Not much happens in runaway bride dramedy 'Different Flowers'

By Gary Goldstein

Sept. 28, 2017 11:50 AM PT

A whole lotta nothin’ goes on between the start and finish of “Different Flowers,” a wilted runaway-bride dramedy that could test the patience of even the most devoted chick-flick fans.

The “different flowers” here are Millie (Emma Bell) and the younger Emma (Hope Lauren), 20ish siblings with a long history of bugging each other. But when Millie flees from her lavish Kansas City wedding to the earnest Charlie (Sterling Knight), she and Emma take off in Emma’s clunker jeep for the remote Missouri farm of their grandma (an underused Shelley Long).

Mostly uneventful — and overly protracted — events follow including a showdown with a sluggish cashier. Some quick canoodling between Emma and a hunky convenience store clerk (Rob Mayes) will come back around, but in a contrived, predictable way.

First-time feature writer-director Morgan Dameron attempts to craft a love letter to her native heartland and to sisterhood, but falls short on both fronts, rarely digging beneath the surface of small-town bonhomie and what makes Millie and Emma tick.

Most importantly, why Millie waits until zero hour to jilt her dutiful groom is inadequately and unconvincingly handled.

On the upside, the adorable Lauren proves a lively presence and a deft comedian.

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