Torontonian Adam Sternbergh examines the rise of what he terms the "Thank you for saving me from my evil hag of a fiancee" movie, as well as its antecedents. He is dead on about the message these so-called comedies send. The protagonists are no longer saved from marrying the wrong, usually emasculating, woman; they're saved from marriage itself.
The evil fiancees in these movies are so uniform, and so easy to spot, that it's a wonder any guy proposed to them in the first place. They come clad in pearl earrings and prim sweater sets, the embodiments of asphyxiating domesticity. They're armed with detailed life plans and bags full of V-neck sweaters, pre-sized for their new hubby. (The V-neck sweater apparently being a universal symbol of emasculation.) They trash the bachelor's treasured mementos, criticize his habits, and ostracize his old gang of friends—all of which is presented as a pre-wedding hazing ritual meant to soften him up for a lifetime of subjugation.
Plus, the guy had to sit through a lot of truly shitty movies to assemble this piece.
[I'm certain this article's posting in the midst of the Martha Stewart trial is merely coincidence.]
Well, off to block the 'Fesser's sweaters!
