Your Sister's Sister (2011)

Director:

Lynn Shelton

Writer:

Lynn Shelton (written by)

Release Date:

29 June 2012 (Ireland)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

A comedy about doing the right thing with the wrong person.

Plot:

Iris invites her friend Jack to stay at her family's island getaway after the death of his brother. At their remote cabin, Jack's drunken encounter with Hannah, Iris' sister, kicks off a revealing stretch of days.

Plot Keywords:

Family Relationships | Vegan | Lesbian | Romantic Situation | Bicycle

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Michael Harring	...	Tom - in photos (as Mike Harring)
Mark Duplass	...	Jack
Mike Birbiglia	...	Al
Emily Blunt	...	Iris
Jason Dodson	...	Tom's Friend
Pete Erickson	...	Tom's Friend
Kathryn Lebo	...	Tom's Friend
Evan Mosher	...	Tom's Friend
Jennifer Maas	...	Tom's Friend
Jeanette Maus	...	Tom's Friend
Dori Hana Scherer	...	Tom's Friend (as Dori Hana-Scherer)
Steve Snoey	...	Tom's Friend
Dusty Warren	...	Tom's Friend
Seth Warren	...	Tom's Friend
Mel Eslyn	...	Photography Studio Crew
Kate Jarvis	...	Photography Studio Crew
Jeremy Mackie	...	Photography Studio Crew
Nathan M. Miller	...	Photography Studio Crew
Norman Tumolva	...	Photography Studio Crew (as Norm Tumolva)
Rosemarie DeWitt	...	Hannah
Kate Bayley	...	Waitress
Jason Braggs	...	Diner Patron
John Lavin	...	Diner Patron
Lee Luna	...	Diner Patron
Petra Kjorsvik	...	Diner Patron
Kimberly Chin	...	Mother
Kohen Chin	...	Young Boy #1
Beckett Chin	...	Young Boy #2

Directed by
Lynn Shelton

Writing credits
Lynn Shelton		(written by)

Produced by
Kate Bayley	....	associate producer
Mark Duplass	....	executive producer
Mel Eslyn	....	co-producer
Dashiell Gantner	....	executive producer
Vallejo Gantner	....	executive producer
Megan Griffiths	....	co-producer
Jennifer Maas	....	associate producer
Dave Nakayama	....	co-executive producer
Lance Rosen	....	co-executive producer
Jennifer Roth	....	executive producer
Steven Schardt	....	producer
Lynn Shelton	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Vinny Smith

Cinematography by
Benjamin Kasulke

Film Editing by
Nat Sanders

Production Design by
John Lavin

Makeup Department
Petra Kjorsvik	....	key hair stylist
Petra Kjorsvik	....	key makeup stylist

Production Management
Mel Eslyn	....	post-production supervisor
Jennifer Roth	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Susan LaSalle	....	second assistant director
Jennifer Roth	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Francesca Berrini	....	additional artwork
Chelsea Conboy	....	graphic artist: beer
Tania Kupczak	....	art department graphics
John Lavin	....	original artwork
Duane Pasco	....	additional artwork
Carlos Ruiz	....	graphic artist: beer
Dori Hana Scherer	....	art production assistant
Steve Snoey	....	photoshop work

Sound Department
Kevin Bressler	....	additional dialogue editor
Dave Howe	....	sound re-recording mixer
Vinny Smith	....	sound mixer
Vinny Smith	....	sound
Vinny Smith	....	supervising sound editor

Camera and Electrical Department
Alex Daboub	....	additional camera assistant
Jason Knoll	....	additional camera operator: Seattle
Jason Knoll	....	first assistant camera
Jeremy Mackie	....	gaffer
Ryan McMackin	....	additional camera operator
Nathan M. Miller	....	first assistant camera: Seattle
Nathan M. Miller	....	key grip
Tadd Sackville-West	....	first assistant: "b" camera (as Tadd Sackville West)
Jacqueline Stahl	....	camera assistant: l.a.
Norman Tumolva	....	additional grip work (as Norm Tumolva)
Norman Tumolva	....	key grip: Seattle (as Norm Tumolva)

Editorial Department
Marc Brown	....	digital film services
Jannat Gargi	....	digital film producer
Joe Jacobs	....	data management
Tim Maffia	....	senior colorist: Modern Digital
Kristin Molina	....	digital film producer
Bill Scott	....	senior color timer
Kathie McCallister	....	post-production producer (uncredited)

Music Department
Mel Eslyn	....	music supervisor
Sandy Wilson	....	music supervisor

Other crew
Mike Birbiglia	....	creative consultant
Emily Blunt	....	creative consultant
Rosemarie DeWitt	....	creative consultant
Mark Duplass	....	creative consultant
Paul Hammond	....	commentary
Joe Jacobs	....	scrolling credits
Adam Kersh	....	publicist: Brigade Marketing
Lee Luna	....	set production assistant: Seattle
Kristen Parsons	....	accounting services: Enterprise Business Consultats
Dave Peterson	....	insurance provider: Midlakes Insurance
Lance Rosen	....	legal services: Rosen Lewis
Courtney Schade	....	commentary coordinator
Camille Wren	....	accounting services: Enterprise Business Consultants

Thanks
Darren Aronofsky	....	thank you
Chris Ballew	....	thank you
Joe Birbiglia	....	thank you
Nancy Black	....	thank you
Liza Boone	....	thank you
Garrett Cantrell	....	thank you
Geralyn White Dreyfous	....	thank you
Oleg Dubson	....	thank you
Nancy Guppy	....	thank you
Michael Harring	....	editorial thank you (as Mike Harring)
Jeff Kleinsmith	....	thank you
Richard Klubeck	....	thank you
Lacey Leavitt	....	editorial thank you
David R. Lipson	....	editorial thank you (as David Lipson)
Rick Patton	....	thank you
Taryn Reneau	....	special thanks
Rena Ronson	....	thank you
Steve Snoey	....	editorial thank you
Alex Soler	....	thank you
Gareth Upton	....	thank you
Rachel Weisz	....	thank you
Hailey Wieringo	....	thank you
Craig Zisk	....	thank you

Production Companies

• Ada Films

Distributors

• IFC Films (2012) (USA) (theatrical)
• Le Pacte (2013) (France) (theatrical)
• Paradiso Entertainment (2012) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Avalon (2012) (Spain) (all media)
• Film1 (2013) (Netherlands) (TV) (limited)
• Front Row Filmed Entertainment (2012) (United Arab Emirates) (all media) (Middle East)
• Madman Entertainment (2012) (Australia) (all media)
• Mongkol Major (2012) (Thailand) (all media)
• NonStop Entertainment (2012) (Denmark) (all media)
• NonStop Entertainment (2012) (Estonia) (all media)
• NonStop Entertainment (2012) (Finland) (all media)
• NonStop Entertainment (2012) (Iceland) (all media)
• NonStop Entertainment (2012) (Latvia) (all media)
• NonStop Entertainment (2012) (Lithuania) (all media)
• NonStop Entertainment (2012) (Norway) (all media)
• NonStop Entertainment (2012) (Sweden) (all media)
• Paradiso Home Entertainment (2013) (Netherlands) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Bad Animals  5.1 surround sound mix provided by
• Brigade Marketing  publicity by
• Dolby Laboratories  sound mix
• Enterprise Business Consultants  accounting services provided by
• Entertainment Partners  payroll provided by
• Homemaid Sustainable Cleaning  cleaning crew
• Midlakes Insurance  insurance provided by
• Modern Digital  color grading
• Post Haste Sound  post-production sound services
• Protagonist Pictures  international sales by
• Rosen Lewis  legal services provided by
• Submarine Entertainment  distribution advisors
• UTA Independent Film Group  distribution advisors
• World Famous  main title designed by

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated R for language and some sexual content

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

USA:R | UK:15 | Sweden:15 | Denmark:A | Singapore:M18

Filming Locations:

Seattle, Washington, USA

Company:

Ada Films

Trivia:

When the film was originally scheduled to start filming in middle October 2010 for two weeks, Rachel Weisz was set to play Emily Blunt's sister, so the actress could complete her part and start filming The Deep Blue Sea (2011) in November. However, filming of Lynn Shelton's movie was postponed, making Weisz pull out due to schedule conflicts with The Deep Blue Sea. Rosemarie DeWitt replaced her.

Quotes:

Young Boy #2:Whoever has the Sun, turn it on!

Movie Connections:

References Hotel Rwanda (2004)

Soundtrack:

Texas Style

Hard to feel bad for the characters, but hard not to understand them too

Oftentimes, indie films can be summarized in a single Twitter hashtag: #firstworldproblems. Lynn Shelton's "Your Sister's Sister" definitely applies, but fortunately, Shelton anchors her story with a script that feels dynamic and largely improvised as well as three excellent actors.

The film takes place in Washington state, a year after the death of Jack's (Mark Duplass) brother and Iris' (Emily Blunt) ex-boyfriend. Jack and Iris have become best friends since. After talking to Jack, Iris can tell he needs a refresher, so she convinces him to spend some time at her family's getaway home on an island off the coast. When he arrives, he unexpectedly encounters Iris' older sister, Hannah (Rosemarie DeWitt), and the two engage in a drunken hookup that reveals to be a big problem when Iris turns up unannounced the next morning.

It's really hard to see the conflict in this film at all, let alone first-world conflict, until we learn that Iris has been hiding intense emotional feelings for Jack. Then it gets complicated, albeit the whole ordeal is really trifling start to finish. Somehow, however, Shelton compels us with these selfish sad-sack characters. Maybe it's similar to the way reality shows manage to make us care about the scum of the Earth, but more than likely it's how easily we can relate to these conflicts, because most of us likely to watch "Your Sister's Sister" only deal with first- world problems.

If the Pacific Northwest setting weren't so critical to the film's aesthetic, you might wonder if Shelton's film was a play first. The scenes are lengthier and the cast obviously quite small. Although there are some melodramatic spikes throughout the story, much of the film relies on moments of natural human connection between the characters.

Duplass is in his wheelhouse as a somewhat confused soul with a great sense of humor and a dash of paranoia. As the star of Shelton's 2009 film "Humpday," he knows exactly what this style of drama needs to thrive. As someone capable of holding her own in everything from mainstream comedy to period pieces to blockbusters, Blunt continues to showcase her versatility as Iris. As poorly as the script builds her character in so far as reasons she should love Jack, Blunt sells it completely.

DeWitt's Hannah is a messier character than both Jack and Iris, possibly combined. She's a lesbian just out of a long-term relationship who hooks up with a man, and though her reasons become clearer as the film progresses, it doesn't make her any more endearing.

Shelton clearly enjoys tinkering with characters who have unlikable tendencies and deserve little of our sympathy. There's nothing at stake in the film either except whether members of the trio can reconcile their differences and actually share their feelings with each other. Nevertheless, they're lifelike creatures, and if you're the film's target audience, your issues with yourself and with others become mirrored in their struggles. As trivial as their dilemma is, it resonates, and the way Shelton captures the Pacific Northwest scenery will evoke the same feeling you get when you visit your own personal nature-shrouded getaway.

"Your Sister's Sister" amounts to a story of the bond between siblings that reinforces the a value of those relationships. Despite the inconsequential nature of all the conflict in the film, Shelton and her cast tap into familiar feelings and emotions with ease. The might be first- world problems, but that doesn't take away from their legitimacy.

~Steven C

Thanks for reading! Visit moviemusereviews.com for more