Rachel Getting Married

DVD Review: Anne Hathaway’s ‘Rachel Getting Married’ Deserves Huge Audience on DVD

BrianTT — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 17:28:56 -0600

DVD Rating: 5.0/5.0

CHICAGO – Jonathan Demme’s “Rachel Getting Married” was easily one of the best films of 2008, featuring Oscar-worthy work by Anne Hathaway, Rosemarie DeWitt, screenwriter Jenny Lumet, and its acclaimed director. Full of energy, passion, love, and pain, “Rachel Getting Married” is a must-see, one of the few films of 2008 that will stand the test of time and the Sony DVD treats this excellent film with the respect it deserves. It’s a great release.

“Rachel Getting Married” can be a tough sell. A movie with a star known mostly for her mainstream comedies like “The Devil Wears Prada” and “Bride Wars” that’s shot with mostly handheld cameras and recreates an experience akin to being at someone else’s wedding is not the first flick most people reach for at the video store.

Rachel Getting Married was released on DVD on March 10th, 2009.
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Home Video

The truth is that, especially with the current depressed state of the national consciousness, drama is a tougher sell than the escapism of action, comedy, or even horror. The real world has enough drama. Why watch it? Because when it’s this well-done, even depressing drama can be uplifting.

Rachel Getting Married was released on DVD on March 10th, 2009.
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Home Video

“Rachel Getting Married” is about a woman who so hates herself that she admits in an AA meeting that she thinks she’s unworthy of God’s love. What would be harder to handle for a woman so full of self-loathing than a massive celebration of love at her sister’s wedding? That’s the basic set-up for “Rachel Getting Married” - a woman who believes she unlovable overwhelmed by a constant flow of it.

Kym (Anne Hathaway) is a recovering addict with an incredibly tragic past. Rachel (Rosemarie DeWitt) is her sister, whose wedding has brought all of their family and friends together for a weekend of speeches, dancing, and, of course, some raw emotion. “Rachel” is about a wedding in the same way that “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” is about a dinner party. It’s a set-up for so much more.

What earned the most praise during the theatrical run of “Rachel Getting Married” was the tour-de-force performance by Anne Hathaway, one that arguably should have won the Oscar (personally, Anne would be #2 after Sally Hawkins on my list but the Academy didn’t nominated Sally). It’s an unbelievable role. In one part, Hathaway gets to play tough, fragile, beautiful, and damaged.

Kym is not only the black sheep, she could easily feel that she’s the only one at the wedding with even the slightest character flaw. Demme and Lumet surround Kym and her family with a sweet-and-gentle groom (Tunde Adebimpe of TV on the Radio), musicians galore (including Robyn Hitchcock), cultural dancers, and more speeches than you’ll hear at most real rehearsal dinners. It’s the wedding of Jonathan Demme’s dreams. Even Roger Corman stopped by to say hi.

Rachel Getting Married was released on DVD on March 10th, 2009.
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Home Video

Like I mentioned earlier, if you’re going for escapism or something to thrill you after a long week, “Rachel Getting Married” is not for you. Even viewers looking for melodrama should look elsewhere. Demme and Lumet have a great way of allowing the pain to come out in bursts, explosions of emotion that almost immediately becomes repressed yet again. They don’t linger on the pain and don’t tie things up in a pretty bow.

Life is a continuous emotional rollercoaster, especially for someone as damaged as Kym. Melodrama would paint her as completely joyless, but that’s not real. What’s real is fifteen minutes of rehearsal dinner speeches followed by just a couple of true emotional bloodletting. Each one of the toasts lets down a bit of the barrier that allows for what comes after. Yes, a lot of “Rachel Getting Married” is repetitive and arguably boring, but that’s what gives the emotional scenes their power.

And the ensemble is amazing. Hathaway got the press she deserved if not the Oscar but Irwin, DeWitt, Winger, and even Adebimpe are note-perfect.

See what all the buzz is about on the Sony DVD, presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen with an English 5.1 audio track. Upconverted on a Blu-Ray player, it looks fantastic.

Even better is the collection of special features. “Art movies” like “Rachel Getting Married” often don’t get the collection of special features they deserve but what’s included with Demme’s film is a collection that perfectly enhances the film itself. Viewers will find deleted scenes, a commentary by Rosemarie DeWitt (Rachel), a commentary by Neda Armian, screenwriter Jenny Lumet and Editor Tim Squres, cast & crew Q&A at the Jacob Burns Center, “A Look Behind the Scenes of Rachel Getting Married,” and “The Wedding Band”.

“Rachel Getting Married” was perfect in theaters. Luckily, it’s lost none of its powers and been given the treatment it deserves on DVD.

‘Rachel Getting Married’ is released by Sony Pictures Home Video and stars Anne Hathaway, Rosemarie DeWitt, Bill Irwin, Tunde Adebimpe, Mather Zickel, Anna Deavere Smith, and Debra Winger. It was written by Jenny Lumet and directed by Jonathan Demme. It was released on March 10th, 2009. It is rated R.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Anne Hathaway ‘Randomly,’ Inadvertently Awarded Early Golden Globe For ‘Rachel Getting Married’

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 21:10:11 -0700

CHICAGO – At least one “Web site technician” for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) revealed a secret crush on Anne Hathaway’s lead role in “Rachel Getting Married” when the worker “randomly” awarded the actress an early Golden Globe two days before the official NBC telecast.

For a very short period of time, a star was noticed indicating Hathaway as the winner on the official Web site of the Golden Globes for her against-type role as a recovering junkie in “Rachel Getting Married”.

If the star stands, she’d best a powerhouse of other actresses in the lead-actress category including Angelina Jolie for “Changeling,” Meryl Streep for “Doubt,” Kristin Scott Thomas for “I’ve Loved You So Long” and Kate Winslet for “Revolutionary Road”.

Anne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married”.
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Classics

Quickly after the snafu went public, the HFPA posted the following whoopsie notice on Jan. 9, 2008 on its Web site:

In the process of preparing for Sunday’s Golden Globe Awards, a technician working on the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Web site made a mistake and a name of a nominee was randomly marked as a winner. The mistake was immediately corrected.

The ballots are tabulated by the accounting firm of Ernst & Young LLP. Only four executives of the accounting firm know the identity of the winners before the envelopes are opened and recipients are announced during the live telecast.

No one else – including the members of the HFPA – knows who the winners are prior to the live announcement.

The 66th-annual Golden Globes will air on NBC at 8 p.m. EST on Jan. 11, 2009. The full official list of Golden Globe nominees can be found below.

Read the official results of the 66th-annual Golden Globes.
Read more HollywoodChicago.com articles on the Golden Globes.

Best Motion Picture, Drama
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“Frost/Nixon”
“The Reader”
“Revolutionary Road”
“Slumdog Millionaire”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama
Anne Hathaway, “Rachel Getting Married”
Angelina Jolie, “Changeling”
Meryl Streep, “Doubt”
Kristin Scott Thomas, “I’ve Loved You So Long”
Kate Winslet, “Revolutionary Road”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama
Leonardo DiCaprio, “Revolutionary Road”
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon”
Sean Penn, “Milk
Brad Pitt, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Mickey Rourke, “The Wrestler”

Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy
“Burn After Reading”
“Happy-Go-Lucky”
“In Bruges”
“Mamma Mia!”
“Vicky Cristina Barcelona”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy
Rebecca Hall, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
Sally Hawkins, “Happy-Go-Lucky”
Frances McDormand, “Burn After Reading”
Meryl Streep, “Mamma Mia!”
Emma Thompson, “Last Chance Harvey”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy
Javier Bardem, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
Colin Farrell, “In Bruges”
James Franco, “Pineapple Express”
Brendan Gleeson, “In Bruges”
Dustin Hoffman, “Last Chance Harvey”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Amy Adams, “Doubt”
Penélope Cruz, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
Viola Davis, “Doubt”
Marisa Tomei, “The Wrestler”
Kate Winslet, “The Reader”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Tom Cruise, “Tropic Thunder”
Robert Downey Jr., “Tropic Thunder”
Ralph Fiennes, “The Duchess”
Philip Seymour Hoffman, “Doubt”
Heath Ledger, “The Dark Knight”

Best Animated Feature Film
“Bolt”
“Kung Fu Panda”
“Wall-E”

Best Foreign Language Film
“The Baader Meinhof Complex” (Germany)
“Everlasting Moments” (Sweden, Denmark)
“Gomorrah” (Italy)
“I’ve Loved You So Long” (France)
“Waltz With Bashir” (Israel)

Best Director, Motion Picture
Danny Boyle, “Slumdog Millionaire”
Stephen Daldry, “The Reader”
David Fincher, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Ron Howard, “Frost/Nixon”
Sam Mendes, “Revolutionary Road”

Best Screenplay, Motion Picture
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (written by Eric Roth)
“Doubt” (written by John Patrick Shanley)
“Frost/Nixon” (written by Peter Morgan)
“The Reader” (written by David Hare)
“Slumdog Millionaire” (written by Simon Beaufoy)

Best Original Score, Motion Picture
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (composed by Alexandre Desplat)
“Changeling” (composed by Clint Eastwood)
“Defiance” (composed by James Newton Howard)
“Slumdog Millionaire” (composed by A. R. Rahman)
“Frost/Nixon” (composed by Hans Zimmer)

Best Original Song, Motion Picture
“Down to Earth,” “WALL-E” (lyrics by Peter Gabriel)
“Gran Torino,” “Gran Torino” (lyrics by Jamie Cullum)
“I Thought I Lost You,” “Bolt” (music/lyrics by Miley Cyrus and Jeffrey Steele)
“Once in a Lifetime,” “Cadillac Records” (music/lyrics by Beyoncé Knowles, etc.)
“The Wrestler,” “The Wrestler” (music/lyrics by Bruce Springsteen)

Best Television Series, Drama
“Dexter” (Showtime)
“House” (FOX)
“In Treatment” (HBO)
“Mad Men” (AMC)
“True Blood” (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Drama
Sally Field, “Brothers & Sisters” (ABC)
Mariska Hargitay, “Law & Order”
January Jones, “Mad Men” (AMC)
Anna Paquin, “True Blood” (HBO)
Kyra Sedgwick, “The Closer” (TNT)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series, Drama
Gabriel Byrne, “In Treatment” (HBO)
Michael C. Hall, “Dexter” (Showtime)
Jon Hamm, “Mad Men” (AMC)
Hugh Laurie, “House” (FOX)
Jonathan Rhys Meyers, “The Tudors” (Showtime)

Best Television Series, Musical or Comedy
“30 Rock” (NBC)
“Californication” (Showtime)
“Entourage” (HBO)
“The Office” (NBC)
“Weeds” (Showtime)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Musical or Comedy
Christina Applegate, “Samantha Who?” (ABC)
America Ferrera, “Ugly Betty” (ABC)
Tina Fey, “30 Rock” (NBC)
Debra Messing, “The Starter Wife” (USA)
Mary-Louise Parker, “Weeds” (Showtime)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series, Musical or Comedy
Alec Baldwin, “30 Rock” (NBC)
Steve Carell, “The Office” (NBC)
Kevin Connolly, “Entourage” (HBO)
David Duchovny, “Californication” (Showtime)
Tony Shalhoub, “Monk” (USA)

Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
“A Raisin in the Sun” (ABC)
“Bernard and Doris” (HBO)
“Cranford” (PBS)
“John Adams” (HBO)
“Recount” (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Judi Dench, “Cranford” (PBS)
Catherine Keener, “An American Crime”
Laura Linney, “John Adams” (HBO)
Shirley MacLaine, “Coco Chanel”
Susan Sarandon, “Bernard and Doris” (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Ralph Fiennes, “Bernard and Doris” (HBO)
Paul Giamatti, “John Adams” (HBO)
Kevin Spacey, “Recount” (HBO)
Kiefer Sutherland, “24” (FOX)
Tom Wilkinson, “Recount” (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Eileen Atkins, “Cranford” (PBS)
Laura Dern, “Recount” (HBO)
Melissa George, “In Treatment” (HBO)
Rachel Griffiths, “Brothers & Sisters” (ABC)
Dianne Wiest, “In Treatment” (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Neil Patrick Harris, “How I Met Your Mother” (CBS)
Denis Leary, “Recount” (HBO)
Jeremy Piven, “Entourage” (HBO)
Blair Underwood, “In Treatment” (HBO)
Tom Wilkinson, “John Adams” (HBO)

Read the official results of the 66th-annual Golden Globes.
Read more HollywoodChicago.com articles on the Golden Globes.

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com

‘WALL-E,’ ‘Slumdog Millionaire,’ ‘The Dark Knight’ Win Awards From Chicago Film Critics Association

BrianTT — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 08:21:57 -0700

CHICAGO – The Chicago Film Critics Association announced their winners for the best of 2008 and an animated robot, superhero movie villain, wrestling star, and former teen actress walked away with big prizes. “Wall-E” was the big winner of the day, taking home an amazing four prizes, the most presented to any one movie this year.

Pixar’s “Wall-E”, an animated masterpiece about the last robot on planet Earth, won the big prize for Best Picture and also took home Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Score, and Best Animated Film.

The Chicago Film Critics Association, which includes HollywoodChicago.com’s Publisher Adam Fendelman and Content Director Brian Tallerico, gave their Best Director prize to Danny Boyle for “Slumdog Millionaire”. The sleeper hit about a young man trying to prove that he didn’t cheat on the Indian version of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” also claimed prizes for Best Adapted Screenplay and Dev Patel for Most Promising Newcomer.

The Best Actor trophy for 2008 went to Mickey Rourke in “The Wrestler”, beating out Sean Penn in “Milk”, Clint Eastwood in “Gran Torino”, Richard Jenkins in “The Visitor”, and Frank Langella in “Frost/Nixon”.

For Best Actress, Sally Hawkins in “Happy-Go-Lucky”, Angelina Jolie in “Changeling”, Melissa Leo in “Frozen River”, and Meryl Streep in “Doubt” all lost out to Anne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married”.

Heath Ledger took home another prize for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of The Joker in “The Dark Knight”, stealing the prize from Robert Downey Jr. in “Tropic Thunder”, Philip Seymour Hoffman in “Doubt”, Bill Irwin in “Rachel Getting Married”, and Michael Shannon in “Revolutionary Road”. “The Dark Knight” also won Best Cinematograpy.

Perhaps the most surprising win of the day was Kate Winslet’s for Best Supporting Actress for “The Reader”. Also nominated in that category was the most-common winner of the season, Penelope Cruz in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”, Amy Adams in “Doubt”, Rosemarie DeWitt in “Rachel Getting Married”, and Viola Davis in “Doubt”.

The excellent Swedish horror sensation “Let the Right One In” won the prizes for Best Foreign-Language Film and Most Promising Director for Tomas Alfredson and “Man on Wire” took the trophy for Best Documentary.

The Chicago Film Critics Association

2008 CFCA AWARD WINNERS

BEST PICTURE: WALL-E

BEST DIRECTOR: Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire

BEST ACTOR: Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

BEST ACTRESS: Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Kate Winslet - The Reader

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: WALL-E (Andrew Stanton & Jim Reardon)

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Slumdog Millionaire (Simon Beaufoy)

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM: Let the Right One In

BEST DOCUMENTARY: Man On Wire

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE: WALL-E

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: The Dark Knight (Wally Pfister)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE: WALL-E (Thomas Newman)

MOST PROMISING PERFORMER: Dev Patel - Slumdog Millionaire

MOST PROMISING DIRECTOR: Tomas Alfredson - Let the Right One In

If you’d like to go back in time a few days and see the 2008 nominees from the Chicago Film Critics Association, read our coverage here from Dec. 15, 2008.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

‘The Dark Knight,’ ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ Lead Nominees From Chicago Film Critics Association

BrianTT — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 08:09:26 -0700

CHICAGO – The Chicago Film Critics Association announced its choices for the best of 2008 on Monday morning. The biggest blockbuster of the year, “The Dark Knight,” and the sleeper hit of the season, “Slumdog Millionaire,” tied for the most nominations and will compete for best picture of the year from Chicago film critics.

The Chicago Film Critics Association

“The Dark Knight”, the massively successful continuation of the Batman franchise, and “Slumdog Millionaire”, the magical tale of a young man forced to prove he didn’t cheat on a game show, scored six nods a piece, including Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Picture.

Four films nearly matched the big two this year for the CFCA with “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”, “Doubt”, “Milk”, and “WALL-E” all landing five nods. Jonathan Demme’s “Rachel Getting Married” scored four nominations and the Swedish vampire film “Let the Right One In” came away with three.

Major acting nominees for the Chicago Film Critics Association include Clint Eastwood, Sean Penn, Mickey Rourke, Anne Hathaway, Angelina Jolie, Meryl Streep, Heath Ledger, Penelope Cruz, and Kate Winslet alongside nominated newcomers like Sally Hawkins, Melissa Leo, Michael Shannon, and Rosemarie DeWitt.

The members of the CFCA, which includes HollywoodChicago.com Publisher Adam Fendelman and Content Director Brian Tallerico, are currently in the midst of their second and final round of voting and the winners will be announced on the morning of Thursday, Dec. 18 on WGN-TV in three chunks at 6:50 AM, 7:50 AM and 8:50 AM with Richard Roeper, Dean Richards and CFCA President Dann Gire. They will be released to the public immediately afterwards.

2008 Chicago Film Critics Association Nominees

Slumdog Millionaire

BEST PICTURE
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL*E

BEST DIRECTOR
Danny Boyle—Slumdog Millionaire
David Fincher—The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Christopher Nolan—The Dark Knight
Andrew Stanton—WALL*E
Gus Van Sant—Milk

BEST ACTOR
Clint Eastwood—Gran Torino
Richard Jenkins—The Visitor
Frank Langella—Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn—Milk
Mickey Rourke—The Wrestler

BEST ACTRESS
Anne Hathaway—Rachel Getting Married
Sally Hawkins—Happy-Go-Lucky
Angelina Jolie—Changeling
Melissa Leo—Frozen River
Meryl Streep—Doubt

Milk

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Robert Downey Jr.—Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman—Doubt
Bill Irwin—Rachel Getting Married
Heath Ledger—The Dark Knight
Michael Shannon—Revolutionary Road

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams—Doubt
Penelope Cruz—Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis—Doubt
Rosemarie DeWitt—Rachel Getting Married
Kate Winslet—The Reader

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
In Bruges—Martin McDonagh
Milk—Dustin Lance Black
Rachel Getting Married—Jenny Lumet
Synecdoche, N.Y.—Charlie Kaufman
WALL*E—Andrew Stanton & Jim Reardon

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button—Eric Roth
The Dark Knight—Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan
Doubt—John Patrick Shanley
Frost/Nixon—Peter Morgan
Slumdog Millionaire—Simon Beaufoy

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM
The Band’s Visit
Che
A Christmas Tale
I’ve Loved You So Long
Let the Right One In

BEST DOCUMENTARY
American Teen
Dear Zachary
IOUSA
Man On Wire
Standard Operating Procedure

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Bolt
Kung-Fu Panda
Tale of Desperaux
WALL*E
Waltz with Bashir

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Australia—Mandy Walker
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button—Claudio Miranda
The Dark Knight—Wally Pfister
The Fall—Colin Watkinson
Slumdog Millionaire—Anthony Dod Mantle

WALL*E

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button—Alexandre Desplat
The Dark Knight—Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard
Milk—Danny Elfman
Slumdog Millionaire—A.R. Rahman
WALL*E—Thomas Newman

MOST PROMISING PERFORMER
Russell Brand—Forgetting Sarah Marshall
David Kross—The Reader
Lina Leandersson—Let the Right One In
Dev Patel—Slumdog Millionaire
Brandon Walters—Australia

MOST PROMISING FILMMAKER
Tomas Alfredson—Let the Right One In
Lance Hammer—Ballast
Courtney Hunt—Frozen River
Martin McDonagh—In Bruges
Steve McQueen—Hunger

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

8:54 p.m. update on Dec. 18, 2008: The 2008 awards from the Chicago Film Critics Association are in. Read our coverage here.