In 1998 many people in their late twenties and thirties experienced a pivotal nostalgic moment when Frank Coraci’s infamous film, “The Wedding Singer” was released theatrically. At that time, it was very rare to see a movie set in the 1980s, the decade prior. In fact, “The Wedding Singer” could even be referred to as a “period piece” since it was set in another day and age. The film is one of the first movies to be set in the 1980s retrospectively, and has a soundtrack that purely reflects the time as well.

The plot of “The Wedding Singer" is fairly simple and enjoyable as far as simple comedies go. The film centers around Robbie Hart, a wistful wedding singer about to be married himself, played wonderfully by Adam Sandler, and Julia Sullivan (and soon-to-be Julia Gulia, which Robbie heckles her for later on in the film), an engaged-to-be-married wedding reception hall waitress, played cutely by Drew Barrymore. The film starts off with Robbie happily anticipating his own nuptials to long-time girlfriend Linda. The movie opens with Robbie singing his last performance right before his own wedding. This is where he sets eyes on Julia. The two meet and the audience immediately knows that there will be sparks.

The plot takes an expected but necessary twist on the day of Robbie and Linda’s wedding. Instead of the bride being jilted by a cold-footed groom, Robbie is left standing at the altar with his hopes and dreams smashed to bits. Linda sends a note to let Robbie know she is not coming after all. Linda was apparently no longer in love with Robbie or his wedding cover band, and wanted only a real rock star.

As the movie progresses, Robbie and Julie become fast friends and he even begins helping her plan her wedding to Glenn Gulia. As they spend more and more time together, Robbie falls in love with Julia, and the audience can see clearly that the feelings are mutual. There are several bumps in the road, including Julia’s upcoming nuptials to Glenn that the two must encounter. However, by the end of the film, Robbie and Julia do end up together, as the audience (and the couple) hope!

The film is a lighthearted comedy with some dark moments, highlighted by Sandler’s comedic style. It is important to note that this was Sandler’s very first romantic comedy and perhaps was the catalyst for other such stronger roles as those in “Punch Drunk Love” and “Spanglish” where his true acting ability and dramatic range is uncovered. Sandler has gone on to re-team with Barrymore in “50 First Dates” several years later.

Although the film did not enjoy major blockbuster success, it was by no means poorly received. It has a strong cult following and in 2000 the readers of the magazine “Total Film” voted “The Wedding Singer” the 43rd best comedy film of all time. The film actually hit number 7 on Bravo’s corresponding countdown. Perhaps another indication that “The Wedding Singer” is an important and great film is that it was adapted into a stage musical for Broadway in 2006. The musical had a run from early 2006 and closed on New Year’s Eve of that same year. The show enjoyed sold out performances and was a strong adaptation of the film.