Wedding of a Lifetime (2022 TV Movie) User Reviews

Good script, great acting, leads work very well together!

[mamachikn · 7/10 · 19 September 2022]

I enjoyed this romantic comedy. When I mentioned this new movie I was going to watch, my daughter thought the leads would not be a good fit. They have very different personalities onscreen.

But I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the actors and their interactions together. I have a new respect for Jonathan Bennett as an actor. He is versatile, and this was a good fit. Brooke D'Orsay is always a great watch.

The couple had some serious and poignant moments for the first 20 minutes of the film.

Then the comedic situations arose and the two were excellent physical comedians. There were a few laugh out loud moments.

Towards the end there were some over the top situations which thankfully didn't last, and the final ending was perfect. These two were outstanding, imo.

Confusing and a mockery

[MickyG333 · 5/10 · 11 February 2023]

5.4 stars.

What did I just see? Is there such a craze for reality tv these days that people fall for this kooky stuff? The first hour was ok, mainly a halfhearted attempt to provide a dose of reality. It's about two people who have been engaged for 10 years. First of all, they look to be in their mid 30s, and they never had kids, postponed due to injuries and family issues...I see no reason why they didn't just tie the knot years ago. The premise is too farfetched. Then they end up on a wedding reality show which is surreal and not fascinating. The contests are random and dumb, with no meaning, no point. I was thinking to myself: what is this juvenile garbage? And the acting was off plainly due to the odd dialogue. The actors don't know how to translate it onto the screen, and you can see they are struggling.

"Wedding of a Lifetime" was a wasted 2 hours of my life. So this is a joke, right? I'm waiting for the punchline. They attempted to bring order to the story in the last 15 minutes, but it was already too far gone.

Almost Nailed It!

[athompsonblue · 6/10 · 29 February 2024]

It's a funny premise: A couple that's been engaged for ten years has lost the spark in their relationship, though they still care for each other as best friends. They mutually agree to split up. They go to tell their families, but receive the nationally televised surprise of being entered into a competition for engaged couples, with the prize of an all-expenses paid wedding. The two protagonists decide to go on and compete a few rounds, thereby having some fun while getting some much-needed publicity for their business dreams. You can guess what happens in the process.

Comedy is there, but I wish they had dialed it up to an eleven. Also, the first 13 minutes of the movie are depressing, showing the two unhappy protagonists. It should have been trimmed down to like 5 minutes. Finally, the scene of him yelling at her was base-breaking. An upset character can still use an indoor voice, and make at least some effort to not be a total jerk about it. His lame apology later didn't satisfy me.

The movie started out promising

[CranberriAppl · 31 March 2023]

But then lost the plot. In the beginning, the reveal of the couple not being married and deceiving everyone in their lives was surprisingly well done. I could believe they loved each other as friends, but couldn't quite make the leap to marriage. But once the wedding competition came around, it got super silly.

I also feel like after a decade, something should be said or done. We all know that couple that is comfortably common law married. Their relationship and lives were way too entangled after a decade for a competition like this to show them they loved each other. Romcom or not, they were together too long for this. Is it really so much easier to lie for so long? Did neither of them find themselves attracted to someone other than each other thus questioning the relationship? What about money problems, career problems? Basic and petty "i'm sick of seeing your face everyday" problems? I find it hard to believe that there were no obstacles over that ten years that could have made them fish or cut bait.

Brooke and Jonathan had good chemistry. Jonathan can be very goofy and hammish when he's being comedic, but Brooke balanced him out. They did not have romantic chemistry to me, but to be fair, in Hallmark movies, a lot of the actors have that one or two people that they truly vibe with onscreen (Andrew Walker with Nicki DeLoach, Autumn Reeser and Jesse Metcalfe, Christopher Russell and Cindy Busby as examples). The scene of him running back to the house from the store so that no one would know he didn't live there was the perfect amount of slapstick. That was probably my favorite scene of the whole movie.

The contest scenes were fun and not too cringy, but one of the more sincere couples really deserved to win. For anyone who watched General Hospital in the 90s, there was a storyline where Lucy pretended to love Mac, and Felicia pretended to be with Kevin. The reason why escapes me, but by the end of the storyline, at the "wedding," I remember Felicia and Mac finally expressing their feelings and deciding to marry each other. I was barely a teen at the time, but I remember that story and it was super sweet (I should see if it's on you tube). I kind of hoped this would sort of flow like that. At a certain point, I started like this movie had one too many scenes and I just wanted them to get to a resolution. Also this movie had the typical romcom "misunderstanding," and I was hoping for something a little more creative since these two were already a couple and their relationship should really be beyond that trope.

I've been watching HM movies since the days of like one new movie a month, but the ones I'm enjoying these days are the ones with reconnecting couples because the writers have to attempt to write beyond the tropes. Meet cutes are great, but I like the change up sometimes. And let's be real, a lot of the more veteran HM actors are getting a bit too "mature" for typical meet cures. One of my favorite outside of the norm HM movies is Just The Way You Are.

This one should be right up my alley, but it fell into the typical HM romcom plot points in the third act. Which I don't hate, but wasn't looking for in this movie. Given that they were together for a DECADE, it would have been nice if the movie had avoided that.

Not bad for one watch, but it's not a favorite and as I said it dragged a bit after a while.

Surprising

[Jackbv123 · 7/10 · 5 May 2023]

As to the story not being original, you don't have to look far in Brooke D'Orsay's resume to find another movie with a wedding contest story. The two have some big differences, but both are based on circumstances being out of control for the bride and groom.

I expected that and a story that was out of control as well. This story does push the envelope of silly situations, which are a negative for me, but it manages not to go so far as to lose me altogether. Just when things are going crazy, there are some sweet moments to pull it back.

Given that silliness is frequently intentional, the acting is good. The dialogue is good. I thought there was great chemistry between D'Orsay and Jonathan Bennett. The story follows one of the more obvious paths but then takes a turn that surprised me.

Fallen out of love, yet competing for a dream wedding...some comedy here, but really lacking in the romance.

[cgvsluis · 4/10 · 16 July 2023]

I am kind of annoyed with this Hallmark romantic comedy...you either love someone or you don't. Being with them is not about making your career aspirations come true.

This film starts in a very dark place with a couple making the decision to break up, but before they are able to tell their family they are ambushed with the surprise that they are one of four couple contestants on a popular national morning show to win a "wedding of a lifetime".

Initially their plan becomes have a good time meanwhile intentionally loosing the contest. Right from the beginning they let a competitive couple from Chicago get under their skin...and then it is game on!

Filled with ridiculous tv game show like trivialities...there is more "comedy" than romance in this film.

I will say I was glad they didn't end with them going through with the paid for wedding. The ending in fact was the best and most romantic part of the entire film.

To my romantics...I am sorry to say that I would probably give this movie a miss.

Jonathan Bennett comedic gold!

[jonnocortez · 9/10 · 19 September 2022]

This was a really fun film. Bennett is allowed to show his impressive physical comedic talents with a director who knows how to use it. It was fun to watch his great chemistry with co-star Brooke D'Orsay, who is wonderfully appealing and fun in her performance as well. They have both been allowed to bring comedy to their previous films separately, and are great here. I WISH Hallmark would do more comedic material. They have such a great company of regulars that are capable of it. But very few of their "rom-coms" have much "com" in them. Kudos to the writers as well. "Wedding of a lifetime" had both and I look forward to more from all of them!!

Cringeworthy and juvenile!

[jimbojim-03739 · 3/10 · 18 September 2022]

Okay Hallmark we get it already! This latest abomination from the newly created Hallmark is flat out cringeworthy! Obviously trying to be politically correct, nothing subtle here folks!

The silly, stupid, and juvenile script makes me wonder who is steering the ship at Hallmark!?

The leads have no chemistry whatsoever and the rest of the wasted supporting cast was left with little to do or say. Casting is such a huge part of the success of a film and once again Hallmark misses its target.

From the fake exterior autumn foliage inserted throughout to give that Fall feeling, to the lousy wigs, simply backfired! Add all these elements up and I found myself so distracted that watching and enjoying the movie proved impossible! I miss the good ole days when watching a Hallmark movie consisted of a good story, cast, laugh, and a cry!!

This was really cute

[jenrn-09722 · 9/10 · 19 September 2022]

The two leads had great chemistry. The movie got off to a slow start, but as the competition progressed, it picked up the pace. I liked how this was written, which is the first time in a while. They played off each other well and it was nice to see the chemistry build as the couple got reacquainted.

I do have to complain about the 'almost kisses' - there were 2 of them - and completely unnecessary for a couple who had been together for 15 years. There should have been no anticipation or build up to a kiss.

They'd supposedly been together for a decade and a half, why would anyone anticipation be necessary? And even though they were originally going to break up, where the kisses were written in the script would be natural for any couple. So to have people walk in, a car horn honk at them, shouldn't have phased a long-time couple in the least - that is just a 'Hallmark habit' that needs to be retired. This was a decent script and the actors were great. Seeing Jonathan Bennett in a lead role was refreshing, and long overdue. He's a talented actor and is often under-utilized in best friend and brother roles. Brooke D'Orsay was fantastic as always, and they both made the roles believable. It was a feel-good movie and I would definitely watch it again....

Fast forwarded...... a lot

[linda-plant2 · 2/10 · 6 March 2024]

Oh dear, where to start. Individually both leads are good, but the endless juvenile scenes that were supposed to be funny, were not. Banging incessantly on a front door, a dash through streets in sleepwear, slipping on oranges at the same time, is slapstick not fun ! There is much reporting about actors who are able to play a part or not, well Jonathan Bennett is openly gay, so it was a good stretch of imagination to see him in a heterosexual romantic role, as are a couple of other gay actors in the Hallmark stable. Then there was the usual staple of "interfering family", and add to the mix a maniacally intruding film crew, and I wonder what state of mind the scriptwriters are in when they come up with these story lines ! Glad I recorded it so I could fast forward all the dross.

Fun & light-hearted yet sweet

[catherinewaters-91738 · 9/10 · 19 September 2022]

First, let me qualify: 9/10 on The Scale of Hallmark. Haha! Wedding of a Lifetime has a different & fun premise. It's a refreshing change. It takes place during an intentionally cheesy reality tv show competition where a broken-up couple end up trying to win an all-expense paid wedding. Brook and Jonathan were super cute together-I found their chemistry and acting believable and was pulling for them. The plot and the many other characters of tv production staff, family members and other competitors held together well enough to keep my attention. The ridiculous competitions were kind of funny. And the musical montage of trying on of dresses and tuxes & the tasting cakes, etc was cute. This is a light-hearted movie yet the characters still do some heartfelt self-reflection and figure out what they want. No surprises. A fresh premise with that inevitable and always welcome Hallmark happy ending.

LOVED IT!

[dlmartin-24169 · 9/10 · 18 September 2022]

Jonathan Bennett and Brooke D'Orsay are among the best actors on Hallmark and I loved this story. Both of these 2 actors are great at comedy and either one could have carried this movie. Together they are a treat in the story of a couple who gets carried away on a reality show where the winners get the dream wedding. I loved the fact that they had to be true to themselves in the end and get the wedding they really want. All the supporting cast is great as well. I especially love the grandma, Paula Shaw who is not mentioned on this IMBD. She was on the. Wonderful Mrs. Miracle Christmas last year.

A Breath of Fresh Air

[rebekahrox · 9/10 · 21 September 2022]

I won't regurgitate the plot, but this one really shines on several fronts. First it was an unusual plot for Hallmark. Not pulled out of the usual grab-bag of tricks. The acting was top notch from the leads. Brooke D'Orsay always adds a certain sweetness and authenticity to her roles, but this one gave her more comedy and drama to work with. Her heartbreak at the beginning of the film was very touching. I loved that they acted like mature adults despite some tense situations. Even when they had an argument, they were were still supportive of each other. The next day after the blow-up, they even apologized to each other.

Last but not least, instead of the "Big Misunderstanding" with 15-20 minutes to go, darned if they didn't have the exact opposite. The crisis actually brought them together even closer.

To add to the positives, the secondary cast was great, and didn't have the usual predictable reactions. The bickering host couple was very funny, and I loved that the publicity from the show saved their businesses.

One of the best Hallmark movies

[mchthom · 10/10 · 2 September 2023]

I think that this is one of the best Hallmark movies I've seen in a long time. The two lead actors were perfectly cast they had such chemistry. The entire cast was wonderful. Hallmark must have hired new writers because it seems like they did not follow the standard formula with this movie. Brooke was wonderful as always. She is such a beautiful actress. The scenery was also beautiful. I hope that the writers and directors at Hallmark continue to think outside the box and produce more movies like this one. That is all I have to say about this movie and the actors and actresses in the movie....

nice

[Kirpianuscus · 18 September 2023]

A pretty film for the fair image of contest atmosphere, purpoises , for Jonathan Bennett and Paula Shaw , for crumbs of realism and for the family spirit, inspired reflected.

Jonathan Bennett inspires a special form of freshness to his roles, this case not being and exception and this is one of beautiful virtues of film. Some humor, some pies , some dreams and a drop of fight are smart used for something to be little more than to o familiar Hallmark recipe.

The end - embroidery of cliches, off course but the location, the clouds and the gifts one to other are not so bad.

In short, nice and little more.

Wedding Of A Lifetime

[aab874 · 10/10 · 18 October 2022]

Favorite scene with

Darby Sinclaire (Brooke D'Orsay) - She and Jake Hilariously Sneaking Out of the Hotel to have some Private Time Together. BTW #1, Brooke D'Orsay (Darby) is So Dang Adorable and Jonathan Bennett (Jake) is So Dang Hilarious!!! I Love his Facial Expressions! And I Love that he can be Hilarious one minute and Serious the next! Brooke is one of my Favorite Hallmark Channel Heroines and Jonathan is now one of my Favorite Hallmark Channel Heroes! Please Pair these two up again in a New Hallmark Channel Movie! BTW #2, I Loved this movie! BTW #3, Brooke is my Mom's name.

Set in North Carolina and Illinois.