Summary

• Weddings in movies can be the catalyst for shocking events that change the characters' lives, whether it's through competition, conflict, or even violence.
• A ruined wedding can motivate the actions of the character whose wedding falls victim, inspiring both good and bad decisions.
• The depiction of disastrous weddings in movies keeps audiences on the edge of their seats, showcasing the potential for devastation and conflict within what should be a joyous occasion.

Movie weddings are notoriously dramatic and confrontational within the cinematic world, but some weddings take this conflict to the next level and bring devastation. There are plenty of ways to destroy the blissful happiness of a wedding day, from fierce competition, family in-fighting, and even violence. It's not necessary that a wedding is disastrous for it to be exciting, but it certainly keeps the audience on the edge of their seats.

Weddings are often tied to romantic comedies, but many other genres include weddings and use them as plot devices for shocking events that change the characters' lives. As a gathering where so many people are present, and such a life-changing decision is being made, it makes sense that a film would utilize this opportunity to progress the story. Having a wedding destroyed is a primary motivator for the actions of the character whose wedding falls victim, whether those actions are good or bad.

10 Live And Let Die (1973)

Directed by Guy Hamilton

Live and Let Die is part of the Bond franchise, and though Bond (Roger Moore) is not the one getting married, his actions do wreak plenty of havoc. In one of the most action-packed sequences of the film Bond is embroiled in a high-speed chase via boat, and accidentally drives straight through a happy couple's nuptials. While the film doesn't deal directly with the fate of the couple, and their ruined wedding is more of a gag than a plot point, it still appears like a brutal interruption to a peaceful day. Few would be thrilled to have their party run over by a boat.

9 Bride Wars (2009)

Directed by Gary Winick

The plot of Bride Wars commits to the myth of "bridezilla", and features an unfortunate end to the wedding of one of the best friends turned competitors. In the film, Emma (Anne Hathaway) and Liv (Kate Hudson) always dreamed of their weddings, but when they book their special day at the same place and time, it becomes a challenge of who can ruin the others' day. All ends well for Liv, but Emma loses her fiancé, her wedding, and nearly her best friend in her attempt to make it down the aisle. In a humiliating moment, a video of Emma drunk and embarrassing herself plays as her wedding begins.

8 Runaway Bride (1999)

Directed by Garry Marshall

Each daring escape from a wedding is more outlandish than the last, but her final attempt is the saddest.

Julia Roberts and Richard Gere play the couple in Runaway Bride, but getting Roberts' Maggie down the aisle is a tricky business. It's not one, but five weddings that she runs from, leaving a trail of heartbroken men in her wake left waiting at the altar. Being left at the altar is one of the worst things that can happen to a person on their wedding day, but Maggie can't go through with something she's not ready for. Each daring escape from a wedding is more outlandish than the last, but her final attempt is the saddest, as she loves Ike (Gere), but runs away all the same.

7 Made Of Honor (2008)

Directed by Paul Weiland

In Made of Honor, a pair of best friends deny their true feelings for each other until the last, and worst, possible moment. Tom (Patrick Dempsey) is in love with Hannah (Michelle Monaghan), but she gets engaged to someone else, asking him to be her maid of honor. In his role, he tries to get closer to Hannah to make her fall in love with him, and it works. Only, they decide to declare their love in the middle of Hannah's wedding to someone else. Though Tom and Hannah end up together, it's a brutal blow for the groom, who punches Tom, adding violence to the dramatic moment.

6 28 Days (2000)

Directed by Betty Thomas

Sandra Bullock stars as Gwen, an alcoholic, in 28 Days, and ruins her sister's wedding in the first sequence of the film. Though Gwen goes on to attend rehab and commit to her sobriety, it's not before arriving late and drunk at the wedding, knocking over the cake, and crashing a stolen limo into the side of a house. All of this adds up to a thoroughly ruined wedding and a good reason for her family to be angry with her. Not only are her actions terrible, but they're also illegal, and it's for this reason that she ends up in rehab, which turns out to be for the best.

5 The Graduate (1967)

Directed by Mike Nichols

Though the ending of The Graduate still leaves room for explanation, it follows one of the most depressing weddings ever put onscreen. Benjamin (Dustin Hoffman) arrives at Elaine's (Katharine Ross) wedding to object and get her to run away with him. This is after she discovers that he has been having an affair with her mother, Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft).

Elaine is not interested in marrying Carl (Brain Avery), but her parents are pressuring her due to their dislike of Benjamin. When he appears at the wedding, Elaine is thrilled and flees with him, leaving everyone she knows behind. After the excitement, all that's left is Ben and Elaine alone on a bus together, with no idea what to do next.

4 Rachel Getting Married (2008)

Directed by Jonathan Demme

Rachel (Rosemarie DeWitt) may be the one getting married, but Kym (Anne Hathaway) is the one who makes the wedding difficult. Kym has struggled with addiction her whole life and this, coupled with the fact that she was responsible for the death of her brother as a teenager, makes it hard for the family to welcome her. Though not at the wedding itself, Kym injures herself in what may have been an attempt at self-harm, causing a reconciliation between her and her sister. Although there was lots of unpleasantness at the prior wedding events, it's the trauma that Kym suffers that brings her and Rachel closer once more.

3 Melancholia (2011)

Directed by Lars von Trier

As the world ends in the second half of the film, it's not the worst thing that happens in the film.

It's safe to say that nothing goes right in Melancholia, least of all the wedding. When Justine (Kirsten Dunst) marries Michael (Alexander Skarsgård), the series of events that unfold quickly draw her back into a state of depression which she has battled her whole life. What leads to this is her and her husband's late arrival to the ceremony, her parents having a terrible argument in front of everyone, and her boss giving her an assignment during the reception.

Of course, this pushes her over the edge, and she finishes the terrible day by cheating on her husband and ending their new marriage. As all of this unfolds, Justine drifts further and further from reality, not caring about the fallout of her actions. Unfortunately, as the world ends in the second half of the film, it's not the worst thing that happens in the film.

2 Kill Bill: Volume 2 (2004)

Directed by Quentin Tarantino

In Kill Bill: Volume 1, the wedding is what sets the Bride (Uma Thurman) on her path of revenge, but the full scope of what happened that day is not revealed until Kill Bill: Volume 2. When Bill (David Carradine) arrives with his ring of assassins, they massacre the groom and the wedding party, and it's revealed that it was the rehearsal, not the actual wedding, when this took place. In an especially gruesome moment, Bill also kills the unborn child that the Bride is carrying. Though all of this is on par with a Tarantino film, and justifies the Bride's quest for vengeance, it's a truly horrific almost-wedding.

1 Fiddler On The Roof (1971)

Directed by Norman Jewison

The classic film adaptation, Fiddler on the Roof, includes one of the most devastating wedding scenes in cinematic history. After a beautiful ceremony and touching moments between the central family, the military police arrive to enact a political demonstration and terrorize the Jewish people of the village. They destroy the gifts the couple received, and carry on looting and pillaging the town, in a sorrowful example of the discrimination faced by the characters. Though the marriage goes on to be a happy one, the wedding foreshadows the injustice to come in the film's plot.