The Wedding Design of Rachel Getting Married
Sheffield Admin Tuesday, October 7, 2008 at 4:49AM I’d like to invite you all to a wedding. It’s big, it’s splashy, it’s got loads of laughter and music and that other element necessary in any wedding: family drama.
And you don’t have to buy a gift or travel far. You just need to pony up 12 bucks or so and settle in to a seat in a movie house.
I’m talking about a new film called “Rachel Getting Married,” which opened in New York City this past weekend.
Often movies have “wedding” or something like it in the title, and yet much of the film takes place away from the actual wedding itself. But in this film, the audience feels as if they’re really attending the wedding---and not just the ceremony, but all the other events around the wedding, starting with barging in on the bride as she’s trying on her gown the day before.
And in terms of wedding design, this is one to watch. It’s an Indian-themed wedding, even though none of the principals are, as far as I could tell, Indian. As I left the theater this was the topic audience members were mulling over: what was up with that Indian design, complete with saris for the attendants?
Rosemarie Dewitt, who plays Rachel, has said in an interview that she thinks the Indian style is ironic, and if seen that way, it kind of makes sense. Both Rachel and her sister, Kym, are from a well-to-do white family in Connecticut, and there’s no explanation about the Indian theme of the wedding. Let this be a warning to anyone planning a real wedding---if you appropriate another culture entirely, the guests may enjoy the décor, but they likely will also be somewhat perplexed.
It’s also unclear why the saris chosen for the wedding are so drab. These are not the colorful, highly embroidered saris of Mira Nair’s MONSOON WEDDING, for example. Perhaps this is a comment on the family’s disassociation from the Indian culture, which results in something not as gorgeous as it could be?
Still, it all looks pretty great, and it’s all fun to watch, especially the music and dancing and the cake in the shape of Ganesh, the elephant god who is called “the Remover of Obstacles.”
Therefore, there is something to the Indian theme, as the heart of the film isn’t really about Rachel’s wedding but is about her sister, Kym’s, experience of Rachel’s wedding, and about the many obstacles in front of Kym. The most interesting element of the film, other than the wedding design of course, is really the character of the mother of the girls.
That’s all I’ll say so I don’t spoil anything---just that, and go see this movie. But unless you’re Indian, leave the sari at home.
Reader Comments (7)
If you took away the drape of the saree, you'd find that those lilac outfits were pretty much the same color as 9345388 bridesmaid dresses worn to weddings where "lilac and cream" are the official wedding colors. So to an American totally unfamiliar with Indian culture, those are the perfect outfits to wear to the wedding! :) Muted pastels can be seen as elegant, not necessarily boring.
They also butchered all the names of the Indian dishes at the dinner - another sign of the disconnect between that family and the culture the wedding was appropriated from.
Watched this on your review and really loved it!
Indian themed weddings are beautiful. The wedding in the movie of course, isn't a very traditional Indian wedding, but nice to see nevertheless.
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