Away We Go (2009)

Does anyone else think this poster looks a lot like JUNO? It has the same art style as the opening credit sequence and it’s about pregnancy. Maybe, the people marketing this movie thought they would cash in on the JUNO frenzy. Anyway, don’t let that fool you because AWAY WE GO is a wonderful, subtle film that deals with pregnancy in a much different (and more interesting) manner. There are never any scenes that revolve around the ins and outs of physically being pregnant. It’s more about where the couple (John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph) is going to start their family. They are miraculously untethered by work, responsibilities, or family (which is the most unbelievable part of the movie) and want to find the perfect place to raise their child.

So away they go! Off to Arizona and then Montreal and then some other places. I must admit, there were about 5 minuets of the film where I fell asleep. I know, I know, weak shit, but it happens. I just drank a Tecate and John Krasinki’s beard was so soothing to look at. The combination was deadly. I feel like John Krasinki’s beard deserves some kind of accolade. He was good in the film, but his beard was dynamite. It made the whole movie. If he didn’t have that beard and it was just regular Jim from THE OFFICE, I would have been so pissed.

I like this movie because:

1) The opening scene involves Oral Sex

2) John Krasinski’s Beard (have I already mentioned this?)

3) Jeff Daniels is in it. He is a scene stealer.

4) John Krasinski’s character reminds me of myself.

5) I like myself quite a bit.

6) It was shot pretty wide (I like seeing that in films. I am finding it more rare these days)

7) It’s very subtle

This movie really caught me off guard at how subtle it was. There weren’t very many loud or complicated scenes. Most of them involved people talking and relied on the strength of the actors and the writing. Dave Eggers co-write the script, so that explains a lot. From what I have read of him (bits and pieces of “Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius”), he is a wonderfully witty man.

Going into the movie, I was pretty certain that Sam Mendes (AMERICAN BEAUTY, JARHEAD, REVOLUTIONARY ROAD) directed it. I was not sure though. As it progressed, it was hard to tell if he had directed it or not. It seemed obvious that he used a different cinematographer, but it’s hard to distinguish his style as a director. The DP for this was Ellen Kuras. I didn’t know who she was before this, so I decided to look her up on IMDB. She is Michel Gondry and Spike Lee’s cinematographer!!! That is wonderful. I feel like I unlocked another piece of information in the universe of filmmaking. I don’t know about you, but I always try to stay conscious of what people have worked on. I am always trying to learn more crewmembers on films. I am going to make this a mission of mine. Learn more crewmembers and what they have worked on! It will all start making more sense!

Sorry, got on a little tangent there. Anyway, watch this movie. I don’t have a bad thing to say about it.