Your Sister's Sister

I really enjoyed this movie. I've never written a review before, but had to for this one. Filmed in 12 days? Unbelievably well done. The interaction of the three main characters was s-o...r-e-a-l. Emily Blunt (love her accent), Rosemarie Dewitt and Mark Duplass effortlessly became three characters who could be anyone you know in your own town. The chemistry of their different relationships with each other was fresh and flawless, especially as they evolved. The comedic moments were well delivered, and the pulling-at-the-heartstrings moments, very real. The rustic cottage and waterfront location in Seattle where most of the movie took place was just beautiful. From Filming to Sound, my hat is off to Lynn Shelton the Writer and Director, and the entire cast and crew. I will enjoy watching this again. Thank you!

"Your Sister's Sister" is an indie romantic dramedy. One that tries to say so much with so little; "little" in terms of story and setting. It's a dialogue driven film about relationships. Jack (Mark Duplass) is depressed, mourning the loss of his brother. His friend Iris (Emily Blunt) sends him up to her father's cottage for some alone time and beautiful scenery.

Beautiful scenery there was plenty of; but not so much alone time. Unbeknownst to either of them, Iris's sister, Hannah (Rosemary Dewitt), was also retreating to their father's cottage for some alone time in the wake of an upsetting break-up. Two lonely people and an entire bottle of tequila lead to one inevitable place. In the morning, Iris arrives.

Duplass is fairly adept at comedy so he was able to navigate his way around two attractive sisters with a few well-earned laughs. There are more laughs during the description of Iris's boyfriends (each wears skinny jeans, skinnier than the next). As mentioned, this is a dialogue driven film which makes it or breaks it. For the most part it does the job and effectively introduces us to the three characters, but the common complaint that the dialogue is pretentious is certainly accurate.

The characters are real enough, if not a bit extreme in their ways, that likability isn't a huge factor. Although, Emily Blunt's character does get preachy when things don't go her way. She, and the audience, are thrown for a loop when a twist is introduced half-way through the film. At first I was relieved that the film was going to be about something other than just the relationships of these three people.

But ultimately "Your Sister's Sister" is just about the sister's relationship and their relationship with Jack. An ambiguous ending can certainly be welcome and interesting, but if you don't quite care enough about the relationships to begin with then the ending arrives just a beat too early.

This film is about a man who gets invited to a country house by his best friend, where he sleeps with his best friend's sister after a drunken night.

"Your Sister's Sister" is close to a single location film with a minimal number of characters. Most of the film takes place in a house with only three people. For a film like this to be good, either the characters have to be interesting, or the plot has to be emotionally intense. "Your Sister's Sister" is unfortunately neither. The plot lacks tension or emotional climax. It is just too plain to sustain attention or interest. Mark Duplass portrays an unlikable loser, and yet he gets all the adoration from the two sisters which is rather unbelievable. Rosemarie DeWitt plays a selfish woman, and she is not likable either. Emily Blunt's character is the only interesting character, but she is not enough to save the uninteresting plot or characters. It is unfortunate that "Your Sister's Sister" is an underwhelming drama, as it could have been a lot more than it currently is.

This movie is a real treat to watch, i saw it on a rainy afternoon, alone, at my local cinema, it was pretty quiet, but I must say I think it added to my enjoyment, watching it alone almost made me feel as though I was a fly on the wall in this little cottage with three others and all the goings on. The story is rather sweet, not much really big happens, it's a bit of a slow burner but sometimes that's what you need, but in saying that it is actually a rather complicated story, it's just written and directed quite simply so it's easy and a pleasure to watch. Mark Duplass is not an actor I have seen before, but he has a nice presence on screen, Emily Blunt is her usual exceptional self, but it's Rosemarie Dewitt who steals the show I think, she has plenty of great scenes and she handles her difficult and really not that likable character very well, most of the things I've seen her in she has been good, she seems like a very natural actress, I do hope that she gets a little more recognition and she is cast in more well known films.

I was surprised to find out that a lot of the film was improvised, the story seemed like it would have been one where things were planned out, but then at the same time I guess it is a film which would quite easily be improvised, and knowing that makes the actors performances even better, it's a crime films like this go somewhat unnoticed, because in my opinion I think Dewitt delivers an award worthy performance, but sometimes it's a movie being small and unknown which makes it special.

It's funny, it's touching, it's dramatic, it's everything an indie film lover would enjoy in a movie, I really do highly recommend you catch this movie while you can, it's a real charmer.

I hope you guys enjoy it. :)

My rating: 88/100

I ended up seeing this movie at the Toronto film fest in a rather circuitous way but I'm awfully glad I did.

Nary a car chase nor explosion, but instead a quiet and thoughtful film. It touches on relationships, death, siblings, betrayal, unrequited love, honesty, fears, and forgiveness… and does so in a very believable and refreshing way.

Most of the movie takes place at a secluded rustic waterfront cottage, a family cabin that Iris (Emily Blunt) has suggested her 'bestie', Jay (Mark Duplass) visit to clear his head; he's still emotionally stuck at the one year anniversary of his brother's death.

The secluded locale - without phones, computers and the usually daily distractions - is the conduit which allows the abundance of emotions and introspective feelings bubble up and expose themselves to a trio of characters connected in various and interesting ways.

These three individuals are both frustrating with their flaws, yet endearing with their fragility and weaknesses. How easy it is to identify with all of them! … which can perhaps be attributed to the impromptu conversation Director Lynn Shelton nurtured and encouraged from the mere 70 page script. She confessed that 75% of the dialogue was improvised allowing a unique honesty to develop within each character, thanks to a stellar cast.

I'm thankful Shelton stuck around Toronto for this third screening – she's originally from Seattle which is where this was filmed - and was more than willing to open up to the audience at a post Q&A where we heard her speak passionately and reflectively about the 12 day shoot (wow!) with almost no funding and how she lucked in to Emily Blunt coming on board (thanks to a shared agent) who was keen on the challenge and experience. Also it was nice to hear that during the festival the film had found distribution through IFC, and that cast and crew would now be compensated for this wonderful collaboration.

This film's a winner to me. I hope you have an opportunity to see it.