JULIANNE FELL IN LOVE WITH HER BEST FRIEND THE DAY HE DECIDED TO MARRY SOMEONE ELSE.

When Julianne Potter (Julia Roberts) finds out that her best friend, Michael O’Neil (Dermot Mulroney), is getting married, she realizes that she actually loves him and does everything to stop the wedding.

A bright romantic comedy that’s not unlike 1930s screwball films; Roberts’s party-pooper would have made a perfect part for Katharine Hepburn. Not that Roberts isn’t up to the task; she finds the perfect balance between her character’s selfish and charming sides. Rupert Everett is even better as her relaxed, witty gay pal.

The Muriel’s Wedding director and his team follow a safe formula, but now and then the story takes a few delightful twists and turns.

1997-U.S. 105 min. Color. Widescreen. Produced by Jerry Zucker, Ronald Bass. Directed by P.J. Hogan. Screenplay: Ronald Bass. Music: James Newton Howard. Cast: Julia Roberts (Julianne Potter), Dermot Mulroney (Michael O’Neil), Cameron Diaz (Kimmy Wallace), Rupert Everett, Philip Bosco, M. Emmet Walsh, Rachel Griffiths… Harry Shearer, Paul Giamatti. 

Trivia: Later a stage musical. Remade in China in 2016, Mexico in 2019 and India in 2002.

Last word: “Julia wanted to make a Julia Roberts movie starring herself, but of course I wanted to make a P.J. Hogan movie, because I wasn’t actually a big fan of Julia Roberts movies as such. So I really wanted to make a movie that I could look back on and say: yes, that was mine. Therefore we did battle about the tone of the film, but I always left the interpretation of her character to her. I had my own ideas about the character, so what I did was push her to be truthful. I would always say to her: you know this character better than I do; you told me yourself how close you are to her, so I don’t want any bullshit from you.” (Hogan, Urban Cinefile)