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I
love coming across a gem of a movie unexpectedly and “Your Sister’s
Sister” is just that--a warm romantic comedy where you get to know the
people involved. We meet Jack (Mark Duplass), Iris (Emily Blunt) and
Hannah (Rosemarie DeWitt) each at a turning point in their life, each
not knowing where to turn.. We first see Jack and Iris, who are best
friends, at a memorial service for Tom, Jack’s brother, a year after he
died. Jack gets upset as he hears his brother’s friends making him less
than human by not pointing out his faults so Jack, who loved his
brother, makes a toast telling some of the brother’s good and bad
points, then walks out of the room. Though Jack may be in love with Iris
he knows that Tom had been one of the lovers that she unable to commit
to and she is in love with Jack but afraid if she tells himitwill end
their friendship. No, it is not at all that complicated and is explained
as these real people talk. Jack is in his late 20s, early 30s,
unemployed and has no direction in life. Iris suggests that he got to
her father's cabin in a remote island of Washington State for some much
needed alone time so he can decide what he wants to do.
Arriving
at the cabin he sees someone inside and looking through a window he
spots Hannah just stepping out of a shower. After hearing a noise she
runs after him with a boat oar and before hitting him they get
everything straightened out. Hannah explains to him that she had to get
away after breaking up a 7 year romance with her girlfriend and had just
come to the cabin. Hannah is a vegan and because tequila is made from a
plant she can imbibe and asks Jack to join her. Along with being a
lesbian, and a vegan, Hannah is Iris’s half-sister their having had the
same father. The sisters dearly love each other and when Iris shows up
the next day they embrace with the sheer joy of seeing each other.
Beyond
this point if I were to write anything more about the plot it would all
be spoilers. It is enough to say that these 3 actors become real people
capable of doing stupid things even to those they love, be aware of
what they are doing and try to fix their mistakes, not always
succeeding. Mark Duplass is a lovable, bear like loser who makes a fight
with a bicycle not only funny but touching. Emily Blunt and Rosemarie
DeWitt are the most believable sisters I have seen on screen in a long
time. They both look lovely, have appealing personalities and let you
know how they are feeling when they are feeling it.
Lynn
Shelton, who wrote and directed the film, only makes a few missteps
mainly with one too many water, sky and sunset shots and many of the
scenes are bathed in a golden shade whether indoors or out. At certain
points the music track doesn’t fit or is annoying.
Made
with a budget around $125,000 this should more than make its costs back
and with her handling of the script, the actors and the the male and
female interactions, Lynn Shelton could fill the slot now left empty by
the passing of Nora Ephron.
This
is a romantic comedy that fits the bill of being funny and romantic and
the actors handle both with ease. You may or may not like the last two
minutes but it will have you talking about the fate of the characters as
you walk up the theatre aisle
