characters are also given some depth as well.
After two viewings of the film, I can say that it does hold up quite well. Indeed, it was funnier the first time seeing it in a theater with a large audience, but it’s something you can watch again from time to time. Admittedly, the last half gets more familiar and some moments are a bit overplayed, but it remains amusing throughout. It’s also worth noting that a lot of scenes from the trailers were either altered in the film or missing all together. This is not unusual, especially for a comedy, but it can be annoying when you’re expecting to see it in the film. This Blu-Ray disc includes quite a bit of cut footage that’s fun to see.
Video: How’s it look?
The majority of the film takes place in Hawaii and it makes for quite a visual treat for the eyes. There’s really nothing negative I can say about this transfer. The colors are all bold and on point and the print is pristine. Details remained clear and sharp throughout. The image is AVC encoded with a 2.39:1 ratio. Wider than most comedies, but likely to take advantage of the setting.
Audio: How’s it sound?
The DTS HD track is about as expected. It’s perfectly suitable for a film of this sort. Don’t expect an overly robust track, but it kicks into gear when needed. There’s some singing in the film and a few action bits as well. Vocals sounded fine as well. Fans will be pleased with this track. It serves the film well.
Supplements: What are the extras?
- Audio Commentary – Director Jane Szymanski offers up her thoughts on the film in a pretty candid commentary track. It’s pretty straight-forward with a smattering of technical information as well as general praise for the cast.
- 14 Deleted Scenes – As the title suggests, these are a bevy of scenes that didn’t make the final cut of the film. Why they didn’t take these and those below and make an extended cut of the film is beyond me.
- 16 Extended Scenes – Essentially the same as above.
- Alternate Storyline Pig Sequence – The film originally contained an alternate storyline for a pig roast and the scenes make up that storyline.
- Bits on Bits on Bits – This seems to be a standard gag reel or “Line-O-Rama” and speaking of which…
- Line-O-Rama – Essentially the same as above, it’s just alternate takes on a few selected scenes.
- Gag Reel – Shenanigans on the set!
- Funny or Die Shorts – A series of promos made for Funny or Die: “Wedding Stories with the Cast”, “Adam Devine has Hypersensitive Ears”, “Zac Efron Can’t Stop Taking Selfies”.
- Gallery – A series of stills from the film
- Red Band Trailer – For those that don’t know a “Red Band” trailer is like an R-rated trailer.
- Theatrical Trailers – And for those that don’t want to watch an R-rated trailer, we have this.
The Bottom Line
One of the few highlights in a pretty lackluster summer, Mike and Dave is simply a lot of fun. Sure, it’s predictable, but the destination is what works here. The stars all have good chemistry, which helps elevate the material as well. There are also plenty of laughs. This disc and film come recommended.
