27 Dresses (2008)

27 Dresses is the kind of romantic comedy that knows exactly what it is—a bright, buoyant crowd-pleaser—and executes it with enough charm and snap to make the familiar feel freshly delightful. Katherine Heigl gives Jane a likable, lived-in warmth, and the movie finds real comic momentum in the push-pull between her earnest wedding-world optimism and James Marsden’s dry, skeptical wit, a chemistry that keeps the banter humming. Anne Fletcher stages the whole thing with a candy-colored, feel-good vibe that’s easy to sink into, mixing big laughs with a surprisingly tender affection for the people who always show up for everyone else. It is predictable in the way comfort food is predictable, so if you’re allergic to rom-com conventions you’ll see the turns coming—but if you want something cute, funny, and sincerely entertaining, this one earns its happily-ever-after.

27 Dresses is trying to be a warm, wedding-fueled rom-com about a chronic people-pleaser finally choosing herself, and it mostly coasts on that comfort-food premise. The problem is it’s so committed to the genre’s greatest hits—misunderstandings, convenient timing, obvious beats—that you can often predict the next scene before it arrives, which makes the runtime feel longer than it should. If you’re allergic to formula or want sharper comedy and fresher writing, this will likely feel forgettable rather than charming. Still, Katherine Heigl is likable, James Marsden brings easy charisma, and if you just want a breezy, low-stakes romance with a lot of dresses and a tidy emotional payoff, it does the job.