Review: Messy comedy-drama ‘Another Kind of Wedding’ mixes irritating and charming moments

Take a little “Royal Tenenbaums,” some “Little Miss Sunshine” and a bit of TV’s “Transparent” and that gives some idea of what writer-director Pat Kiely’s aiming for with his domestic dramedy “Another Kind of Wedding.” The outcome’s more sloppy than scintillating, though the movie does show more depth and personality than most indies.

Jessica Paré heads up an accomplished cast as Carrie, the practical daughter of two strong-willed, now-separated mothers (Kathleen Turner and Frances Fisher), and sister to two estranged brothers, Kurt and Matthew (Kevin Zegers and Jacob Tierney). This colorful bohemian family has a habit of picking up fellow travelers, including a randy professor (played by Wallace Shawn) and a pansexual guru (David La Haye).

“Another Kind of Wedding” takes place the weekend of Matthew’s marriage to Kurt’s ex-girlfriend at a luxury Montreal hotel where everybody feels emboldened to revisit old grievances.

Kiely has a good ear for dialogue and a decent sense of humor but undercuts his movie’s premise, which involves characters sniping at each other repeatedly. The film’s tough to watch at times, as these folks edge their way to inevitable moments of public embarrassment.

But while they’re irritating en masse, this crew’s often quite charming when there’s just one or two of them on-screen. At its best, “Another Kind of Wedding” understands how hard it can be for families to look past their own burdensome self-mythology, to see each other again as just people.

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“Another Kind of Wedding”

Not rated

Running time: 1 hour, 26 minutes

Playing: Galaxy Mission Grove, Riverside; also on VOD

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