Elizabethtown

I am not sure what to think of this movie. The critics hated this movie and I do not think much of either of the two lead characters. I think Kristen Dunst's character is pretty annoying and Orlando Bloom's character was just ok. However, I liked the movie. I am not sure why, but I did enjoy it.

It should be pointed out that many of the critics saw a different version of the movie at the Toronto film festival. Cameron Crowe (the writer and director) cut 18 minutes out of the movie before it went into theatres. The ending is completely different. I did not see the orginal, though I have read that the shorter version is much better. I wonder if many of the critics never saw the released version or if they made up their minds after seeing the orginal version.


Last week, I reviewed "Failure To Launch". I commented that the two leads did not seem to care for each other. I liked the characters played by Matthew McConaughey and Sarah Jessica Parker and can not figure out why they didn't seem more in love. In this movie, I found Kirsten Dunst's character so annoying, I can not figure out why anyone would fall in love with her, yet the two leads seem to truly care for each other. In the end I was rooting for the two to get together, they really seemed to belong together.


Alot of the movie takes place in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. A real town of around 22000 people. I think Crowe did a really good job of capturing the small town feeling. Some of my favorite scenes in the movie were of family and friends getting together in Elizabethtown. It seems like everyone has known each other forever and everyone seems to really care for each other. In fact it seems hard to determine who are family and who are friends. There may be sharp differences of opinion, yet deep down everyone supports each other and they will work to find a common solution. The characters are also welcoming to outsiders. You get the feeling that they are not quite sure about these people from California, yet they work hard to make them feel included and part of the group. On the other hand, the scenes from Bloom's apartment seem very isolated, lonely and desolate. The scenes from his work seem very cutthroat, if you can't produce then you are not welcome there.


Finally, I have always liked Bruce McGill (above) and I was not disappointed in his role in this movie. I looked up his entry on IMDB. He has 106 acting credits in about 30 years. 49 of them in the last 10 years. I think I have always enjoyed his characters and yet I did not know his name.


In summary, I liked the movie. That seems weird to say, when I am so critical of the job done by the two leads, but that is just the way I feel about the movie. Maybe that is a tribute to Cameron Crowe and the supporting cast.