Directed by Mike Newell, Four Weddings and a Funeral is a 1994 British romantic comedy which went on to garner unprecedented success. It was the first major feature film penned by Richard Curtis and served as the beginning of a long and fruitful collaboration between Curtis and the movie’s lead actor, Hugh Grant.
Filmed in just 36 days, Four Weddings and a Funeral was made on a production budget of approximately £3million and funding was considerably tight for the scale at which the rom-com needed to be shot, as per the cast and crew.
Andie MacDowell, the film’s female lead, told the Guardian in a 2019 interview: “We had a small budget but it didn’t look cheap. Things actually felt luxurious and the locations were beautiful. We didn’t do a lot of takes because we didn’t have much time: the entire film was shot in just 36 days.”
Speaking to Deadline about the inspiration behind the film, writer Richard Curtis shared: “I didn’t think of Four Weddings as a romantic comedy at the time. It was inspired by a real incident when I met a very attractive girl at a wedding and failed to follow up on it, and also by the fact I had been to about 72 friends’ weddings in recent years.”
The film centres around Charles (Grant) and his group of friends (John Hannah, Simon Callow, Kristin Scott Thomas, Charlotte Coleman, and David Bower) as they attend a number of social events — four weddings and one funeral to be exact — and encounter love in all its shades.
The rom-com was also awarded BAFTAs for Best Film, Best Direction, and Best Actress in a Supporting Role (for Kristin Scott Thomas). Many consider it to be the film which shot Grant to international fame and stardom, especially in the US.
In 2019, the cast reunited on Red Nose Day for a mini sequel titled One Red Nose Day and a Wedding. Currently streaming for free on BBC iPlayer, the film is only available to watch on the streaming service until July 8.
With a smashing 92 per cent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the film received glowing reviews, with one critic writing: “This is a glorious, entertaining, fast-moving, hilarious comedy, packed with great jokes, scattered like confetti and delivered by a cast who act their socks off.”
A second reviewer said: “It is smart and ironic, perceptive and observant, witty and poignant, moving and sad, all at the same time. This is more than an accomplishment for a romantic comedy. This is a small miracle.”
While a third critic commented: “This gem generates the kind of afterglow which puts you in a good mood just thinking about it (or writing about it).”
Audience reviews for the film follow in a similar vein, with one viewer writing: “I loved this movie! It made me laugh so much, and even cry!”
While another simply commented: “Few movies are as charming as this one. An all time classic.”
Four Weddings and a Funeral is available to stream for free on BBC iPlayer till July 8.
