Rachel Getting Married.

I liked this movie, though I didn't think I would. So surprise.
In Rachel Getting Married, Anne Hathaway plays Kym, a young woman who has been in and out of rehab for years for drug addiction. She returns home for the first time in nine months to attend her sister's wedding as a bridesmaid. But her return upsets the dynamics of the wedding and surfaces tensions that the dysfunctional family would certianly rather do without at a time like this.


What I liked about the film was that it was like real life - not like those soap operas that pretend to be like real life, no, this movie was real. It was honest. The performances were honest, the characters were believable, the filming made you feel part of the story, and the plotline unfolded truthfully.
In saying that, I' not rating this thing five stars, end of review. I mean, the filming does take some getting used to. Shot with a handheld camera, the constant movement makes one dissy and irritated at first but if you're able to get past that it makes you feel like you're really part of what's going on. The film gives all the actuality of preparing for a wedding, the way things blur together between chaos and excitement, preparation and expectations, timing and organization etc. etc....
The characters are well presented so that as the film goes on you quickly get to know them well and you feel Rachel's frustration as she feels like Kym's trying to wreck things for her, the awkwardness that rushes over the restaurant table when Kym stands to give a speech to her sister and ends up talking about herself, and Sidney's calm composure as he holds the fort ... what a sweet guy, I can see why Rachel married him.

The one thing that bothered me though was the actual wedding - it's like ... weird. I can't really think of another way to describe it. It's random and quirky, I guess to add to the contemporary feel of the film, the fact that in this day and age you can do whatever you want? I don't know. I mean, Rachel's a white American girl, her husband's Jamaican, and they're having an Indian-themed wedding with saris for the bridesmaid dresses and a blue elephant cake? With the wedding march being played on an electric guitar by a teenager with an afro? And the grooms wearing what seriously looks like whatever each of them personally wanted to wear? Not to mention the belly dancers. Okay. Whatever floats your boat.

All up though, three and a half stars. Go see it, it's cool.