Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)
86%RT Audience Score: 74%
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 2 Oscars
24 wins & 28 nominations total
While frothy to a fault, Four Weddings and a Funeral features irresistibly breezy humor, and winsome performances from Hugh Grant and Andie MacDowell
Four Weddings and a Funeral is the perfect rom-com for anyone who wants to laugh, cry, and fall in love all at the same time. With a cast of charming characters and witty dialogue, this movie will have you smiling from beginning to end. And let’s not forget that iconic funeral scene, which will have you reaching for the tissues while also feeling strangely uplifted. It’s no wonder this film has become a classic – it’s simply irresistible!
Production Company(ies)
Distributor
MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc., Gramercy Pictures
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
St Clement’s, West Thurrock, Essex, England, UK
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for language, and for some sexuality
Year of Release
1994
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Stereo
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 56m
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Language(s):English, British, Sign, L
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Mar 9, 1994 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 19, 2000
Genre(s)
Comedy/Romance
Keyword(s)
starring Hugh Grant, Andie MacDowell, Kristin Scott Thomas, Simon Callow, Rowan Atkinson, James Fleet, John Hannah, David Bower, Charlotte Coleman, Anna Chancellor, Rupert Vansittart, Sophie Thompson, David Haig, Corin Redgrave, Timothy Walker, Sara Crowe, Ronald Herdman, Elspet Gray, Philip Voss, Michael Mears, directed by Mike Newell, written by Richard Curtis, produced by Duncan Kenworthy, comedy, romance, R rating, box office gross $49.3M, budget, reviewed by Gene Siskel, Kenneth Turan, Steven Rea, Jay Boyar, Michael Sragow, Matt Brunson, Quentin Crisp, Mike Massie, Richard Propes, David Bax, Sheila Johnston, Hugh Grant as Charles, Andie MacDowell as Carrie, Kristin Scott Thomas as Fiona, Simon Callow as Gareth, Rowan Atkinson as Father Gerald, James Fleet as Tom
Worldwide gross: $245,700,832
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $497,083,588
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 291
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 54,207,589
US/Canada gross: $52,700,832
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $106,620,391
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 707
US/Canada opening weekend: $138,486
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $280,175
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,559
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $4,400,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $8,901,752
Production budget ranking: 1,719
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $4,793,593
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $483,388,243
ROI to date (est.): 3,530%
ROI ranking: 28
Andie MacDowell – Carrie (Wedding one)
Kristin Scott Thomas – Fiona (Wedding one)
Simon Callow – Gareth (Wedding one)
Rowan Atkinson – Father Gerald – Wedding Two
James Fleet – Tom (Wedding one)
Director(s)
Mike Newell
Writer(s)
Richard Curtis
Producer(s)
Duncan Kenworthy
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 2 Oscars
24 wins & 28 nominations total
Academy Awards
All Critics (72) | Top Critics (19) | Fresh (69) | Rotten (3)
It’s rare to see in a British film: a dramatic point that doesn’t hinge on dialogue. Four Weddings and a Funeral is a lightweight affair, but this is one of several fine touches that make it, on the whole, a cause for celebration rather than for mourning.
November 14, 2017
Sheila Johnston
Independent (UK)
TOP CRITIC
Although the film is basically a light romantic comedy, it couldn’t be more psychologically astute in its portrait of a man who defines himself by his bachelorhood, which empowers him to get past his fear of commitment.
February 7, 2014 | Rating: 3.5/4
Gene Siskel
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
Deftly written by Richard Curtis and directed by the versatile Mike Newell, Four Weddings is as good as its word, breezily following a small circle of friends through every one of the events the title promises.
February 7, 2014
Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
Four Weddings and a Funeral is one of those rare films that have you smiling from the get-go, and keep you that way — with a few well-earned poignant interludes (including, of all things, a reading of W.H. Auden) — right to the end.
February 7, 2014 | Rating: 3.5/4
Steven Rea
Philadelphia Inquirer
TOP CRITIC
Hugh Grant’s body English captures every nuance of his character’s confusion precisely and hilariously.
February 7, 2014
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
The setup is too arch to support the movie’s detour into poignance, though John Hannah does give a moving reading of W. H. Auden’s “Funeral Blues.”
February 7, 2014
Michael Sragow
New Yorker
TOP CRITIC
It’s that rare romantic comedy that deserved its riches, given its penchant for avoiding brain-dead formula almost every step of the way.
May 16, 2022 | Rating: 3.5/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
All in all, a confused but thoroughly enjoyable film.
April 21, 2022
Quentin Crisp
Christopher Street
A likable, heartwarming bit of entertainment that propelled Grant’s career and proved to be box office gold.
September 13, 2020 | Rating: 7/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
It doesn’t matter how many times you see it, you’re always going to smile.
September 8, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4.0
Richard Propes
TheIndependentCritic.com
In a sense, these young, moneyed, unattached, attractive folks could just as easily exist in the universe of a Whit Stillman film. Yet Curtis and Newell ultimately have hearts too soft to deny them, or us, at least a bit of “true love” sentimentality.
February 27, 2019
David Bax
Battleship Pretension
Richard Curtis’s screenplay is a celebration, and the film’s success is that we end up celebrating with it.
November 30, 2017
Quentin Curtis
Independent on Sunday…
Plot
In Britain, slightly bumbling and always tardy Charles (Hugh Grant) and his closest group of friends seem always to be attending weddings, but are never the bride nor groom, and as such, each, with the exception of gay couple Gareth (Simon Callow) and Matthew (John Hannah), is looking for love. At the wedding of their friends, Angus (Timothy Walker) and Laura (Sara Crowe), where Charles is acting as best man, Charles meets an American woman named Carrie (Andie MacDowell). For him, it’s love at first sight. She too is attracted to him. Although they spend a memorable evening together, that’s all it ends up being. Over three more successive weddings – some of the brides and grooms who are very near and dear to Charles’ heart – and one unfortunate funeral, Charles runs into Carrie, but something always seems to prevent the two of them from getting together. He also runs into a plethora of old girlfriends, one of whom he may believe is really the one he was meant to end up with, especially if Carrie seems to remain unobtainable. Will Charles settle for who in his heart is second best, or will fate finally bring Charles and Carrie together?
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Fresh Kernels mentions Hugh Grant’s “effortlessly charming” performance in Four Weddings and a Funeral.
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