Starring Steve Carell and Keira Knightley
Star rating: **
End of the world movies are not something i am hugely fond of. Firstly i find them pointless as the cast spend the entire time running around without any hope of survival or secondly, they are usually blamed on some alien life form intent on destroying New York which is defeated by one man in the end making me think there was no threat. However, when i spotted the trailer of this film, i was surprised to see such a humorous take on the issue and also for once it was not set in New York but in the UK, a very Americanised version of it anyway.
Steve Carell plays Dodge, a lonely insurance broker whose wife literally runs off when they learn that the world is ending in their car. He comes home and bumps into Penny (Keira Knightley) a whiny Englishwoman who dumps her boyfriend and while he moves out, she cries on Dodge's fire escape and then spends the night watching classic sport with him on his sofa. As the story progresses, Dodge decides he wants to find his childhood sweetheart and Penny is desperate to head home to see her family in Australia before the world ends.
Before you ask, yes the world does end but the events that transpire before it is what makes the film actually a decent watch. The storyline is not groundbreaking and as comedies go, it is a morbid one at that. All the other characters seem to lose their morals as soon as the announcement of the world ending is made and try to live out their dreams or act totally out of character. Riot and looting becomes rife as people realise that they can do what they want without any consequences.
Carell does a good job playing the character that he does well and delivers some humourous lines with great timing. Knightley's character is not explained well and frankly, her outbursts of tears are annoying but she does lighten up an other wise boring screenplay. One reason i do like the film is that it does get you thinking about what you would do if the world ended or would you do nothing like the cleaner who gets on with her day job like nothing has happened.
A good watch if you are looking to pass time but not one i would watch again in a hurry.
No comments:
Post a Comment