Hudson and Goodwin play childhood besties, whose friendship knew no limits…
When I first saw the movie SOMETHING BORROWED I left the cinema with my best friend feeling unsure and uneasy. The film follows Rachel (Ginnifer Goodwin) who falls in love with her best friend Darcy’s (Kate Hudson) fiance Dex (Colin Egglesfield). The film poses the uncomfortable question: What do you do when you truly love your best friend’s fiance? And worse yet, what do you do when those feelings are reciprocated? The answer should be obvious right? You stoically ignore your feelings and let your best friend live her happily-ever-after. But if we’re honest with ourselves, human nature is a lot greedier than that. It’s this human greed that gets Rachel — a do-good kind of girl — into a lot of trouble, where the stakes are a lifelong friendship vs. a potentially lifelong romance.
Truthfully I don’t think that it’s the narrative so much that bothers me, but the fact that I constantly find myself sympathising with Rachel.
What happens when best friends fall for the same man?
I find myself validating Rachel’s choices by the flaky, shallow, and insincere nature of Darcy’s character. On the flip side I’m horrified by what she is doing — it’s her best friend’s fiance, and they’ve been best friends since they were kids.
I’ve seen SOMETHING BORROWED twice more since it was released this summer, and since then it’s really grown on me. I think that’s because I’m falling more and more in love with Dex and Rachel as a couple, and that is largely due to Ginnifer Goodwin’s performance…
Acting Chops
Ginnifer Goodwin as “Rachel”
Goodwin is so compelling in this film. She has an understated quality which really shines through. It’s as if she internalizes every emotion before she expresses herself; breathing in each thought and letting it shine through her eyes before she even speaks. What’s interesting about Goodwin’s character is that she understands the full ramifications of her actions. She’s cared for Dex since they first met but never knew that he felt the same way, she knows that she shouldn’t proceed, but then she can’t not! She is a good person who cares about her friends and has always put Darcy of all people first. But ultimately, she can’t fight it; she loves Dex and she has to pursue those feelings.
Colin Egglesfield as “Dex”.
Egglesfield masterfully plays the infidel fiance in a way that makes me feel sorry for him! …Do I need to repeat myself? I actually feel sorry for the poor, technical, shmuck. He’s this guy who cares so much about making other people happy, that he doesn’t necessarily consider the consequences of ignoring his own happiness. What makes Egglesfield stand out in this film is that he projects true love towards Goodwin whenever they are on scene together. It’s not an undeniable lust that we see between them; it’s feelings, emotions, and possibilities. Without Egglesfield’s projection of a Dex who’s at odds with his feelings, the film could have taken an drastically different turn; we could have ended up with a Dex who just wants one last whoopie with the girl that got away.
Dex (Egglesfield) and Rachel (Goodwin) sharing a moment.
In virtually silent scenes between Dex and Rachel it’s the actors’ use of breath that builds the impression of love for me. There are so many things which they feel towards each other, things that they are too scared to say. They breath in the thought and then they pause and hold onto it, tasting it because that’s the closest they can let themselves get to the other, and then they fight it back and say nothing.
Darcy (Hudson) is absolutely vapid while practicing her “bridal moment” to see if her mascara will run…
Hudson presents Darcy, a woman who is so vapid and shallow that it takes away from her physical beauty (think about that for a second, Kate Hudson is gorgeous). Hudson goes against the grain of her normally charming characters by playing a woman who is obnoxious rather than outgoing; self obsessed rather than caring and compassionate; and all through vain. It is largely through Darcy’s personality flaws that I find myself somewhat validating Rachel’s choices.
<3RL
Beks' Take 