Rachel Getting Married

When a film ends and you don't want to leave the theater, you know you've seen a great movie. 'Rachel Getting Married' provides such a feeling. Be it the sharp, poignant writing from Jenny Lumet, or the excellent direction from Jonathan Demme. Or the cinematography, shot so that you feel that you're truly there. No, none of those. It is, plain and simple, the performances.

It all begins when Kym gets out of rehab. A recovering addict, in and out of rehab for 10 years. Almost minutes after, she is driven to her sister's wedding, Rachel. Right off the bat, Kym and Rachel's first scene together is pitch-perfect in writing and acting. You see the humor, love, and underlying tension. Kym's return stirs up everyone, brings back bad memories, and most of all, aggravates her sister.

The best part of the film lies in its three key performances. Bill Irwin, Rosemarie DeWitt, and Anne Hathaway. Bill Irwin is charming, sarcastic, and likely the comic relief in the film. Rosemarie DeWitt is quietly, subtly, but wickedly good and funny as a woman whose sister is seriously pushing her over the edge, and who harbors a couple secrets of her own.

But the true revelation here is Anne Hathaway. Seeing her 8 or so years ago in The Princess Diaries, one wouldn't think she'd pull this off. She has an Oscar nomination in the bag. Hathaway masterfully depicts the randomness, the mood swings, the rambling, the sheer craziness, that is her character.

The director here, Jonathan Demme (Silence of the Lambs, anyone?) has done an excellent job. The cinematography and editing doesn't exactly ride on the whole shaky crazy camera work that seems to be the latest craze. But it somehow gets the right balance so when the lights come up you remember your world, your life, and sigh. Very few movies do that. A