The Stream: The premise is ridiculous, and the comedy is just okay.

The Big Screen: Jennifer Coolidge is a scene-stealer.

The Final Bill: An inoffensive, fairly pleasant romantic action comedy keeps you engaged for 95 minutes.

– Trip Fontaine
Director: Jason Moore
Writers: Mark Hammer
Stars: Jennifer Lopez, Josh Duhamel, Jennifer Coolidge, Lenny Kravitz, Sonia Braga, Cheech Marin
Genre: Action, Comedy, Romance
Rating: R for language and some violence/bloody images.
Runtime: 1 hour 35 minutes
Production Companies: Mandeville Films, Maximum Effort, Nuyorican Productions
Platform: Prime Videon on January 27, 2023

It’s the season for love, Streamers! There are romantic comedies galore – on the streaming sites, at least; and, the theaters are pretty barren. If you are looking for something love-related to watch from home, Jennifer Lopez has a new film on Prime Video called Shotgun Wedding, which premiered two weeks ago. It seems the time would be right for romance, action and pirates. Anyway, here comes the bride and the movie she rode in on.

Shotgun Wedding takes place during the destination wedding of Darcy (Lopez) and Tom (Josh Duhamel). They are a long-time couple who are finally getting married in the Philippines. There is some tension on the night before the wedding for a myriad of reasons: Tom is a “groomzilla”; Darcy’s parents (Sonia Braga and Cheech Marin) hate each other; Tom’s mother (Jennifer Coolidge) is annoying Darcy; and Darcy’s father has invited her ex (Lenny Kravitz). All of these things come to a head when the wedding guests are taken hostage by pirates, and the bride and groom have to band together to rescue their family and friends. High-octane nuptial hijinks ensue.

You know how Jennifer Lopez seems to keep making the same movie over and over again. Well, here we are. That doesn’t mean Shotgun Wedding isn’t enjoyable. It’s just not particularly creative. It’s funny enough. Lopez and Duhamel have good chemistry and they are able to lean into the silliness of this premise. Lopez looks great at every turn. Even though she is trekking through the jungle, her hair, makeup and wardrobe only slightly suggest that there’s any effort to outrunning pirates in the Philippines. Of course, it’s unrealistic, but did you really come here for realism? Additionally, Jennifer Coolidge is a reliable comedy weirdo. She does just what you hope she will do here. She’s a scene-stealer and the scenes get stolen. The rest of the cast is fine, but Coolidge outshines everyone.

The action is decent. There are explosions and at least one oddly gruesome death for a movie like this. The tension keeps you engaged for the entire film. I wouldn’t call this movie relentless, but it fills the roughly 90-minute runtime sufficiently. It moves at a quick pace from sequence to sequence, and even though you know where this movie is going, it still remains entertaining.

Overall, Shotgun Wedding is a nice film to watch on a date night in. It is funny enough, has decent action, and has a quick pace. Jennifer Lopez and Josh Duhamel are an appealing couple while Jennifer Coolidge adds spice to every scene, she’s in. Grab a bowl of popcorn and curl up with your honey this weekend.