DJG / Rachel Getting Married

Rachel Getting Married * * * *
Directed by: Jonathan Demme / 2008

Rachel’s marriage is like none that I’ve been too, yet it feels like I really was there, complete with wedding awkwardness and exhaustion. What could have been disastrous and trite with “Rachel Getting Married” is turned into another unexpected gem from the expert hands of director Jonathan Demme (“Philadelphia”, “The Silence of the Lambs”), who has carved one of the more unique careers in Hollywood. And I’m not certain if this wasn’t the hardest movie for him to make and more than ever I’m curious as to where film will take him. “Rachel Getting Married” feels like the best movie that Woody Allen hasn’t made in the past decade or so, but yet it’s a movie that I don’t feel he could make. My congratulations to the ensemble cast, especially to Anne Hathaway for pulling off such an acting achievement, I look forward to watching her bring more characters to life, ones I truly care about. I didn’t come away with the same scale of high-praise like a lot of critics last year, but I came away with an odd high of being pleasantly surprised and feeling good about where film can take me, even if I have to spend that time at a wedding.

-djg