DVD Review: Rachel Getting Married

When Kym (Anne Hathaway – Academy Award Nominee, Best Actress, Motion Picture (Drama)), returns to the Buchman family home for the wedding of her sister Rachel (Rosemarie DeWitt), she brings a long history of personal crises, family conflict and tragedy along with her. The wedding couple’s abundant party of friends and relations have gathered for a joyful weekend of feasting, music and love, but Kym – with her biting one-liners and flair for bombshell drama – is a catalyst for long-simmering tensions in the family dynamic. Filled with the rich and eclectic characters that remain a hallmark of Jonathan Demme’s films, Rachel Getting Married paints a heartfelt, perceptive and sometimes hilarious family portrait.

Review:
Rachel Getting Married wasn’t at all what I expected. It’s a dark drama with moments of even darker humor. Anne Hathaway does a brilliant job as Kym, a girl with a long history of personal issues, family conflicts, and tragedy. She returns home from rehab to attend her sister Rachel’s (Rosemarie DeWitt) wedding, and relationships just start to unravel from there.

Near the middle of the film, you learn that Kym is responsible for a tragedy that the family still has not fully recovered from. Tension between Kym and Rachel continues to build as they fight for attention from loved ones during this weekend that was supposed to be joyful as friends and family celebrate Rachel getting married. However, with Kym’s bitterness, dark one-liners, and an undeniable flair for drama, the fate of the weekend becomes uncertain.

The style of the film is quite interesting. It feels like you’re watching a documentary with scenes that are shaky and sometimes a little too close to the actors. However, this style was appropriate for the story and the vision that the director had. It allows the characters to be wonderfully deep and eclectic, as fans of Johnathan Demme’s films have come to expect.

The acting is pretty intense as well, and there’s certainly no wonder why the Academy acknowledged Anne for her role. While Kym is a darker and more disturbing character than we’ve seen in Anne’s previous work, Anne nails the role and brings a degree of life to the character that is simply amazing.

It’s probably not the type of movie you expect it to be, but it’s definitely one that you should see.

Review by Emma Loggins

Grade: A-
Official site: http://www.sonyclassics.com/rachelgettingmarried/
Buy on Amazon: Rachel Getting Married