Raking in a staggering $10.7 million Friday, Malcom D. Lee’s The Best Man Holiday has already exceeded Universal Studio’s expectations for a $17-million-dollar budget film.
Though the film certainly had its bright moments, this blockbuster still fell short in many regards.
One thing The Best Man Holiday certainly did not fall short of, however, was time — this 127-minute film went on for a half-hour too long and was slowed down by a highly cliché, drawn-out and complicated plot.
Created as a sequel to The Best Man, a 1999 film, The Best Man Holiday features a unique cast, including actors such as Monica Calhoun, Morris Chesnut, Melissa De Sousa, Taye Diggs, Regina Hall, Terrence Howard, Nia Long and Harold Perrineau. The cast portrays an old group of college friends who decide to reunite over the holidays after 15 years.
The combination of crass humor, constant drama and cheery holiday overtones could be a bit overwhelming at times — simply put, there was too much going on at once during this film.
Regardless, there were certainly some positive attributes to The Best Man Holiday. First and foremost, the movie was tastefully done. The cinematography was impeccable, as was the soundtrack. From this film, it is obvious that Lee is a seasoned director. On top of creating a well-executed film, Lee made full use of the film’s budget — both the sets and the wardrobe were absolutely gorgeous. Also, the Christmas music that played throughout the movie was arguably the best part of the film, which included covers of classics by Mary J. Blige, Mario, John Legend and Emilie Sandé.
However, a beautiful and tasteful set cannot make up for a largely lackluster plot, nor can decent acting. While the acting in this movie was good overall, the actors, unfortunately, had little material to work with in terms of character development. Chesnut shined as Lance Sullivan, a family man and football star, with Calhoun as his wife Monica. Diggs and Lathan, who played couple Harper and Robyn Stewart, gave so-so performances that mirrored the borderline boring personalities of the characters they portrayed.
Every once and a while, there was a funny line or two, but more frequently, the jokes were a bit too crude. This lame humor often contradicted and conflicted with the entire premise of the film — that these characters, both successful and mature, are meeting up to 15 years post-college. This immaturity coupled with moments of eye-roll-worthy drama left much to be desired with the film.
Despite these negatives, however, this film is certainly going to draw in an audience looking to get into the holiday spirit. And at the very least, The Best Man Holiday is capable of doing just that.
This film has a specific target audience, and judging by the opening night, people are seemingly excited to see this R-rated romantic comedy/drama, despite some of the poor reviews it has already received.
Though clearly this film is nowhere near Oscar-worthy, it is good for a chuckle or two. If viewers know that going into the film,The Best Man Holiday is certainly worth seeing (though, in my opinion, it would be more ideal to rent the movie following its DVD release).