Despite being widely derided, Brooke Shields’ latest film, Mother of the Bride, has become the most-watched movie on Netflix this week, with over 25 million views.
The romantic comedy, also starring Miranda Cosgrove, Chad Michael Murray, and Benjamin Bratt, launched on the streaming site earlier this month and has rushed to the top of the charts.
It follows Brooke as her mother, Lana, who is surprised to find that her daughter Emma has returned from a year in London with the news that she will marry in Thailand in just a few weeks.
However, things take a change when she discovers that her new son-in-law’s father is her ex-boyfriend, who crushed her heart.
Unsurprisingly, this causes some awkward scenes because she is compelled
However, although the movie is being selected by users in their droves, it hasn’t gone down well – with many slating it as ‘awful’.
It currently has a 13% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, with Newsday reviewer Robert Levin stating: ‘It’s an hour-and-a-half that feels like a decade, so you’re left desperately searching for something to end the misery.’
Lindsey Bahr from the Associated Press shared: ‘I won’t go so far as to say that Mother of the Bride feels like an AI creation but it does feel at least a little stitched together from pieces of other romantic comedies of varying quality.’
The audience score was only marginally better, with fans giving it a low 15% – Rotten Tomatoes user Ryan E fumed: ‘Absolutely awful. The acting is so bad it’s laughable. Completely mindless and lacking a plot.’
Offering half a star, Adam R slammed: ‘If I could give this a zero I would. Absolutely horrible!’
‘Probably the worst movie I have ever watched,’ Brianne M agreed. ‘I love romcoms but I almost couldn’t make it thought the whole movie because it was so cringe. I only had 3 braincells left and now I only have 1.’
Bill B urged: ‘In the name of our Lord and Savior, please don’t watch this movie. I’m dumber after watching it.’
The official synopsis reads; ‘Lana’s daughter Emma returns from abroad and drops a bombshell: she’s getting married. In Thailand. In a month!
‘Things only get worse when Lana learns that the man who captured Emma’s heart is the son of the man who broke hers years ago.’
Brooke, who also served as an executive producer on Mother of the Bride, emphasised the importance of highlighting Lana and Emma’s mother-daughter bond.
Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter, she explained: ‘As they’re starting to begin their own lives, what role do you play? If I’m not just mom 24/7 then, who am I? And, where do I fit in?
‘And it’s that type of really letting go and not making your daughter’s wedding about you — that happens with mothers, and it’s hard not to. You dream about that day. You take your daughter shopping for her wedding dress, and you pick out colors and all that stuff, which is just a rite of passage.
‘To be put in a situation like Lana was in, where she was basically excluded from all of those decisions – she didn’t want to be separate [from the wedding planning], but she knew she wanted her daughter to be happy, and that took precedence over her comfort.’
Mother of the Bride is available to stream on Netflix now.
