Directed by Pavan Moondi
Country: USA
Three years ago, I was impressed with a little indie gem called “Diamond Tongues”, a tragicomedy with sharp observations about the film industry. The film was co-directed by Toronto-born, Los Angeles-based filmmaker Pavan Moondi, who recently released his not-so-appealing third feature, “Sundowners”, starring Phil Hanley and newcomer Luke Lalonde in the main roles. They play Alex Hopper and Justin Brown, respectively, two solitary buddies who, fed up of their common lives and daily financial struggle, see an unexpected opportunity to shoot a wedding in Mexico as their temporary salvation. However, while Alex is a full-time videographer with years of experience, Justin, who was supposed to photograph, doesn’t even know how to change the aperture in a camera.
The assignment came from the agency for which Alex works. His discreditable boss, Tom (Tim Heidecker), also a notorious boaster, is the best the film has to offer, believe it or not. Posing as an asshole yet funny in his lines and posture, this is the typical guy who acts tough in the presence of his employees but cools down his voice when talking to his wife. With all the nerve in the world, he advises Alex not to mix business and pleasure, but plays guitar in his office while bullshitting about the wages he owes him.
While none of the wedding’s tribulations are a novelty, the boys’ strong sense of adventure is uplifted. Still, the situations that swirl around them don’t ring true. As an aggravating factor, we have the pointless dialogues, which roundly fail to engage in all its modesty.
This is a messy attempt to invoke “The Hangover” and fuse it with “Wedding Crashers”. Pavan Moondi already showed he could do much better than what he did in this mind-numbing trifle.
