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"SEEKING A FRIEND FOR THE END OF THE WORLD"
(2012) (Steve Carell, Keira Knightley) (R)

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QUICK TAKE:
Dramedy: A man and woman search for connection with others as they and everyone else face the literal end of the world.
PLOT:
With the last attempt to save humankind from a pending asteroid collision with Earth having failed, there are only three weeks left before the end of the world. Unlike his married friends Diane (CONNIE BRITTON) and Warren (ROB BORDDRY) who plan on partying till the end, insurance salesman Dodge (STEVE CARELL) has a more subdued reaction, especially since his wife has just left him.

While contemplating facing his extinction alone, he discovers his downstairs neighbor, Penny (KEIRA KNIGHTLEY), crying on the fire escape outside his window. She's just broken up with her live-in boyfriend, Owen (ADAM BRODY), and is distraught that she missed the last plane to England and thus has little chance to see her family one last time.

With a riot chasing them from their building, Dodge and Penny become unlikely traveling companions. Her quest is to help him reunite with his high school girlfriend, while he says he knows someone who has a plane that might be able to help her out. As they set out on those quests, they run into various interesting characters, such as Glen (WILLIAM PETERSEN) who wants an assassin to end his life; James Speck (DEREK LUKE), a military veteran who once dated Penny and wants her to join him in his well-stocked bomb shelter; and Frank (MARTIN SHEEN), a man who's known Dodge his entire life.

With the days counting down until the end, Dodge and Penny strive to find the special person or people to keep them company.

OUR TAKE: 8 out of 10
I was dreamin when I wrote this
Forgive me if it goes astray
But when I woke up this mornin
Coulda sworn it was judgment day
The sky was all purple,
There were people runnin everywhere
Tryin to run from the destruction,
U know I didn't even care
Cuz they say two thousand zero zero party over,
Oops out of time
So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999.

Prince "1999"

It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine.

REM "It's the End of the World as We Know It"

It's been 25 and 30 years respectively since REM and Prince released those end of the world songs, and -- shock of all shocks -- we're still around. Of course, the Mayans -- or, more accurately, those who "interpret" their writings -- say the world is going to end this December. So if you're reading this review seven months from now, you'll realize they were, gasp, also wrong.

The doomsayers have always been around and will continue to warn others of their and the world's pending doom until, I guess, they'll get lucky and actually be right. Not wanting to miss out on the doomsday action, Hollywood occasionally doles out end of the world films, usually in the form of "we need a hero to save us" ("Armageddon") or "Uh-oh, we're stuck in a post-apocalyptic action flick" ("The Road Warrior," "Water World," "Logan's Run" and countless others) or "What were you expecting? The world has ended" post-apocalyptic, downer drama ("The Road," "On the Beach," etc.).

Thus, when an end of the world romantic comedy comes along, it's bound to garner one's attention, and that's exactly what "Seeking a Friend for the End of the World" does. Granted, it's not your typical rom-com, as it doesn't follow the standard formula (meet cute, start dating, a trying on clothes montage, a break-up, a missing you montage, and a happy reconciliation). In fact, it's probably more accurately described as a black dramedy road trip flick with romantic elements mixed in for good measure.

It's also my favorite film -- so far -- of 2012. Funny, heartbreaking, touching, witty, thought-provoking, and emotionally engaging (but not for younger kids), it features the directorial debut of Lorene Scafaria who previously penned the screenplay from the somewhat underappreciated "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist." Like that pic, this one features a terrific screenplay and craftily drawn characters that one actually ends up caring about.

The story doesn't waste any time setting up the premise as the first scene features a news report that a space shuttle disaster has ended humankind's last hope of stopping an asteroid from crashing into earth and sending humans down the same extinction path paved by dinosaurs hundreds of millions of years earlier. There are three weeks left to our tale.

The "fun" -- if you will -- of Scafaria's script is that it alternates between taking itself seriously and being satire, although it leans far more heavily toward the latter than the former. For instance, our protagonist (Steve Carell in a subdued and nicely nuanced performance) is an insurance salesman who's still taking calls about whether the apocalypse is covered when not learning that the CFO job at his firm is now open for any takers.

I've heard some complaints from other reviewers that the film isn't realistic in its portrayal of how people would really react in such a situation. That's true (although one wouldn't really know until something like this was occurring), but it's obvious such naysayers missed the above introduction to the satire or that many of the characters are following in the old "Seinfeld" footsteps of being self-centered and/or letting their id run amok despite and/or because of the situation.

If anything, the flick is an interesting satirical look at how humans behave and react, and is something of a cautionary if entertaining tale about living every day to the fullest as one never knows when their days will suddenly be numbered. For Carell's character, he's a half empty glass sort of guy, while his female counterpart (a fun Keira Knightley) operates from the half-full perspective, even if she figuratively and literally is sleeping away much of her life, oblivious to the realities of what's really facing her.

When a riot forces the two of them from their respective apartments, they become an unlikely duo in an unlikely road trip sort of tale. Along the way of her trying to help him reunite with his long-lost high school love and him hoping somehow to help her get back to be with her family (despite missing the literal last flight across the pond), they meet an interesting array of characters who show differing human traits in reacting to such sobering or, to some, enlightening news. It's also nice how the filmmaker drops in various character nuances and little plot points here and there, without telegraphing them, and then has them play out and/or connect later in the film.

What makes the film so engaging, however, is the unconventional chemistry between and the performances from the two leads. You can't help but end up liking and truly caring about these two souls who are essentially doing what the title suggests. And their and the film's conclusion is an unsettling but also surprisingly fulfilling moment of mixed emotions.

While the overall notion of the film might sound like a downer (and at times it is), taking a comedic approach to the subject matter just might not work for everyone (to each his or her own, I guess), and the dramatic shifts in tone might be too jarring for some (get over it people and go along for the ride), I loved every minute of the flick.

If anything, it's an entertaining and well-made if bittersweet wake up call to get out, live life to its fullest, get over past issues and -- to paraphrase Queen -- find somebody to love, because everyone's days are numbered and our time on this planet is far too short. "Seeking a Friend for the End of the World" rates as an 8 out of 10.




Reviewed June 15, 2012 / Posted June 22, 2012


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