--- title: "Father of the Bride" year: 1991 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/father-of-the-bride-1991" fi1m_id: "father-of-the-bride-1991" imdb_id: "tt0101862" tmdb_id: 11846 wikidata_id: "Q2566505" fi1m_score: 65 critics_score: 52 critics_reviews: 5 published: "2026-10-04T21:49:13.196416+00:00" updated: "2026-10-04T21:49:19.763278+00:00" region: "VN" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Father of the Bride (1991) Directed by Charles Shyer · 1h 45m · Comedy, Romance ## Identity Father of the Bride - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/father-of-the-bride-1991 - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** father-of-the-bride-1991 - **IMDb ID:** tt0101862 - **TMDB ID:** 11846 - **Wikidata ID:** Q2566505 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0101862/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/11846, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2566505 **Fi1m score: 65** · Critics 52 (early) from 5 reviews *In a sentence:* Steve Martin worries about the wedding; Martin Short appears to be having a considerably better time > Steve Martin makes paternal panic funny enough to carry a mild wedding comedy, with Martin Short supplying the sharper laughs. The sentiment is more reliable than the satire, and the fuss starts to repeat itself. ## Synopsis George Banks (Steve Martin) faces the wedding of his daughter Annie Banks (Kimberly Williams-Paisley), and struggles to share in the happiness surrounding it. He wants to get through the preparations while coming to terms with her marriage, but his own unease keeps demanding attention. Wedding planner Franck Eggelhoffer (Martin Short) brings a flamboyant presence to proceedings already dominated by George’s nerves. With the wedding approaching, the father has to deal with arrangements for the day and his difficulty accepting what it means for the family. ## Review Charles Shyer’s [*Father of the Bride*](https://film.one/film/father-of-the-bride) is a mildly amusing wedding comedy sustained by Steve Martin’s willingness to look foolish. It understands that a father’s anxiety can be affectionate and tiresome at the same time, although it is too indulgent towards George Banks to make much trouble for him. There is enough here for an undemanding evening, provided Martin’s nervous fussing is the attraction. At 105 minutes, the film gives that fussing more room than it needs. Nancy Meyers and Charles Shyer’s screenplay makes George’s unease the centre of the wedding preparations. That is a useful comic starting point: a celebration can bring out someone’s least generous instincts without making them a monster. The difficulty is how readily the film excuses him, returning to the reassurance that all this anxiety comes from love. We can understand why a father finds change painful without needing his discomfort to set the terms for everyone else’s happiness. Martin supplies the necessary embarrassment. We laughed at the bathroom-cabinet scene; it gives him a welcome opportunity to make George’s nervousness physically ridiculous. He can make fussing funny without asking us to approve of the man doing it, and the film benefits whenever it lets him get on with that. The gentler passages are less satisfying, because the effort to keep George lovable makes the jokes too forgiving. Martin Short supplies the sharper comedy as wedding planner Franck Eggelhoffer. His flamboyance gives Martin someone to react against, and makes George’s anxiety seem funnier simply by refusing to accommodate it. Franck’s confidence is a useful irritant for a man already struggling with the occasion, and Short is prepared to risk being excessive. That excess is welcome in a film otherwise so careful to remain agreeable, though it also makes the surrounding jokes seem tentative. John Lindley’s cinematography favours domestic comfort, and Sandy Veneziano’s production design makes that comfort persuasive. It is pleasant company, though the polish reduces the sense that these wedding preparations could become properly troublesome. We need to believe that George might make life awkward for people other than himself, and the reassuring surroundings do not help. A more unruly wedding comedy would let the embarrassment linger; this one is keen to put everyone at ease. Richard Marks’s editing keeps the comic exchanges clear, but cannot do much about a script that repeatedly returns to the same worry. Once George’s reluctance has been established, we spend too much time being reminded of it. Alan Silvestri’s music supports the softer feelings effectively enough, while adding to the sense that the film is anxious to keep us fond of George. A little less reassurance would have helped. Wedding comedies can make a good deal of the awkwardness of bringing families together. Shyer keeps his attention on the father’s response, which is a reasonable choice but leaves the film with a narrow supply of jokes. That will matter less if Martin’s flustered manner is precisely what brought us here, and more if we are hoping for the wedding itself to come in for much ridicule. Choose it for the performers, and allow for a generous helping of paternal self-pity. *Fi1m score 65, published 4 October 2026.* ## Straight answers **Is Father of the Bride worth watching?** *Father of the Bride* is worth an undemanding evening for admirers of Steve Martin’s flustered comedy, though our score of 65 reflects its limitations. Martin Short supplies the sharper laughs as wedding planner Franck, while the repeated paternal worrying and generous reassurance make this more appealing as gentle entertainment than as sharp wedding satire. **How long is Father of the Bride, and what is it rated?** *Father of the Bride* runs 1h 45m. It is a comedy and romance film. **Where can I watch Father of the Bride in Vietnam?** *Father of the Bride* is not on any streaming or rental service in Vietnam at the moment. It is available in 37 other countries; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily. **How does Father of the Bride compare to Parenthood?** *Father of the Bride* is the gentler, narrower comedy; we recommend [*Parenthood*](https://film.one/film/parenthood) for its broader range of family anxieties and less cushioned treatment of Steve Martin’s worries. Both favour warmth, sometimes too readily, but *Parenthood* gives family affection and irritation more scope, while *Father of the Bride* suits an evening built around Martin’s fussing and Martin Short’s flamboyance. **Is Father of the Bride based on a true story or a book?** *Father of the Bride* is based on a novel by Edward Streeter, rather than presented as a true story. We would approach it as a self-contained wedding comedy: George Banks’s difficulty accepting his daughter’s marriage is clear enough without knowing the book, though we make no judgement about how faithfully the film adapts it. **What should I watch after Father of the Bride?** After *Father of the Bride*, try [*Parenthood*](https://film.one/film/parenthood) (1989, Fi1m 78): Steve Martin faces a broader range of family anxieties, with less cushioning. Then [*Monsoon Wedding*](https://film.one/film/monsoon-wedding) (2001, Fi1m 80): A family wedding allows affection, resentment and practical chaos to share the screen; and [*The Wedding Banquet*](https://film.one/film/the-wedding-banquet) (1993, Fi1m 81): Wedding arrangements grow complicated when parental expectations collide with a carefully maintained deception. ### Reviews we read (5) - **Radio Times**, Alan Jones (4/5): Jones finds the comedy amiable, with Steve Martin shining as an anxious father. He praises Martin’s comic performance and says Martin Short steals the film. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-bvp3xa/father-of-the-bride/) - **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (64/100, inferred): The available page shell does not reveal the critic’s verdict. Its headline indicates the review focuses on the father’s pre-wedding jitters. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/20/movies/review-film-pre-wedding-jitters-mostly-dad-s.html) - **Empire**, Jo Berry (45/100, inferred): Berry finds the film mildly amusing but an inferior imitation of the original. She singles out Martin Short’s flamboyant wedding planner and the bathroom-cabinet scene for laughs. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/father-bride-review/) - **Time Out**, CM (40/100, inferred): The review describes this update as tamer than the original. It singles out the 1990s remake’s milder handling of wedding-day horrors as its shortcoming. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/father-of-the-bride-1) - **Los Angeles Times**, MICHAEL WILMINGTON (30/100, inferred): Wilmington finds the remake smug, hollow, and less funny than the original. He singles out Martin Short’s wedding coordinator for sharply pitched comic brilliance. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-12-20-ca-407-story.html) ## Details - **Director:** Charles Shyer - **Director:** Charles Shyer - **Screenplay:** Nancy Meyers, Charles Shyer - **Novel:** Edward Streeter - **Cinematography:** John Lindley - **Editor:** Richard Marks - **Music:** Alan Silvestri - **Production design:** Sandy Veneziano - **Costume design:** Susan Becker - **Producer:** Carol Baum, Nancy Meyers, Howard Rosenman - **Cast:** Steve Martin as George Banks; Diane Keaton as Nina Banks; Kimberly Williams-Paisley as Annie Banks; Kieran Culkin as Matty Banks; George Newbern as Bryan MacKenzie; Martin Short as Franck Eggelhoffer; BD Wong as Howard Weinstein; Peter Michael Goetz as John MacKenzie - **Runtime:** 1h 45m - **First release (Brazil):** 20 December 1991 - **Genres:** Comedy, Romance - **Budget:** $20 million - **Box office:** $129 million ## Where to watch in Vietnam Not streaming, renting or buying in Vietnam at the last check. Also available in: AT, AU, BE, BG, CA, CH, CZ, DE, DK, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, IE, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, NL, NO, NZ, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, TR, US, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *Parenthood* (1989), Fi1m 78: Steve Martin faces a broader range of family anxieties, with less cushioning. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/parenthood.md) - *Monsoon Wedding* (2001), Fi1m 80: A family wedding allows affection, resentment and practical chaos to share the screen. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/monsoon-wedding.md) - *The Wedding Banquet* (1993), Fi1m 81: Wedding arrangements grow complicated when parental expectations collide with a carefully maintained deception. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-wedding-banquet.md) - *The Family Way* (1966): Newly-wed embarrassment gets a more pointed treatment in cramped family quarters. - *Late Spring* (1949), Fi1m 92: A quieter, more searching account of the hurt behind a daughter’s approaching marriage. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/late-spring.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/father-of-the-bride-1991