Wedding Date offers surprise ending

Ever agonized over having to find a date for an event? What about to an event that you were dreading? And what about knowing that at this same event you would see your ex? And I don't mean an ex-boyfriend; I am talking about an ex-fiancé.

You can imagine how unappealing this situation would actually be, but it makes for a great plot in The Wedding Date. Debra Messing's (Will & Grace) sophisticated and charismatic character, Kat, hires a male escort (Dermont Mulroney, My Best Friend's Wedding) to be her date for her younger sister's wedding in London.

As the older sister, she feels that she should have been the first to get married, and she would not dream of attending the wedding solo. The fact that Kat has never mentioned a boyfriend before does warrant a few questions from her mother, but only briefly, and since Nick is a well-experienced escort and a very good actor, everyone assumes they are a real item.

Similar to any other romantic comedy, the two protagonists must fall in love. For the over-stressed Kat who is constantly worrying about her ex-fiancé, though, it takes her a good portion of the movie for her to realize what a fox Nick is and what a kind heart he possesses.

Unlike your typical chick flick, there are some unexpected turns that you don't see coming-which is a good thing since most of these types of movies are way too predictable from the beginning.

The film provides an even balance of comedy, romance and a tone of serious melancholy that keeps it from being either too sappy or too depressing. It takes some of the best elements from comedy-romances like My Best Friend's Wedding and Pretty Woman and compacts them into a story which adds its own little twist.

Without giving away the plot, I will divulge that a big secret is revealed-one that almost destroys her sister's marriage and has Nick speeding to the airport to get back to the U.S. as soon as possible.

Believe me, you will be happy that I did not give the "secret" away and trust me, you won't see it coming.

Kat and Nick have incredible chemistry, and the rest of the characters are well cast and amusing. There is the alcoholic mother, the soft-spoken father, the spoiled rotten bride and her ignorant husband-to-be, as well as the rest of the quirky wedding guests.

The London countryside serves as nice scenery for a majority of the movie, and the jokes successfully keep coming throughout the movie's entirety.

Instead of only being a movie that showcases two incredibly gorgeous people falling in love with the help of a team of Hollywood writers, the plot also builds on the most basic and humanistic principle of a relationship: trust.

While some parts of screenwriter Dana Cox's first film may seem a bit too dramatic or fake, the storyline is completely genuine and entertaining.

The soundtrack to the movie, which is a fun and interesting compilation of songs, serves as an appropriate background for this feel-good romance.

Unfortunately, Universal has no plans of releasing a soundtrack commercially, which serves as a disappointment to some fans of the music in the film.

Guys, those of you who are in need of a date idea for Valentine's Day, buying a bouquet of flowers and taking your girlfriend to see The Wedding Date would be an excellent choice.