4/5 JOANNE WOODWARD IS VERY GOOD IN THIS DRAMA
  by Robert Laferriere
I saw this film when it first came out, and I just got it on DVD today. While maybe not for everyone, this is a study of one lonely person much like many people in the world today. A very good performance from Joanne Woodward, I don't think there is an actress out there today who could play this part with the exeception of Jodie Foster, who seems to have a special touch in playing such roles.

5/5 a middle american postcard
  by thomas coffey
this is really a wonderful film. Ms. Woodward is beautiful and full of such talent.

4/5 RACHEL, RACHEL
  by Alvaro Gonima (COLOMBIA S. A.)
UN EXELENTE DRAMA CON UNA ACTUACION SOBRESALIENTE DE JOANNE WOODWARD Y EL SER DIRIGIDA POR UN ICONO COMO LO ES PAUL NEWMAN. NO SE LA PUEDEN PERDER.

5/5 A Quiet Film About Rage
  by David Baldwin (Philadelphia,PA USA)
"Rachel, Rachel" falls into that rarified category of films that exceed on every level but aren't easy to watch. That said they are hard to turn away from. This study of middle-aged female repression definitely doesn't fall into the "Marty" mold. Rachel's isolation is as much foisted upon her as well as self imposed. Rachel is a character wound up by any variety of neuroseses and rage that keep her from the happiness she so desires. Kudos to Joanne Woodward for assaying a character that at times is hard to sympathize with but never loses our empathy. Praise must be bestowed on first-time director Paul Newman not only for his imaginative and artful direction but also for delivering a succinct understanding of the female psyche.

4/5 A great collaboration of Paul Newman as director with wife, Joanne Woodward. Great performance by Woodward!
  by Dennis A. Amith (kndy) (California)
"Rachel, Rachel", which won two Golden Globe Awards back in 1969 for "Joanne Woodward - Best Motion Picture Actress - Drama" and "Paul Newman - Best Motion Picture Director" and was also nominated for four Academy Awards.

The film would feature Paul Newman in his first directorial debut and wife Joanne Woodward as the main actress in a 1968 film that still is relevant today.

The film is about a 35-year-old school teacher Rachel Cameron. Rachel has a ho-hum life. She lives at home with her mother and takes care of her needs since her mother has a heart condition. Always at home, Rachel tends to imagine the worst things happening to her.

She feels her life is slipping away now that she is 35 and wants to be a normal woman. To be married, to have children but she's stuck at home.

Having to take care of her mother who has a heart condition and thus her life has been just work and taking care of her mother and each year as she gets older, she feels that her life is just continuing to get worse but Rachel, really wants to break out of her shell.

I would imagine that this film would strike a chord with many viewers at that time. I've read of how controversial the film was but with the film 41 years old, so accustomed to seeing things now, you can only imagine how shocking certain things were back then.

The film touches upon pregnancy and although not implicit, I would imagine abortion, two women kissing each other (one quick scene) and a use of a device which I am not quite clear what that thing was. Growing up and either having a life or staying at home and taking care of your aging parents, it was relevant then and it's still relevant now.

Paul Newman does a wonderful job for his directorial debut but what truly shined was Joanne Woodward's performance as Rachel. There were so many layers to this character. You wonder how miserable she is as an adult. Why does she dream about when she was young or the time with her father? Why does she feel compassion for a student who always misses school? There is sadness but yet a glimpse of happiness and then independence with the character of Rachel. A wonderful performance!

VIDEO & AUDIO:

The DVD is featured in a "matted" widescreen format preserving the aspect ratio of its original, theatrical exhibition, enhanced for widescreen TV's. For a 1968 film, the video quality was actually pretty good. I've seen films in the 70's exhibit a lot of grain but for a late 60's film, it looks as if the video source was kept in good condition and picture quality was overall pretty good.

The audio is Dolby Digital stereo. The film is dialogue-based, so no need for special effects or anything. There is music which was composed and conducted by Jerome Moross which was quite nice. But overall, the audio is all about the acting in this film!

SPECIAL FEATURES:

"RACHEL, RACHEL" comes with two special features:

* Vintage "A Jest of God" Exhibitor Promo Footage (Silent) - About five minutes long, this silent footage features Paul Newman behind the camera and literally behind-the-scenes look at the filming.
* Theatrical Trailer - This is not your standard trailer. This trailer starts off with Joanne Woodward winning an Oscar back in 1958 for "The Three Faces of Eve" and then the film goes into Paul Newman commenting on the film, working with his wife and his directorial debut. A different type of trailer that didn't show just scenes from the film but behind-the-scenes photos of Paul Newman working with his wife and the cast.

JUDGMENT CALL:

The 1968 film "Rachel, Rachel" is now available on DVD and part of Warner Bros. "Paul Newman Film Series". One of the films showing tribute by Warner Bros. to Newman (who passed away on Sept. 2008) as an actor and director.

"Rachel, Rachel" is one of those films that an actress is given a chance to shine, that is if she could pull off a complex character such as Rachel. Joanne Woodward manages to pull it off.

Rachel Cameron is a woman that feels that her life of being alone, just taking care of her mother and not having any social life, no man in her life, no children and thus feeling old and her life going downhill.

As mentioned, the film was released in 1968 but 41-years later, I feel that this film still has its relevance because anyone who has to make a decision of taking care of their elder parents or have a life. I don't know how many times I was told by my grandparents that we must succeed in order to take care of our parents as they age. And for the character of Rachel, her father died at the time she graduated college and thus moved back home to take care of her mother. Her mother didn't want to be alone. Her mother felt that her daughter must be there for her at all times because of her heart condition. And so Rachel, showing her obligations as a daughter and caretaker but at the same time, feeling she was stuck in the small town, stuck caring for her mother. It was indeed a performance that was acted marvelously by Julianne Woodward.

As for Paul Newman, the man knows film. Having appeared in many films himself, there was no doubt that a popular talent would know what kind of shot he wanted and what performance he wanted to get. In fact, during the theatrical trailer commentary, he talked about how tough it was for him to direct his wife. But the two and also the rest of the cast and crew managed to pull it off.

I'm sure this film was controversial when it was released in theaters especially during that time in film. But I would assume the film also was important showing a woman's thoughts, emotions and her gaining the strength to become independent and able to make her own choices.

A classic worth watching!