“I think this may have been the movie that established my girl crush on Anne Hathaway. At the time of its release in 2008, it was unlike anything we’d seen from her before. I mean, she had a couple attempts at breaking bad before, but no one really saw those. This one got seen, enough to score her her first Academy Award nomination (we all know she won supporting a few years later for Les Miz).
Despite being the lead role, she’s not the titular Rachel. Instead, Anne is Rachel’s sister Kym. Kym is on a bit of a furlough from her rehab, which she’s been in and out of for a very long time, in order to attend her sister’s wedding. Like any big family event, there’s lots of drama, none of which makes it any easier for Kym to deal with her addiction.
Up to this point, America still saw Hathaway as Princess Mia. She’d tried to shed the good girl image a couple times, but this was the most successful. Kym is the anti-Mia. She’s dark and sarcastic and bitter and moody. The charisma that made us all fall in love with the princess translates into a firecracker of a character here. If I keep trying to describe her, I’m just gonna gush uncontrollably, and it won’t be pretty (again, girl crush).
This movie was also the one that introduced me to Rosemarie DeWitt (playing Rachel). On the surface Rachel is your sweet and excited bride, but pair her with her sister and the claws come out. Her performance is so nuanced and layered, it’s no wonder I always kept my eye out for her after this film.
Even though the movie goes to a couple of dark places, I love watching it. It feels very real, telling a very human story. There’s lots of drama, and as previously discussed, fantastic performances. And it’s not that small and intimate indie vibe. So basically, highly recommend this under appreciated gem”