Canadian Film Festival 2015 : Barn Wedding movie review

What makes a wedding complete? Something old? Something new? Something borrowed or something blue? If you’re taking notes from the film Barn Wedding you should add a group of 30-something-year-old hipsters, binge drinking, and some same-sex sexual tension to your list.

Barn Wedding gives us a look behind the scenes of a lifestyle blogger named Emma (Emily Coutts) during the days leading up to her makeshift, DIY wedding with fiancé, Colin (Brett Donahue). Suspiciously rushing the ceremony, the couple settles on a quaint red barn for their venue. Of course, the wedding is just a backdrop for the relationship unraveling of the guests that arrive early to help pin up lace and arrange barrels of hay.

When the couple reunites with their friend Jessie (Kelly McCormack) and family members you notice the incredible tension between the characters right away. Whether it’s a scowl from the distant and detached brother Luke (Christopher Hayes) or Jessie and Emma’s mysteriously strained friendship – there’s a decent amount of drama to indulge in.

Something I’ve always loved in movies is the larger than life personality of the characters. That being said, I appreciated Barn Wedding’s character portrayals in being practical for what mood the film was trying to achieve. All the characters were quirky with true-to-life flaws without overpowering any scenes with their persona.

There are moments in the film that was very telling of real conflicts that arise when you bring people together… you can’t help but draw up past scenarios from your own life. The film feels familiar but also manages to give an air of mystery.

I was perplexed by the characters actions for the majority of the film. These questions remained unanswered until the last 15 minutes; if you’re anything like me you’ll be shocked and a little confused by the ending. It took me about 45 seconds to piece together scenes I hadn’t put much thought into. If the film was written to keep audiences thinking back (a week later) to the overlooked pieces of the puzzle that is Barn Wedding: mission complete.

Barn Wedding begins with the promise of darling moments that fit well with the scenery… as we go forward into the film the tone becomes a little darker. It embodies the façade that people let go of as they become more comfortable and gives the subtle suggestion that you can never truly know a person. It’s not the message that makes this film, if anything the ending is what makes the film most noteworthy and should be watched if only for that reason.

Barn Wedding will be playing at The Royal Theatre on March 27 at 9:30 p.m. 

Tickets can be purchased here!

Watch the trailer for Barn Wedding below