Rachel Getting Married

A family drama set over a wedding weekend. Kym is let out of a rehabilitation centre for the weekend; her sister Rachel is getting married. When she comes home everyone tries to be kind to her, and the tension surfaces at the first meal. There is an event the family does not discuss. An accident years ago and the responsibility for it. Nobody says it directly; every sentence circles it while the wedding preparations continue as a pretext. The form carries this: the camera is handheld, the light natural, scenes run long without cuts, and the wedding sections are shot like a real celebration. Musicians play live inside the frame and the music is not added afterwards. Anne Hathaway plays Kym and was Oscar-nominated. Rosemarie DeWitt plays Rachel and Bill Irwin the father. Debra Winger plays the mother in a short but decisive role. Jenny Lumet wrote the screenplay. Jonathan Demme directed. A strong example for anyone who likes family drama and a near-documentary manner. For a viewer expecting an orderly narrative, the film gives long room to the celebration and the plot stays in second place.