Rachel Getting Married
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Movie Reviews of Rachel Getting Married
Movie Review: Searing and Brilliant
Summary: 5 Stars
"Rachel Getting Married" is an unsparing look at what happens to a dysfunctional family (and a lot of friends) when the "problem child" (Kym, played by Anne Hathaway) gets a weekend pass from rehab to attend her sister Rachel's wedding.
Kym's re-entry is shaky, and this is brilliantly conveyed by hand-held camera-work, as the camera follows Kym through the hallways and rooms of her house, and the sad and horrific confrontations with her family and friends.
Kym's rambling, embarrassing "amends" speech at the wedding dinner is a classic: uncomfortable, revealing, impolite, wrenching.
But the real culmination comes when a fellow patient thanks Kym in public for her rehab-confessional, which turns out to be a lie and mortifies and outrages Rachel, the oh-so-sane, soon-to-be-psychologist.
This leads to a breakthrough for Kym with her mother, over the lethal event that started Kym's downward slide: Kym recognizes that she doesn't bear all the blame for all the problems in her family.
After a sad/ludicrous suicide effort (eerily similar to Kym's original "crime"), Kym recognizes that she doesn't have to punish herself or others any more.
The film ends on an "up" note with everyone having fun, even Kym in her muted, depressive way. But then she has to go back to rehab.
The moral, which Kym vaguely recognizes, is that the supposedly "sickest" one of a dysfunctional family is often the healthiest, because she at least acknowledges the problem.
The acting throughout is superb, the writing scary in authenticity, the filming at once beautiful and heartbreaking.
The best film I have seen in many years.
Movie Review: A painful 5 stars
Summary: 5 Stars
Well, I should introduce myself as a recovering addict (we never really stop recovering do we?), and from that I base my entire review. There is a moment in this film when Hathaway wonders if the band of gypsies on the porch can stop playing for just five minutes; and I couldn't agree more. Funny thing is, I know why Demme put that violin there; from her first scene in the house, to the dish-loading scene...it keeps the tension up. You see, this whole film is from the freshly rehabed addict's point of view, and that's no fun place to be; as watching this film will show. I've been clean for 6 years now, and was shocked to find there were times I could hardly sit through the film. Demme does an amazing job of using every element at his disposal to push the envelope of the viewer's willingness to stick with this story; just as the main character is being pushed inexorably and unwillingly ahead. The celebration scene with the never-ending musical parade gets louder and amps up the energy way past when most filmmakers would cut the scene; that's absolutely true. But for me it was because we (the audience) are supposed to be in Hathaway's head; and the whole experience is just dancing on her raw nerves. This film reminded me more of PERMANENT MIDNIGHT, REQUIEM FOR A DREAM, 28 DAYS or CLEAN AND SOBER than any other film with WEDDING in the title. But of those, only REQUIEM further explores every technique at the director's disposal to push the audience into the same shoes as the main characters. Every addict should see this one. Five stars for sure; a very painful five. (It is always a pleasure to watch Debra Winger do what she does in front of a camera.)Movie Review: Unexpectedly Good
Summary: 5 Stars
What an unexpectedly good film! The title, "Rachel Getting Married", gave me expectations of some girlie film about marriage, etc. How could I have been more wrong? Rather than a formulaic chick flick, I got a gritty low budget film about a recovering drug addict dealing again with her family and the fact that her sister is marrying and Kym (the addict) will be a bridesmaid.
Anne Hathaway plays the role of the recovering junkie dealing with her demons. Yet, Hathaway doesn't steal the show. There is a large cast of relatively unknown actors who each play wonderful roles. The drama is extremely plausible as are the characters. As to plot, there really isn't much. We are simply left as almost voyeurs to the complex interactions between the various family members. And it is certainly fascinating interaction.
One small note is that the film has a home movie type feel. At first, this can prove to be distracting. However, as the film progressed it became less of an issue and, indeed, added to the overall resonance of the production. It made the feel seem more real and less of a glossy Hollywood production that although nice on the eye fails to have cred. Overall, it was a strong plus point for the production.
I have little doubt that "Rachel Getting Married" will be stuck in the art house cinemas. This is a pity. It is a very good film that deserves a wider audience.
Movie Review: A realistic, gritty film, but not for everyone.
Summary: 5 Stars
"Rachel Getting Married" takes patience. A lot of patience. It's slow, even by the standards of the genre; it's a character study filled with long takes and non-name actors (I'm even willing to bet some of these people weren't "actors" in the professional sense). The story revolves around two sisters: Kim (Anne Hathaway), who has been let out of rehab to attend the wedding of her sister Rachel (Rosemarie DeWitt). Their family is anything but functional, however, and the film follows two or three days in the lives of these people who are eerily reminiscent of the individuals we see around us everyday.
This film is something of a departure for Johnathan Demme, best known, of course, for "Silence of the Lambs." But, working from a stellar script by Jenny Lumet, he has crafted an intricate drama about dysfunction, love, and redemption. The camerawork will, of course, cause some consternation among weak-stomached viewers; I don't see what all the fuss is, but I suppose, if you're not into that kind of thing (suck it up!), then you might want to avoid this particular film. That aside, the camerawork adds that extra level of reality here that truly enhances the story, not that any enhancement was needed. We have stellar performances (Hathaway and DeWitt specifically), a gripping and emotional script...truly a great piece of dramatic filmmaking.
Movie Review: And you thought your family had problems?
Summary: 5 Stars
Wow, this movie is a revelation.
This movie it's about a family trying to struggle against a tragedy that happened several years ago. And how the blame of that said tragedy lies on the shoulders of our lead character Kym, and how she seeks for attention and forgiveness the wrong way, which makes her create a catastrophe days before her sister's wedding.
This movie was written so beautifully and the way it was directed and acted make it one great journey into their world, very personal; it felt like you were just another guest feeling awkward because they were trying to fix their issues with you watching.
Last but not least, our leading lady; Anne Hathaway, God kid, way to blow people away; Anne was GREAT in this movie and everything I hoped she would be given that when watching brokeback mountain there was many hints to future greatness.
I think she more than proved with Rachel Getting Married that she can be one of the great leading ladies of the next decade. That was not a simple performance. It was all kinds of layered, backstory suggestions, complicated mood constructions and quick wit.
Best performance of 2008 hands down; kid you got robbed this past Oscars.
Now if you excuse me I have to go order my own copy of this magical movie.