27 Dresses

From age eight, Jane Nichols felt destined to help weddings run smoothly. Shortly after her mother's passing, she helps a bride with a crisis before her wedding ceremony and is hooked. Jane loves weddings, and especially looks forward to her own.

Two decades later, Jane has been a bridesmaid at 27 weddings, putting other’s needs ahead of her own. One evening she crosses the city continuously to attend two weddings simultaneously. Jane ends up meeting Kevin Doyle, and shares her cab. He is a cynical writer who disdains the romantic ideals she embraces. She accidentally leaves her day planner behind, which Kevin uses to research her.

Writing under the pseudonym "Malcolm," Kevin sees Jane as a potential subject for a story. He pitches it as a cover story to his editor, for the Commitments section. Kevin is promised a promotion to features if the article is worthy for their sections' first page.

At work, Jane's boss George returns from a climbing trip and Jane barely hides her crush. Her friend and coworker Casey slaps her to wipe the goofy look off her face. Jane's unspoken feelings for George are obvious to everyone but him.

Jane's man-crazy younger sister Tess returns from a six-month European tour. They talk about their parents' wedding briefly after Tess sees articles written by Malcolm, whose writing Jane loves. Tess arrives to Jane's workmate's engagement party, before Jane can declare her feelings to George. The younger sister catches his eye and they spend the evening together.

Kevin shows up, revealing the flowers Jane had received were from him. She releases her frustration elsewhere, recomposing herself. Kevin returns her planner, then offers to buy Jane a drink, but she declines. Tess pumps Jane for information about George, who gushes about him with many details. Armed with this, she pretends to share George's interests, such as being a vegetarian, an outdoors person and liking dogs. They spend lots of time together, and quickly become engaged.

Tess and George go to the sisters' father Hal's to give him their news, who happily gives her their mother's wedding dress. Jane, though heartbroken, agrees. Seeking a sympathetic ear, she contacts Kevin, who coaches her on how to say no, as she does not want to plan the wedding. Nonetheless, Jane gets roped into the planning. As Tess is sharing her ideas, model-like bridesmaids, a funny slideshow, she reintroduces her to The Boathouse. Jane is floored, as it is her dream wedding venue, being where their parents' wed.

Right after Jane successfully convinces a busy baker to create a masterpiece cake for the wedding in three-weeks, Malcolm Doyle introduces himself. Shocked, she calls him an asshole. Kevin explains he uses the pseudonym for anonymity. Appalled, Jane asks him which is his true self, the eloquent wedding writer or the cynic, and he asserts it is the latter. Kevin invites himself to Jane's apartment, supposedly for his article on Tess and George's wedding. Upon entering, he sees the closet bursting with bridesmaid dresses. So, Jane does an impromptu fashion show of all 27, which Kevin photographs. She explains the bride's happiness is paramount, so she is always amiable.

Kevin continues researching Jane, while concealing his goal to write about her. During the process, they bond. Though Kevin develops genuine feelings for her, his article is published without her knowledge and before he can warn her. Jane discovers the piece, feels betrayed and ends their relationship.

Meanwhile, Tess's deceptions also begin to unravel. She drastically alters their late mother's wedding dress, prompting a rift with Jane. At Tess's engagement party, Jane retaliates by showing a slide show, exposing Tess's fabrications. When George sees Tess' dishonesty and manipulation, including paying his young mentee to clean, he cancels the wedding.

At work, George compliments Jane for her reliability, echoing Kevin's remark that she never says no. Realizing her motivations have been driven by unrequited love, Jane quits. After kissing George briefly, she acknowledges her feelings for him have faded. She later finds Kevin at another wedding and declares her love.

One year later, Jane and Kevin marry in a beach ceremony. All 27 brides for whom Jane previously stood serve as bridesmaids, each wearing the dress Jane wore at their weddings.

Principal photography for 27 Dresses began on May 10, 2007, with filming taking place primarily in Rhode Island. Notable locations included the Rosecliff and Marble House mansions in Newport, a beach in Charlestown, and sites in East Greenwich and Providence. Additional filming occurred over a two-week period in New York City.^[3]

Costume design was led by Catherine Marie Thomas. Director Anne Fletcher requested that the bridesmaid dresses be "big, ugly, and bright," representing a wide range of color palettes and styles. Thomas designed approximately fifty potential dresses and a few suits, from which she and Fletcher selected twenty-seven to feature in the film.^[4]

The film features an original score composed by Randy Edelman. In addition to the score, 27 Dresses includes numerous contemporary songs by other artists, which are used throughout the film. However, these tracks are not included on the official soundtrack release, which contains only Edelman's original compositions.

27 Dresses was released on DVD and Blu-ray in the United States on April 29, 2008.^[1]