There is a recurring scene in "A Wedding to Die For" (a.k.a., "Deadly Vows") where Helena Packard is talking to herself in a mirror where her Döppelganger eggs her on to murder her enemies. That stock device is one of the numerous clichés in this by-the-numbers thriller.
The film opens with Helena's second husband dropping dead at the altar after he ate a poisoned cupcake prepared served in a jealous stupor by his bride-to-be. Helena then changes her name and moves to a new town where she opens a bakery. She is about to marry a young hardware store employee named Charlie Dillon, when Charlie's sister Becca arrives in town for the wedding. The connection of Helena and Becca will be the most intriguing relationship developed in the film.
Early on, it should be clear to everyone that Helena is deranged. The sluggish responses of Charlie's doting parents, Nancy and Stuart, and, above all, Charlie himself make the film difficult to believe. It was also unpleasant that the film's two most likeable characters, Mrs. Mazurek, a rival baker in town, and the kind florist, Monica, who had previously dated Charlie, were murdered. It was clear as soon as they appeared on camera that Mrs. Mazurek and Monica would not last for long in the script.
While the actors worked hard to make their characters engaging, they were nonetheless swimming upstream in a sea of clichés. The only bright spot was the creative idea for the relationship of Helena and Becca. Helena seems fixated on the idea of having a sister. Both she and Becca were adopted. But they both charted very different paths for themselves in life, one a skilled baker with a virtually untreatable pathology, the other a computer expert who was stable and confident. How life spins its intricate and unpredictable web is fascinating to behold.
The film opens with Helena's second husband dropping dead at the altar after he ate a poisoned cupcake prepared served in a jealous stupor by his bride-to-be. Helena then changes her name and moves to a new town where she opens a bakery. She is about to marry a young hardware store employee named Charlie Dillon, when Charlie's sister Becca arrives in town for the wedding. The connection of Helena and Becca will be the most intriguing relationship developed in the film.
Early on, it should be clear to everyone that Helena is deranged. The sluggish responses of Charlie's doting parents, Nancy and Stuart, and, above all, Charlie himself make the film difficult to believe. It was also unpleasant that the film's two most likeable characters, Mrs. Mazurek, a rival baker in town, and the kind florist, Monica, who had previously dated Charlie, were murdered. It was clear as soon as they appeared on camera that Mrs. Mazurek and Monica would not last for long in the script.
While the actors worked hard to make their characters engaging, they were nonetheless swimming upstream in a sea of clichés. The only bright spot was the creative idea for the relationship of Helena and Becca. Helena seems fixated on the idea of having a sister. Both she and Becca were adopted. But they both charted very different paths for themselves in life, one a skilled baker with a virtually untreatable pathology, the other a computer expert who was stable and confident. How life spins its intricate and unpredictable web is fascinating to behold.
