Elizabethtown

(I'm getting so annoyed with Blogger. Not only can I not put pictures up, but now the font sizes are being weird, that's why there's no sign-off or quote. I'll try and fix it soon. Anyway, the poster for this movie is my favourite in the world, in fact I had it up in my room months before I had even seen the movie, so have a look at it here: http://www.uip.nl/Pictures/eliza/posterhuge.jpg.)

Elizabethtown (2006)
Dir: Cameron Crowe
Starring: Orlando Bloom, Kirsten Dunst, Susan Sarandon

Elizabethtown's basic plot sounds an awful lot like the Garden State plot. Emotionally blank man hears news of the death of his father so goes to his family's hometown for the memorial service and is reunited with various friends and family members who haven't seen him for years. In doing this he meets a girl totally unlike him with a zest for life, who changes his life, and they get together. That is the plot for both movies. Also, both titles are the names of the places they go back to (well, Garden State is just a nickname, but whatever). And while there are definite similarities between the films, they are also very different.

Elizabethtown is the fine state of Kentucky, and is a real town, as anyone who looked it up on a map will know (just me then? OK).

The movie begins with Drew Baylor, a extremely attractive young man who works for a shoe company, having to face the fiasco he has created. He had designed a special shoe, meant to revolutionize footwear, but it was a complete disaster and the company lost something like 975 millions dollars. Whoops. Anyway, he is obviously very upset about this and plans suicide (and a rather inventive way of doing it, too) but is interrupted by his sister (played by the wonderful Judy Greer) calling him, telling him their father died. So he goes to the place his father was when he died (visiting his family in Elizabethtown) to bring the body back. During the flight down to Kentucky, he meets Claire Colburn, an air hostess. I won't tell you anymore partly becasue it will spoil it for you and partly becasue I can't be bothered.

This film is weird. It is. Partly in a Garden State kind of way, partly in a Junebug kind of way, and partly in it's own crazy way. I watched it for the second time with my dad, who kept saying it was the weirdest film he'd ever seen. And that's saying something, considering he is a really arthouse-y indie film kind of guy. It's not the story that's strange, it's the screenplay. There are such random things in it!

The movie is a mix of really odd bits and really sweet, nice bits. Sometimes both at once. There are parts I absolutely adore and other parts that I could really do without. Which means I have a really mixed opinion on it.

As for the two leads, as gorgeous as Orlando Bloom is, he's not actually that great an actor. And while I admire him for doing the American accent in this, there are times when you can tell he's putting it on. You can see throguh it. He narrates the film and this is not a good idea. I do not like his voiceovers at all. His voice is fine usually, but with the accent it's not. In contrast, Kirsten Dunst (who also has to do an accent in it but not as drastic a change. Her character has a kind of Southern twang) is very good. I mean, there is a reason she is one of Hollywood's leading actresses (apart from her looks). So really, their coupling is a bit off-balance as she is a much stronger actor than he is. Lookswise they go together really well, but not actingwise.

Susan Sarandon (playing the widowed mother) is excellent, as always. I don't think Susan Sarandon could be bad if she tried. Also, Judy Greer is great as Drew's sister. She has such a brilliant sense of comedic timing and delivery, I just love her.

I just can't decide about this film. I really can't. I absolutely love the end section, with the map. That is just inspired. I adore it. I want to do that for somebody one day! You have to see the film to see what I mean. I also love the phone conversation, and Drew and Claire's first meeting. They are the high points in the movie.

Go and rent this movie, because I want to know other people's opinions on it. But if you do see it, make sure you watch it till the end. Don't give up on it, OK? The end bit is by far the best.

A-