Rhys-Davies so eclipses “Bad Cupid” with his brash actions and attitude, the rest of the cast seems to fade in the background. Shane Nepveu’s Dave was a pushover from the beginning, but even Marin’s cousin, who was happy to broadly steal scenes early in the film, diminishes. Never given much of a chance is the kidnapped groom, Claybourne Elder, who looks to have more to say, but takes a while to even open his mouth (Certainly, he looks big enough to escape his ragtag captors). Darlene Pickering Hummert, who was also the casting director, has a funny scene early in the film, as a customer griping about hipsters in the bagel shop.
“Bad Cupid” is a love letter in parts to Buffalo, where it shots. A number of local landmarks, well known residents and celebratory murals are featured, celebrating a town where the snow can be reliably expected to sprinkle down for a key scene approaching the church.
There’s nothing too flashy about the workmanlike production; the intrusion of animated bits long after they were introduced in the opening credits tends to take away from the narrative, suggesting perhaps these were parts they weren’t able or interested to depict with cameras.
What’s solid about the film is that it had a smart ending in place before they started that’s satisfying for a couple of reasons, making the film certainly better than the scores of rom-coms produced annually where things run a little too smoothly.
“Bad Cupid” is available on demand on iTunes, GooglePlay and Amazon.