Warning! Faint of heart? Over developed sense of morals? Embarrassed by references to bodily functions? "Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates" is a dangerous, sharp, funny, often riotous push of the taste envelope! If you are evangelical or prudential, attitudinal or puritanical, you may wish to attend your preferred religious services instead.
But if you want fast paced, well written, tongue in any cheek, size matters, full frontal, little is sacred laughs, follow brothers Mike (Adam DeVine) and Dave (Zac Efron) Stangle in their quest for two "nice" girls to take to the wedding of their beloved sister Jeanie (Sugar Lyn Beard). The brothers are no match for best friends Alice (Anna Kendrick) and Tatiana (Aubrey Plaza) who barely pose as hedge fund manager and teacher to win their trip to the Hawaiian wedding. Rounding out the immediate family are deft veteran character actors Stephen Root and Stephanie Faracy as heads of the Stangle clan and long suffering fiancé and straight man Sam Richardson.
Mike and Dave follow the tradition of such amiable cinematic wedding humor as " The Wedding Crashers", "Four Weddings and a Funeral", "Runaway Bride", "American Wedding" and "While You Were Sleeping". But they up the ante, among other avenues they up, exploring newer cinematic channels and aspects of wedding farce.
Before setting out to this wedding, one should know that Mike and Dave have a history of screwing up family events. Neither exercises much self control. Neither is exceptionally bright. The only kind of rocket scientist they could claim is that of pyrotechnic practitioners. Both are obsessed with partying, sex and drinking. A hilarious, ribald triptych of failed family flings sets their character.
But of course, this time will be different. Accompanied by their wholesome, smart, accomplished dates, they will elevate their sister's ceremony. Unfortunately, they could have made better date selections from Hooters' Hostesses or the Russian Brides Catalogue. The guileless Kendrick and the hard edged Plaza complement each other much as do the manic Devine and the sensitive Efron. These pairings are where the actual wedding of characters occurs.
Director Jake Szymanski brings this mix to a boil, only occasionally sacrificing control for pacing. The script by Andrew J. Cohen and Brendan O'Brien lets the action flesh out the characters, mixing some stunning images and memorable set pieces. With all of its energy and ribald creativeness, Mike and Dave provides an entertaining alternative to the rheumatoid sequels holding too many multiplexes captive this summer.