In today's world love, laughter, and truth to name a few things are needed to capture and keep a movie goer feeling like their dollar (and down time) is well spent. Demme left me feeling like he didn't spent his time wisely on his movie so why does he expect me to invest mine in Rachael? Being a writer, I could have done a better job with this story line as well as character development. And if you are going to shoot a raw, unrehearsed scene, it had better be pretty great. RACHAEL is better suited for a "made for TV movie." I hope I am wrong but it seemed like a cheaply made and not well thought out FLICK made on a garage sale budget. It if wins an Oscar then Demme hit the lottery with his dollars. It had the overall feel of a grad student's thesis not an award winning film maker like Demme. God bless you everyone!
The film has generated great buzz at venice, and toronto film festivals. Most of the critics including New York times, Entertainment weekly,film critic have given it two thumbs up. Looks like the Jonathon Demme of philadelhia and "the silence of the lambs" fame has delivered another gem. The dysfunctional family theme could be compared to the quirky characters of 2006 indie hit "Little Miss Sunshine". However,the overall mood of sunshine was upbeat but in Rachel getting married, the atmosphere is quite gloomy.
