Movie Review: Made of Honor

Stars: 4 out of 5
Pros: Fun story with mostly likable characters

Cons: Tom took a while to grow on me.

The Bottom Line:

Surprisingly fun

With likable characters

You will enjoy it

They Made a Fun Romantic Comedy

At first, I wrote off Made of Honor as just another chick flick. After all, it looked like the male version of Julia Robert's My Best Friend's Wedding. But the more I saw the previews for it, the more I became interested in it. In the end, I was glad I went to see it.

In college, Tom (Patrick Dempsey) is a lady's man. He sleeps with anyone who will have him. Sneaking into a room one night, he accidentally meets Hannah (Michelle Monaghan). Despite their less then great meeting, the two hit if off and become friends.

Flash forward 10 years, and little has changed. Tom spends every night with a different woman. And he spends all day hanging out with Hannah, who is now working for a museum. The two are close friends, but that is all.

Until one day when Hannah leaves on a six week trip to Scotland. It doesn't take Tom long to realize that he truly loves Hannah. In fact, the separation is killing him. He intends to act on his new found feelings.

But when Hannah returns, it is with Colin (Kevin McKidd) in tow. The two met in Scotland and are engaged. To further add to Tom's misery, Hannah asks him to be her maid of honor. Tom is reluctant, but decides he can break the wedding apart better from the inside. But with the ceremony only two weeks again, can Tom make Hannah fall for him?

The secret of a good romantic comedy is to make the characters likable. That was an easy job with Hannah. I liked her from the moment we met her. But since I'm not a fan of cads, it took me a little while to warm up to Tom. He starts out the movie proud of his lifestyle. But as the movie progresses and we watch Tom and Hannah together, it's easy to believe underneath it all he's a good guy.

Which brings us to the story. Yep, it's predictable. But they manage to provide some good laughs along the way. I especially loved Tom's friends helping him learn how to be a maid of honor to win Hannah's heart. And the characters turn out to be so endearing, you care about the outcome and enjoy the ride.

The acting is uniformly good as well. The actors look comfortable in their roles, which makes it that much better. I wouldn't say there's anything outstanding, but there's nothing so bad it turns you off, either. And watch for Sydney Pollack in his brief appearances as Tom's father.

The film has been rated PG-13, mainly for sexual situations. To be honest, I found it a little more uncomfortable then I thought it would be, especially the running gage with the grandmother and her new "necklace." However, the rest of the audience seemed to love it.

This film set out with one goal in mind, to entertain. And it does that. If that's all you want from Made of Honor, your wish will be honored.