reviewed by Charity Bishop
         

I have a good dose of Irish in my blood. Perhaps that's why my hair takes to red dyes more than anyone else I know, or why I have such a milky complexion and peculiar sense of humor. Or maybe it's the reason I'm known to be full of "blarney," or even get the Irish humor that floats over the heads of my friends. Whatever the reason, Irish comedies and me love one another like four leaf clovers and good fortune. And The Matchmaker very nearly fits the bill for amusing entertainment, with a few sorry caveats along the way.

Marcy Tizard (Janeane Garofalo) is an overworked, underpaid politician's assistant who is hoping to propel her favorite senator into the White House. Desirous of cashing in on the Irish-American vote, her boss John McGlory (Jay O. Sanders) wants to emphasize his Irish roots, just like the Kennedys did in J.F.K.'s successful election campaign. So against her wishes, Marcy is packed up, put on a tiny plane, and flown off to a quaint little seaside village right in the midst of the annual MatchMaking Festival. Young and old alike, people have come from all over Ireland to be set up with prospective mates, making use of all the hotel rooms and restaurants along the way. Marcy comes ill-prepared and unassuming into their midst, forced to take on a tiny attic room in a run-down hotel and try to track down the senator's ancestors among the disinterested but highly amused public.

Rapidly running amuck of the dog-loving Sean Kelly (David O'Hara) and befriending his sister who runs the inn (Maria Doyle Kennedy), Marcy soon finds that general interest in her is more that of a prospective wife than anything else. In fact, she has caught the attention of the eccentric and nuptial-loving Dermot O'Brien (Milo O'Shea), who holds the record for the most love matches and is eager to prove that even an American girl can be done up right with just the proper sort of man. But as Marcy searches fruitlessly for her boss' distant cousins and finds herself falling in love, numerous complications fall into her path, not the least of which the lovely Moira (Saffron Burrows). What the movie basically becomes is a tongue in cheek parody of life among the freely accepting Irish, where last names are aplenty and the pups are never empty. Accents are thick, the men are charming, and no one ever passes up the chance to take a passing kick at someone's tires.

In fact, if it weren't for two things in particular, I'd recommend the film in a heartbeat or the length of a laugh, whichever happens to be quickest given the occasion. The first thing that rather dampens the entire funny experience is the language. The f-word flies around in both Irish and American accents, along with a handful of other profanities and abuses of deity. It doesn't really seem to fit any of the characters or the situation, because in all other respects the little town is charming. There are brotherly rivalries, and unexpected moments of hilarity, such as the sight of two men hobbling out to the car, both with broken legs, which stick out the windows as they attempt to navigate down the road. Then there's the assault upon the senator's car, in which tap dancing shoes and neighborhood kids are involved. The other problem is the fact that the leading man and lady wind up sleeping together. Nothing is shown except some passionate kissing, but it's disturbing particularly when you consider that he's only separated from his wife, not divorced.

Things are not all fun and games, though, since there is a damper in the form of a passing sorrow. Marcy learns to love, and finds a home among the Irish people, whose greatest enjoyment is singing off-key in pubs and reminiscing about the good old days. There are a few faults apart from the language (Marcy thinks that Sean is having a sexual tryst when she hears banging sounds coming from his room, but it's actually his dog slapping his tail against the wall) but in general, it was more amusing than I'd seen in awhile. However, if you're searching for hilarity without as many potty-mouthed issues, I would point you in the direction of Widows' Peak.