Comic Chaos: Weird, The Menu, The People We Hate at the Wedding

Do you need some laughs over Thanksgiving? Well here are some reviews of three very different comedies - whether you're into music, murder, or mayhem, I've got you covered.

Weird: The Al Yankovic Story: I'm not an Al Yankovic fan - I know he exists, I've heard some of his song parodies, but he's not someone whose career I have been following closely over the decades. However, that really didn't matter when watching this movie, because it is a ridiculous and witty satire of the musical biopic genre that led to my then having to Google questions like "did Weird Al really date Madonna?" (No, he did not.) The genius of this film is that while it purports to be a biopic, it is just a tissue of lies with random truths scattered throughout. But with Daniel Radcliffe playing the adult Al Yankovic, you're in for a damn good time.

Directed by Eric Appel, who co-wrote the screenplay with Weird Al himself, this is an over-the-top movie that feels like an SNL sketch but has the legs to keep the joke going for 100 minutes. The cast is marvelous, with all manner of great comedians and actors popping in for cameos, and once I got used to the idea that I wasn't supposed to take any of this seriously, I could sit back and enjoy the show. You won't leave this movie having learned much about Weird Al at all, but you will get to hear a lot of his music and have a newfound respect for his satirical talents. After all, he is "the best, OK not best, but arguably most famous accordion player in a very specific genre of music."

The Menu: Directed by Mark Mylod (known for his work on Succession - an "eat the rich" show that is certainly relevant to this movie), from a screenplay by Seth Reiss and Will Tracy, be prepared for a movie that is thrilling and funny, but will also leave you feeling deeply hungry by the end. This is the story of an acclaimed chef (played by the always menacing Ralph Fiennes) who runs an exclusive restaurant called Hawthorne on a private island. Guests have to be shipped in to enjoy his dramatic and meticulously crafted tasting menu, and this movie gives us the story of what happens when the chef has decided he has had enough of catering to his wealthy, privileged, and rude clientele. 

Anya Taylor-Joy also stars as Margot, a woman who has been dragged on this excursion by her boyfriend, Tyler (Nicholas Hoult), a pretentious dolt who is obsessed with food and likes to condescend to her about her palate. The other guests include actors like Judith Light, John Leguizamo, and Janet McTeer, who are all playing different types of rich asshole who are about to get a comeuppance. I won't give anything further away, but suffice to say, once this meal gets underway, it becomes increasingly clear that maybe everyone shouldn't stick around for dessert. The movie is beautifully plotted with an eerie and elegant production design capturing the absolute desolation of this remote restaurant that's going to quickly become the scene of much horror. The guests are terrible people, but so is the chef who has given up his life to satisfy these people and turned into a monster himself who treats his staff contemptibly. It's a delicious (pun intended), funny, and thoroughly entertaining movie that you can't tear your eyes away from. And once you finish, you're really gonna need a cheeseburger.

The People We Hate the Wedding: Based on the 2016 novel by Grant Ginder (that I absolutely loved and highly recommend), this is a light and fun adaptation by the Molyneux sisters, directed by Claire Scanlon. I'll be honest, I read the book five years ago and only remember that I loved reading it, but cannot tell you if this film is true to the novel. Instead, I had to judge the movie on its own merits, and I found it to be a frothy bit of fun, one of those 90-minute crowd pleasers that are perfect for a Sunday afternoon. 

This is a story of a complicated and dysfunctional family that have to gather in England for a daughters' wedding. Naturally, chaos ensues, all set to a soundtrack of banging pop music hits. You've got Allison Janney playing the matriarch, with Kristen Bell and Ben Platt playing her American children from her second marriage, who are jealous and judgy of her more rich and privileged English daughter from her first marriage, played by Cynthia Addai-Robinson. People like Karan Soni, Jorma Taccone, Dustin Milligan, and Lizzy Caplan also pop in and out of the supporting cast, keeping things fresh and interesting. The challenge of condensing this book down into a movie is that we have a lot of complications without much depth or background about the various resentments and insecurities festering in this family; I would have happily watched this as a six-episode miniseries instead. But as long as you don't get too hung up on the details, you can enjoy a classic comic tale of families that harbor secrets, bicker, and then have to learn to forgive and move on.