I thought this film was very misguided. Its protagonist Kym (Anne Hathaway) is practically without any redeeming qualities. Certain scenes (such as the wedding rehearsal dinner speeches) run on for an interminable length of time. The jittery camera work on display throughout is definitely passé.

Also, not to say that Tunde Adebimpe is a poor actor, but if you know of his band, “TV On The Radio”, you’ll inevitably be thinking, “Hey, that’s the guy from that band”. I’m pretty sure he’s wearing the exact same glasses he wears in the band. You would think the costume people would have picked a slightly different frame. I suppose filmmaker Jonathan Demme is of the opinion that most people won’t know who he is.

And the wedding is propesterous. Here we are in Connecticut, probably the whitest place on Earth and we have an interracial couple getting married wearing Indian garb with folk music playing. It’s like, “Look how open we are! Our white daughter/sister/relative/friend/whatever is marrying an African American man and we also dig jazz music and Indian clothes and everything non-white.” I don’t have any stats about interracial marriage in Connecticut, but I think that would have been striking enough to give the movie a bit of extra flair. The saris and fiddlers are just over the top. For a film which is supposed to look so realistic and drag in places where life drags, I just was stunned by this lapse.

There are two bright spots. Rachel, played by Rosemarie DeWitt, is quite good. I also think she has the kind of interesting nose you don’t see often these days on film. I really liked that. Hope she doesn’t change that. (See Jennifer Grey from “Dirty Dancing”).

Debra Winger is also very good as Rachel and Kym’s mother. I’m a big fan of her work in “An Officer and a Gentleman” from all the way back in 1984. Even when she’s quiet she has a very powerful presence.

In conclusion, I won’t be recommending this movie to anyone. Unless, that is, I really don’t like them.

Filed under: Movies by A.B.