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Nothing is more emotionally loaded than a family gathering. There’s pressure to celebrate, unite, and an unspoken rule to brush any nastiness under the rug. Thomas Vinterberg’s Festen (1998) and Jonathan Demme’s Rachel Getting Married (2008) both explore the tension between the performance and reality of family. Festen, as a predecessor, is often credited as a large inspiration for Rachel . Both stories follow dysfunctional families attending large celebrations, but deviate d