Table 19

Table 19 is a 2017 American comedy film written and directed by Jeffrey Blitz, from a story originally written by brothers Jay and Mark Duplass. The film stars Anna Kendrick, Craig Robinson, June Squibb, Lisa Kudrow, Stephen Merchant, Wyatt Russell, and Tony Revolori.

The film was released on March 3, 2017, by Fox Searchlight Pictures, receiving generally negative reviews from critics and grossed $5 million.

Plot
Eloise McGarry attends the wedding of her oldest friend Francie Millner. She was originally maid of honor but "dropped out" two months ago after her (now) ex-boyfriend Teddy, the bride's brother and the best man, broke up with her by text after two years together. Teddy is back with his old girlfriend Nikki, who replaced Eloise as maid of honor. At the reception, Eloise discovers she has been seated at Table 19. As she considers leaving, she meets a man named Huck who notices her looking distressed and offers words of advice which are not well received.

Eloise decides to stay and meets her table mates: Jerry and Bina Kepp, who own a chain of diners and are Facebook friends of the groom's father; high-schooler Renzo Eckberg, whose parents are acquaintances of the groom and who came to the wedding in the hopes of meeting a girl; Jo Flanagan, Francie's childhood nanny; and Walter Thimble, the bride's cousin who is currently on parole. They debate whether Table 19 is a "good table," and Eloise reveals that, before getting dumped, she planned half the wedding and knows for a fact that Table 19 is for "guests who should have known not to show up".

As the newlyweds come in the reception hall and begin dancing, Eloise starts feeling insecure and accepts a dance from Huck, whom she kisses. When he declines to sit with her, she realizes he is crashing the wedding and that "Huck" isn't his real name.

Although the six initially have difficulty finding anything to talk about, they swiftly band together when Jo realizes Eloise is pregnant. They confront Teddy about dumping Eloise after she told him about the baby, and he reveals he dumped her because she said they would be ridiculous parents, and he was tired of disappointing her. Bitter at this development and feeling unappreciated, the Table 19 denizens move to Jo's room to smoke pot and discuss their reasons for attending the wedding. Walter reveals he went to prison for stealing $125,000 from the father of the bride, but only did so because he was conned into taking it by his former friend. Renzo tells the group the wedding is the same night as his junior prom, but his mom encouraged him to come to the wedding instead as he would "probably have a better chance of meeting someone." Jo believes the children she has cared for have now completely forgotten her. Going out for a walk, Jerry offers Renzo some advice about how to pick up girls, while Eloise realizes Jo has cancer. Jo admits that she is probably 'due' the same time Eloise will give birth. Eloise says she thinks she's having a girl and Jo asks that she not name her "Jo" as it's a tough name for a girl. Bina and Jerry fight, and she tells him the reason she came to the wedding was to have an affair with an old flame, who did not show up. They fight about their marriage, and Bina heads back inside with Walter.

On Jo's recommendation, the six attempt to find the wedding crasher Eloise encountered earlier, with the aid of the wedding photographer and the hotel reception staff. They learn "Huck" is actually the groom from another wedding. As payback, Walter steals Huck's wedding cake to replace the one they destroyed earlier.

Returning to the wedding, Table 19 is visited by the bride and groom, who express genuine happiness that everyone there has attended. Francie and Eloise talk briefly, and Francie apologizes that Eloise was seated so far away from her for the reception, and Eloise decides to leave early. Francie then assures Jo she has not forgotten her, telling a brief but touching childhood story about Teddy, inspiring the table to see him in a new light. The rest of the table tracks down Eloise and encourages her to tell him how she really feels. As the core wedding party leaves the hotel on a ferry, she shouts out an apology to him from the dock, but he's unable to hear.

Eloise, Walter, Jo, and Renzo return to the wedding hall for the last of the cake. In their room, the Kepps discuss their fragile marriage and reconcile before joining the others. The mood significantly changes when Teddy suddenly appears, dripping wet from apparently jumping off the boat and swimming to shore, and asks Eloise to repeat what she yelled to him. Eloise asks that they both continue to be willing to forgive each other and they reconcile. Renzo asks the band to play them another song to which everybody dances, including Teddy.

A few months later, Jo has died of cancer and the Kepps are now happy and taking care of her dog. Renzo has a new girlfriend, and Walter refers to the other Table 19 guests as his family. Eloise and Teddy are together and have a baby. They mail the birth announcements to their friends and family, including all the guests from Table 19, and the card reveals they named the baby boy Joe.

Cast

 * Anna Kendrick as Eloise McGarry
 * Craig Robinson as Jerry Kepp
 * June Squibb as Jo Flanagan
 * Lisa Kudrow as Bina Kepp
 * Stephen Merchant as Walter Thimble
 * Tony Revolori as Renzo Eckberg
 * Wyatt Russell as Teddy
 * Amanda Crew as Nikki
 * Thomas Cocquerel as Huck
 * Becky Ann Baker as Carol Millner
 * Andy Daly as Luke Pfaffler
 * Maria Thayer as Infamous Kate Millner
 * Andy Blitz as Notorious Donny Haczyk
 * Rya Meyers as Francie Millner
 * Margo Martindale as Freda Eckberg

Production
In April 2009, Fox Searchlight Pictures acquired the film, with Jay Duplass and Mark Duplass set to direct their own screenplay. In October 2011, Jeffrey Blitz was brought in to rewrite the script and direct the film. On March 24, 2015, it was announced that Anna Kendrick, Craig Robinson, Lisa Kudrow, Stephen Merchant, Tony Revolori, June Squibb, Wyatt Russell, and Amanda Crew would star in the film.

Principal photography began in the Atlanta area on March 27, 2015, and ended on April 30, 2015. While the plot places the wedding at a resort on an island in the fictional "Lake Alma", in Michigan, filming took place on the Lake Lanier Islands, northeast of Atlanta and at The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds on Lake Oconee, southeast of Atlanta. Other scenes were filmed in Douglasville, west of Atlanta.

Music
In February 2016, it was announced that John Swihart would score the film.

Release
The film was originally scheduled to be released on January 20, 2017, before being pushed back to March 3.

Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 26% based on 113 reviews, with an average rating of 4.55/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Table 19 is marginally more entertaining than actually sitting with a table full of strangers at a wedding — although most screenings won't come with an open bar, which makes it a wash." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 40 out of 100, based on reviews from 29 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

David Fear of Rolling Stone magazine called the film: "A tonally uneven mishmash of Wes Anderson quirk, John Cassavetes guts-spilling and The Breakfast Club, all of which somehow manages to dampen the talents of its crack ensemble cast." Owen Gleiberman of Variety magazine "Almost everything that happens in this movie rings cloyingly false. It wants to make you laugh and cry, but you may be too busy cringing."