Hathaway shines in ‘Rachel Getting Married’

Director: Jonathan Demme

Cast: Anne Hathaway, Rosemary DeWitt, Bill Irwin, Debra Winger

Cert: 15

Another wedding/dysfunctional family drama but one that, thankfully, delivers a deliciously multi-tiered cake, full of brilliant human observation and characters that might be flawed but are nevertheless sympathetic.

Hathaway gives a performance that lifts her career to new heights, far beyond that of the merely decorative.

She plays Kym, the troubled daughter of an equally troubled family who returns from years of rehab for her sister’s wedding … a happy occasion that brings out the worst.

Sister Rachel (DeWitt matching Hathaway with a strong performance) and her wedding are not the binding together of the family, ruled over by an emotionally stagnant mother (and how wonderful to see the return of that compelling actress Winger).

Hathaway may be flawed but she brings us a sympathetic character we can relate to, all underscored by a fine script from Sidney Lumet’s daughter Jenny.

One thing, though, in Denne’s classy film, what’s with the obsession with hand-held camera shots?

Star Rating: 5/5