The Matchmaker (Film Review)

1997 Gramercy Pictures
Directed by: Mark Joffe; Written by: Karen Janszen, Louis Nowra, and Graham Linehan
Starring: Janeane Garofalo, David O'Hara, Milo O'Shea, and Denis Leary
MPAA Rating: R; Running Time: 97 Minutes
The Nicsperiment Score: 7/10

Marcy Tizard is an idealistic political assistant to an Incumbent Boston Senator who is clearly nothing more than an opportunist. With the Senator's polling numbers tanking, and an election pending, Marcy is shipped off to a small Irish village to find evidence of the Senator's supposed Irish roots, to hopefully bolster his campaign and get him re-elected. Was that too many prepositions? That felt like too many prepositions. Anyway, Marcy, a complete non-romantic, just so happens to arrive in the Irish village during its matchmaking festival. As Marcy's progress proceeds at a slug's pace, Dermot, the lead matchmaker, decides that Marcy would be the perfect complement to the local pub's barman, Sean. Sean is a wild and goofy barrel of fun, and Marcy is an emotional black hole from which no joy can escape. Will this be a match made in heaven? Will Marcy succeed in her wheel-spinning political mission? What kind of last name is Tizard?
1997's The Matchmaker is the kind of low-stakes, lovely, yet formulaic romantic comedy the 90's is famous for. The fictional setting of the Irish village of Ballinagra is not only a character unto itself, but the film's best character. Ballinagra's citizens are all charmingly rendered wacky folks, interacting in front of its beautiful landscapes and quaint architecture, with great Irish music often soundtracking. Meanwhile, as Marcy, Janeane Garofalo does her cynical, sarcastic, yet loveable thing, indeed a great foil for David O'Hara's quite silly Sean. It makes little sense that these two would ever come together as a couple, let alone come together as a couple within a couple of days, but at least this duo are fun to watch. If anything, that statement is emblematic of this entire film. Little makes great sense, yet The Matchmaker is so harmless, enjoyable, and in small moments, clever, this nonsensicalness matters little. The movie is fun and I'd watch it again.