Anne Hathaway, Rosemarie DeWitt, Mather Zickel

When Kym returns to the Buchman family home for the wedding of her sister Rachel, she brings a long history of personal crisis and family conflict along with her. The wedding party's abundant cast of ...( read more  read more... )friends and relations have gathered for an idyllic weekend of feasting, music and love, but Kym -- with her black-comic one-liners and knack 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.

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62% liked it

13,497 ratings

Critics

86% liked it

182 critics

R, 1 hr. 56 min.

Directed by: Jonathan Demme

Release Date: September 3, 2008

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DVD Release Date: March 10, 2009

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Stats: 4,851 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (4,851)


  • September 28, 2009

    I liked Demme's up-close approach to the family drama surrounding Rachel's wedding. The weight of the film lies almost exclusively on the charisma of the performances, which -independently of whether or not we think their characters' actions are realistic- ultimately is not a

    ...( read more)disappointing decision; the dialogue almost tries too hard to sound real, but the actors do a good job with it.

    I think it is simply irresponsible to say -this wouldn't have happened, this isn't realistic enough, this person would have never said that.. because family dynamics are usually pretty weird to by-standers and that's what I was to this film, a spectator. The film tries to be involving, and succeeds to a certain degree, but there is a well- established limit to its intimacy (I can't tell whether it was intentional or not). Rachel Getting Married is as intimate as a homemade wedding video. If you watch it, you feel that you have access to very personal memories of the couple, but that's it. A wedding video doesn't include insights, only registers behaviors and dialogue, without backgrounds, or wanders off in contemplation or lingers on anything that isn't very obviously concerned to the wedding.


    The film has some very cute moments, sad moments, and good music. It has a lot of color and plenty going on, there's always someone singing or talking... I would say it stays very basic in the possibilities of telling a story cinematically, and this stands out simply because it is evident that it could have gone further.


    Anne Hathaway's performance is good, but I wouldn't say any better than Rosemarie DeWitt's, or any of the cast for that matter. Jonathan Demme did find himself fine actors, and that's the main attractive.


    Rachel Getting Married is enjoyable but -in spite of some visceral moments- it stays a little shallow. Showing people talking like people in "real life" is entertaining but it isn't enough to secure a profound film; it's a good way to get a message across in a compelling way, but it isn't brilliance.

  • August 12, 2009
    Filled with unlikeable characters and extended awkward moments, Rachel Getting Married is film that remains watchable despite the ever-increasing disfunctionality of the on-screen family. Anne Hathaway picked exactly the right moment in her career to doff the Disney sheen, and th...( read more)e Academy (never-one to shy away from cross-cast family stars) made sure to recognize this performance with an Oscar: good choice, she is excellent, playing a vulnerable, untrustworthy character that you're sort of rooting for but - like her own family - you can't really trust to not let you down in the end.

    Beyond Hathaway, though, there isn't much else to watch in this film: the supporting cast is populated with types who do a decent job but who don't keep up with the star. The shooting is interesting, as by times it cuts to a relative's video camera and gives a grainy home video feel to the action, but Jonathan Demme is guilty of "just letting the camera run" a little too often: this film could have been a fair bit shorter, and it seemed that there was a lot of filler. In one sense he could be said to be exploring the varied music at the wedding, but in another sense he could've been stretching out something that might not fill an hour on TV.

    There are pros and cons to it, but yes, I do recommend it, even if it's little more than the chance to see one of this generation's best young acting talents separate herself from the pack. A worthwhile rental.
  • July 2, 2009
    Strong showing from Hathaway carries this powerful drama about coping with guilt and grief. The family dynamic feels real when the obnoxious Hathaway reels up to her sister's wedding from another spell in rehab. What the film does exceptionally well is to get you to sympathise wi...( read more)th, and more interestingly, understand her behaviours and the reactions of her family.
  • May 24, 2009
    The basic premise behind this movie has already been executed in "Monsoon Wedding" both in style and content. However, the entire movie rests on the shoulders of the cast who (for the most part) ably carry it forward.
  • May 9, 2009
    This movie feels like a mess. There is a lot of verbal wondering with very little actually going on. The story seems to have a point, but it takes 1 1/2 hours to get there and only focuses on the point for 10 minutes. There is a lot of wasted time and boring events in this fil...( read more)m. The acting was decent. I felt Ann Hathaway was over rated and did not see this as an Oscar nom performance. There are probably a few drama-fanatics that will love it, but I feel most will prefer something else.
  • November 6, 2009
    Vedere la Hathaway in un ruolo impegnativo č un po' inusuale, in ogni caso affatto male, affatto.
  • November 1, 2009
    One of those love it or hate it movies. Once I got over how extremely annoying I think Anne Hathaway is, I thought this was a great movie.
  • October 30, 2009
    I once met Anne Hathaway. Well, technically I only passed her on the street, though she didn't wave or smile and I can only presume that this is because she was getting into character for this film where she plays a "challenged" girl back from hospital for her sisters wedding, an...( read more)d while home gets involved in lots of hysteria, melodrama and arguments. Maggie Gyllenhaal did it so much better in Secretary.
  • October 20, 2009
    Honestly, this film was perfect. I loved the performance by Anne Hathaway and hope that there's more to come like this from her.
  • October 18, 2009
    I wanted to like this movie, but so many things just didn't work for me. The camera work was kind of goofy, but that's the least of my concerns. The family and friends acted really weird at times. Were they just really geeky or what? At one point a person says hello to a stran...( read more)ger, and a moment later they are having sex. Like sure...this makes sense?!? I'm not sure what the characters were supposed to be doing, but watching them made me feel awkward. The groom barely said a word through the whole movie, which really bugged me! The wedding attire made no sense to me, since they looked like Indian (Hindu?) dresses and the Groom was from Hawaii and black and the bride was from Connecticut and white. The Blue cake with an Elephant was very beautiful, but again looked very Indian, but WHY??? Later, Mardi Gras type dancers at the reception? There was just way too much going on here. The choice in music throughout also made no sense to me, and it was very annoying. And last but not least, Kym's chopped up hair, then later chopped and striped hair?!?!?!? WTH?

    Apparently this was not the movie for me. I pretty much hated it. The previews looked so much better. So disappointed. I'm usually a big fan of the disfunctional family, wounded soul type movie, but this one was way too wacky for me.

Critic Reviews


January 23, 2009
Nigel Andrews, The Financial Times

The film, like the shindig, ends up dissolving in a schmaltzy brew of make-do-and-mend, complete with a sari-clad wedding accompanied by multi-ethnic music, whose PC touchy-feeliness one hopes is a jo... full review

November 20, 2008
Pete Hammond, Hollywood.com

Ultimately, this is a performance piece, and Demme has brought out the best of his cast of fine actors gaining award-worthy turns. full review

October 31, 2008
Michael Sragow, The Baltimore Sun

From one masterstroke after another, [Demme] builds a portrait of a resilient family. Yet nothing in it is studied or self-conscious. This director never sweats the small stuff. He treasures it. full review

October 18, 2008
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune

Hathaway, DeWitt, Irwin and especially Winger are working at a very high level. So is their director. His intuition regarding how to film this particular milestone event, and the stories unfolding in ... full review

October 18, 2008
Anthony Lane, The New Yorker

A minor work, but so menaced by distress that the characters take every opportunity to dance the dark away. full review

October 10, 2008
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe

Demme and screenwriter Jenny Lumet have given us an epic rehearsal dinner, ceremony, and reception that's half-cabaret, half group-therapy session, and completely multiracial, multicultural, and multi... full review

October 10, 2008
J. R. Jones, Chicago Reader

Alternately funny and gripping, this feature marks a welcome return to original drama for director Jonathan Demme, who's spent the last decade preoccupied with documentaries, concert movies, and remakes. full review

October 9, 2008
Brian Orndorf, BrianOrndorf.com

While I admire the film for its performance tenacity, I also wanted to unleash a Louisville Slugger on the projector during stretches of the feature. full review

October 9, 2008
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Apart from the story, which is interesting enough, Rachel Getting Married is like the theme music for an evolving new age. full review

October 6, 2008
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor

It's a great piece of acting -- high drama at the service of the highest talent. full review

View more Rachel Getting Married reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


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