FATHER OF THE BRIDE (1991)

Forty-one years after Spencer Tracy walked Elizabeth Taylor down the aisle in Vincente Minnelli’s original FATHER OF THE BRIDE, Steve Martin showed the timeless nature of a father’s consternation about his daughter’s upcoming nuptials is timeless. In Charles Shyer’s version with a screenplay co-written by Nancy Meyers, Martin plays George Banks, the successful owner of a sneaker company who’s stunned to learn that his daughter Annie (Kimberly Williams-Paisley) is going to get married following her recent college graduation. While George’s wife Nina (Diane Keaton) is more accepting of Annie’s fiancé Bryan (George Newbern), George must absorb every mishap from his future in-laws’ aggressive Dobermans, the eccentricities of wedding planner Franck (Martin Short), and the constantly ballooning cost of the wedding. Although Martin shines as a beleaguered every-dad, he has a game comic companion in Keaton, who’s Nina provides the grounding force George needs to make it to Annie’s big day.

d. Charles Shyer, 103m, DCP

DCP courtesy of Walt Disney Studios.