Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates

            When it comes to Disney Channel stars of the previous decade, Zac Efron has been one that has made the right career move. After gaining a pretty lackluster reputation with “High School Musical,” he’s been able to turn himself around with better projects, particularly in comedy. Earlier this year, he’s had two films released, “Dirty Grandpa” and “Neighbors 2,” both of which were raunchy and stupid, but they were just so enjoyable. Whatever Efron’s character was, whether it was an uptight guy getting married, or a former frat boy transitioning into reality, he’s able to take them and have them be so much fun to watch. It shows that he’s found his forefront, and that point is made further, with “Mike & Dave Need Wedding Dates.”

            In this film, Adam Devine and Zac Efron play Mike and Dave Stangle, two brothers who are in the liquor selling business, and are notorious for ruining family gatherings. When the time comes for their little sister, Jeanie’s wedding in Hawaii, they’re told to bring dates to the occasion, and so they go public with it. This results in them bringing two misfit girls: Tatiana and Alice. And from there on out, it becomes chaos.

Much like with “Dirty Grandpa” and the “Neighbors” movies, I had such a good time at “Mike & Dave Need Wedding Dates.” I’ve seen the film twice now, and both times I was laughing my ass off at what was happening on screen. Coincidentally, the script for this film was written by two of the writers of “Neighbors,” Andrew J. Cohen and Brendan O’Brien, so that might explain why both those films and this one have such similar tones. Honestly, I’d say this was funnier to sit through.

Adam DeVine and Zac Efron really sell it as the titular characters. Their constant energy and dialogue at almost every point of the film had me laughing, especially when the two are onscreen together. You really buy the two as brothers, especially when they work hard for the happiness of their little sister, yet are still very cocky doing it. They’re bad for each other, but they need each other. Aubrey Plaza and Anna Kendrick as Tatiana and Alice were also hilarious in their performances, playing a duo of girls that value their friendship over anything else that happens in their lives. They also serve as somewhat parallels to Mike and Dave. Two really good buddies, one having deeper meaning and the other trying to lead the other for the duo's sake, that usually screw things up together, but the bond they have with each other is too strong to break. It may sound repetitive, but how it’s executed manages to flow nicely.

Not only that, but the supporting cast manages to work in some big laughs too. There’s a subplot involving Mike’s rival and cousin, played by Alice Wetterlund, where they try to one up each other at the wedding, to prove who has the more successful run. Basically it’s a “my dick’s bigger” kind of rivalry. Hell, even the bride and groom, Jeanie and Eric, manage to give out some really funny moments. With the kind of shit that they go through and how they work around it, from dealing with assumed affairs to getting smacked in the face at 80mph, it makes it all worth it when each of them has their meltdown. Also, if any of you thought Jeanie’s voice sounded familiar, it’s because she’s Stephanie “Sugar Lyn” Beard, the actress who played Mini Moon in the Dic Dub of “Sailor Moon”…that, and the baby carrots in “Sausage Party.” Other cast members like Stephen Root and Stephanie Faracy as the parents, Mary Holland as the overworked and unreliable Maid of Honor, and a cameo by Jake Johnson as Tatiana and Alice’s boss, were all really enjoyable.

            I have to admit, the times where the film tries to be dramatic, but also work in humor at the same time, tend to fall a little bit flat. The scenes in particular are when you think everything’s not going to happen, but then everyone has a realization that they screwed up, so they try to get everything back on track last minute. They weren’t bad, but they do tend to make the film slow down a little bit. Luckily, the film’s only an hour and a half long, so it’s not unbearable to sit through, but you get my point.

            Overall, is “Mike & Dave Need Wedding Dates” worth recommending? You’re damn right it is. Yes, it’s stupid, but it’s a fun kind of stupid. I had fun watching it twice now, and I’m looking forward to watching a third time when it comes out this weekend.

Rating: 9/10