It's been nine years since we have seen the one and only Julia Roberts teamed up with her old flame Richard Gere, but they are at it again in Runaway Bride.
But the film doesn't quite have the pizzazz of Pretty Woman, which had us all rooting for Julia sticking to her guns in the rich guy /prostitute romance, and which was one of the most commercially successful comedies ever made in America.
Runaway Bride sounds like a fine title for a highly amusing comic romp, but it doesn't quite come off. (Or, perhaps I'm expecting too much thinking of Cary Grant and company.) Which is not to say the movie doesn't have its high moments.
It all starts when a cynical city paper columnist goes to his local watering hole searching for inspiration. He finds it not at the bottom of a bottle, but in a story about a rural woman whose specialty is leaving a string of grooms at the altar. He writes the story without checking his facts and gets fired by his editor, who is also his ex-wife.
Seeking vindication, he travels to the bride's hometown. The bride, Maggie, by this time has become aware of his column and is fighting mad. Because he did Maggie wrong, you may expect the townsfolk to shun him, but they do just the opposite, feeling sorry for the big city guy. He gets an unwanted punk dye job from Maggie's hairdresser and best friend, the always funny Joan Cusak, which makes him more pitiful, and contributes to the ongoing antics, wherein he becomes the town's honorary buddy and really gets Maggie's attention.
The film is directed by Garry Marshall who also directed Pretty Woman.
