Helena From The Wedding is an interesting film, not only because of the crew that it employs but also because of director Joseph Infantolino’s pedigree (Run Fatboy Run). The title is also enthralling because of the way in which Infantolino captures the married experience. Helena From The Wedding does not glamorize or otherwise modify the married experience – what viewers will see from the different couples is realistically what could be seen in any one of a million marriages, both in the United States and abroad.
While the specific experiences here would be modified if the socioeconomic state of the cast was changed, this film speaks to the fact that it is hard for two individuals to come together and stay perfectly happy over the course of ten, thirty, or even fifty years. These bastions of middle-upper-class life try to get away from their problems through renting out a cabin with their friends, but realize that the problems with which they have been saddled are next to them.
The tight dialogue is where Helena From The Wedding truly shines. The witty banter that bounces back and forth between members from the different couples could easily keep a Broadway play going, while the pining over the titular female changes the dynamic from being a purely stuffy, marriage-based film. Viewers may not happen upon this film on cable, but I would have to tell them to pick up a copy of the disc from a local well-stocked video store or other similar web site. Keep an eye on Paul Fitzgerald (Nick) and Gillian Jacobs (Helena) to do more on the silver screen in the next few years – while they have cut their teeth on television, I believe a bigger future is in the cards.
Rating: 7.5/10
Helena From The Wedding (DVD) / 2011 Film Movement / 89 Minutes / http://www.filmmovement.com