I recently checked out Rachel Getting Married and I wanted to see what all the hype was about regarding it. Following is a summary of the movie.
With a vulgar beginning, we are introduced to Kym, who is played by Anne Hathaway. Kym has been in a rehab center for the past nine months and is not getting along with anyone there due to the lack of privacy. Their attending is close with Kym, apparently because Kym asks for the attendee's phone number, only to be rebuffed that it isn't allowed. On their way back home, Kym needs a drink and refuses a Diet Coke. She prefers Pepsi from the fountain. After getting back to the house, Kym sees a house full of decorations and goes to find her sister, Rachel. They embrace and are obviously very close. Emma, one of Rachel's friends, does not seem to like Kym very much at all. Rachel is considered to be tiny by Kym as she remarks over and over, even going to go so far as calling her similar to an Asian.
Kym then heads off to an addicts meeting and hears from people in her situation. She's late because her Dad doesn't allow her to drive, resulting in her having to take her bike instead. While making her entrance, she crashes several folded lawn chairs. The man who is speaking notices this and comments on it, making for a witty joke. This man happens to show up later as her sister's fiancee's best man. While they are having a very personal moment, Kym is told that she is not the Maid of Honor. Horrified, she confronts her sister, who makes her wear Lilac to coordinate with the scheme of the wedding. Rachel finally gives in and asks Emma to step down as the Maid of Honor after a debacle between Kym, Emma and Rachel. At the rehearsal, we hear of another member of the family who is not with them anymore, Ethan. I wonder what significance his mention will bring for the other characters. At the family party, we finally meet her mom Olive and see that she is not approving at all of Kym's smoking. She criticizes her and seems to ignore her when she's not criticizing. Embarrassing stories ensue and we see that Rachel's not all that innocent as she sideswiped a taxi and an EMT vehicle loading an old lady onto a gurney! She managed to even get the number of one of the men driving the vehicles. After more of the table shares their thoughts and fondest memories of the bride and groom, Kym recollects and apologizes while trying to make amends. She tries to make a lot of rehab jokes, which ultimately fall flat and lead to a confrontation later on with her family as Rachel is upset that Kym tries to make everything about her and her disease/recovery process. Rachel finally comes clean about how she feels so unimportant midst Kym's growing stack of problems and that even now, during her own wedding, she is still overshadowed. Then, she admits the secret: She's pregnant! The entire family then erupts in a laughing and kissing frenzy. Rachel then says that she's tired and is heading up and the family split up to go to bed but not before everyone and anyone congratulates her on their upcoming addition into their family. Kym reacts by sulking and keeps insisting that life is just not fair as she feels so out of the loop on everything. She knows things have changed and she knows why but that doesn't make them any less painful to experience.
Ethan is brought up again as Kym goes to her second addicts meeting. He is her little brother who she was babysitting years ago. While she was babysitting, she was high and they were playing in the leaves at the park. She drove home and they got into an accident after she lost control of the car. The car went off the bridge and into the lake. She couldn't get him out of his car seat and he ended up drowning. She admits that she can't forgive herself for what happened and this is why she is upset with God. After they get back to the house, Sidney and Rachel's Dad (Paul) face off in dish-washer loading skills as the whole of the house watches. Rachel's Dad beats Sidney by a hefty amount but he leaves suddenly due to seeing an old plate that Ethan used. While at the hair salon with the rest of the ladies, Kym runs into an old friend from Loeb House that she can't immediately place. It turns out that he has felt a connection to her for the entire time that he has been clean and sober as he read her anonymous note in the Human Mirror exercise. It was an exercise in which your secret gets passed along a chain to see someone else's opinion on what you wrote down. It turns out that Rachel and Kym's uncle used to abuse them when they were little. This caused Rachel to have anorexia for years and to get down to a mere 50 pounds at one point. But, in the middle of this, Rachel runs out of the salon because it turns out that Kym has been spreading lies, lies about their family for years. Rachel confronts Kym about it and says the hard truths for Kym to hear. Everyone ends up in tears.
Kym runs away to her Mom's (Olive) place while everyone at her Dad's worries. She asks her why she was left in charge of Ethan and admits to being only six pounds and throwing up every meal she ate. She keeps talking about how she was a drug addict and stayed in her room and passed out all the time. Her Mom tries to keep a calm face until finally, they come to a dramatic conclusion. Olive punches Kym in the face as they are both screaming at each other. Kym then slaps her Mom in the face and leaves. She drives her car right into a Yield sign and crashes it, finally, into a rock. She passes out and is found the next morning by paramedics and cops.
The wedding and processions finally start. It is definitely not a traditional wedding with balloons, drum sets and guitars playing the Wedding March instead of a customary piano. They exchange their vows. Sidney sings a beautiful ballad and brings everyone to smiles. The family gather for an after-wedding reception and cake is brought out while dances are conducted. The cake is a huge elephant on top of many many layers and before it can be cut, everyone's hands have to be stacked to make the first official cut.The celebrations continue and slowly, the party dies down. Kym leaves and finds Rachel and Sidney dancing quietly in the hallway. Kym hugs them and Kieran joins in. Their mother says that she has to leave early and a very awkward encounter takes place. Hugs are once again given. Then, in a surprise, Kym is offered a PR position in a new firm. She pauses to take a moment, however, because she is still shocked that her mother left the wedding processionals so early.
It's the morning after the wedding and Kym decides to leave before all the ruckus starts. She and Kieran exchange a good-bye kiss and a hug (as well as numbers) before Kym heads out. Rachel wakes up in the midst of it and stops Kym for a final farewell and a parting hug. Rosa, from the rehab center, meets Rachel and the two get ready to go. The movie fades to violin playing in a garden with Rachel looking fondly over the flowers and left-over wedding decorations. The credits appear.
Overall, the movie was sad and had its dramatic moments but it was mainly due to the acting greats of Rosemarie DeWitt and Anne Hathaway that it really succeeded. Their sister-sister relationship was the basis of creating such a telling story and it was upon this relationship that every other relationship worked off of. I'm glad that I got to see such an inspiring film about one family that almost fell apart, coming back together one last time to support their daughter (Rachel) in her journey through marriage.
What did you guys think of it? Do you have similar opinions or not? Do you think Kieran and Kym ended up together?
