27 Dresses

Fresh off her blockbuster box-office success as the star of Knocked Up, Katherine Heigl backslides into this pleasant but utterly predictable romantic comedy in which she plays Jane Nichols, a young woman who loves weddings and has been a bridesmaid 27 times, always participating in other people's Kodak moments but making none of her own. Secretly in love with her hunky boss (Edward Burns), whom she's too bashful to approach, Jane suffers the heartbreaking irony of seeing him propose to her irresponsible younger sister (Malin Akerman)—who, of course, wants Jane's help in planning the upcoming wedding. Into this mess strides a cynical journalist (James Marsden), himself a spurned groom and confirmed wedding-hater, who sees Jane as the perfect subject for a story. Filmmaker Anne Fletcher's 27 Dresses is all formula, right down to the inevitable “betrayal” at the end of Act Two and the obligatory, humiliatingly public declaration of love before a crowd of strangers, but Heigl is admittedly adorable as the warm, vulnerable, and selfless sister. A strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD extras include a 15-minute “The Wedding Party” making-of featurette, “You'll Never Wear That Again” costume featurette (7 min.), five minutes of “Jane's World” location segments, “The Running of the Brides” featurette on a real-life one-day dress discount sale (5 min.), three deleted scenes (4 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for an amiable if unexceptional romantic comedy.] (E. Hulse)