and somewhat intelligent romcon. I don't know why it didn't get any love from critics, especially with the young and veteran talents of Anna Kendrick and Lisa Kudrow . Solid seven. . . .For peeps who want a dramedy as opposed to a laugh riot. "Wedding Crashers," it ain't.

Word of caution: It's a little rocky through the first twenty minutes, but the last three quarters of the film make that set up well worthwhile. Since it's an ensemble piece, there's some scenes well spent sketching all the characters seated in the no-man's land of table 19. But this investment will pay off sweetly in the end.

This movie is what you'd get if you took Robert Altman's A WEDDING, crossed it with a romantic comedy and took the characters from the people at the lowest-ranked table: people who, as Anna Kendrick's character asserts," should have had the sense to 'Decline with Regret' after choosing a gift from the registry." The characters include Miss Kendrick, the ex-maid of honor and ex-girlfriend of the bride's brother/groom's best man; Lisa Kudrow & Craig Robinson, a married couple with a distant business relationship with the bride's father; Tony Revoloro, a teenager who has been invited for no clear reason and shown up on the grounds of plot convenience; June Squibb, the bride's ex-nanny and Oscar nominee; and a storklike Stephen Merchant, who comes from a halfway house of some description. Together, they will reveal their problems, come together, engage in comedy of humiliation.

It's a pleasant, low-key comedy. While no ground-breaker, there are enough funny moments and it avoids the Big Moment which typically ends these moves and cements the romance, causing me to leave the theater remarking "I give them three weeks." Miss Squibb and Mr. Merchant offer the most amusing turns.

It will also probably flop and be forgotten. Miss Kendrick's sequel to 50 SHADES OF GREY opened to bad numbers and is largely gone by now. The appearance of this movie in theaters three weeks later argues they intended to piggyback onto the success they anticipated. Instead, it tanked and this got the called-for wide release, but since the failure was "obviously" Miss Kendrick's fault, there was no major campaign for this movie. This will confirm to the suits that it's all Miss Kendrick's fault. Her career will go into eclipse. I hope to see it emerge from darkness; she is a very engaging actress.