Elizabethtown DVD > Reviews > My Elizabethtown Review

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Indifferent to it
Story	Satisfactory
Characters / Performances	Satisfactory
Special Effects	Standard
How does it compare to similar films?	Not applicable

Advantages:	Easy watching
Disadvantages:	Dragged in places

Recommend to potential buyers:

no

Full review

The film starts almost straight away with no long credits. The first scene shows some trainers being recalled so you know straight away that there is some problem with the trainers. A man called Drew Baylor begins to talk over these scenes informing the watcher that he is the designer or these shoes. We then see him walking through the building where he works and being taken to see Phil Devoss, his boss, played by Alec Baldwin. Phil explains that he has lost the company 972 million!

We then see Drew deciding that the next plan of action is to end his own life. He feels that after putting so much time into the company that there isn’t much else for him. His girlfriend also worked at the company and doesn’t want to know him after this. So he feels there is nothing left. At this point is when he receives a phone call to tell him that his dad had died. This stops him from committing suicide but in his own mind, he is only delaying it until after the funeral.

His dad was visiting Elizabethtown, Kentucky when he died. This was his hometown. It is decided that Drew will represent the family on behalf of his mum and sister and see the body. He boards a flight, which is empty, just him on it. The air stewardess Claire moves him to First Class and when she finds out where he is going she draws him a map to help him. She also leaves him her telephone number.

This is basically how the story begins…

I do not want to give the plot away as it is for you to now watch if you choose to. The story is about Drew meeting his family who are all very close, living in the small town of Elizabethtown. He meets different characters including his aunt who teaches him about his family, his cousin who used to be in a rock band and his dad’s close friends. There is a wide range of different characters that are not a big part of this film but make it more interesting and in some places funny. It is about his relationship with his father and the story is also about his relationship with Claire. This film is him coming to terms with the death of his father and also the fact that he is not the successful person that he was and will have to start again.

Alec Baldwin only stars in the first ten minutes of the film as Drew’s boss. The main characters are Drew played by Orlando Bloom and Claire Colburn played by Kirsten Dunst. I thought both of the performances were good, nothing brilliant but good enough. Susan Sarandon plays Drew’s mum Hollie. She is a support character but when she is on screen I thought she was really good. She is very good at showing a woman who is trying to cope with the sudden death of her husband. Another character in the film is Drew’s sister Heather, played by Judy Greer. She is shown throughout this film supporting her mum while her brother is away.

The soundtrack to this film is really good. There are plenty of songs in it. Artists on the soundtrack include Tom Petty, Elton John, The Hollies, Jeff Finlin and My Morning Jacket. After having a quick look online, I have noticed that there is also a second volume of the soundtrack from artists such as Ryan Adams, Nancy Wilson and the Temptations. As this is spreads over two volumes I do not need to really say how many songs there are in this film but it makes it really enjoyable.

Cameron Crowe directed this film and he did this after Vanilla Sky, a film I really enjoyed.

Extras

As extras go I have to say these are not at all interesting:

Training Wheels

This is on for just under two and a half minutes and plays a song. While the song is playing it goes through clips of different members rehearsing their scenes. It was dull.

Meet the Crew

This was another song playing, just over two and a half minutes. This showed different members of the crew and their name and title was shown at the bottom of the screen.

Rusty’s Learning To Listen Part 8

There was a video that was shown to some noisy children in the film, apparently it makes them quiet when watching it. This is a copy of that clip.

Hanging with Russell in Memphis

At one point as part of a Road Trip Drew pops into a bar to speak to a bartender about his time working in a bar in Memphis. The bartender talks about who he has met in his time and other stories. This is an extended version of the one shown in the film.

I would not recommend after watching the film to have a look at the extras. It seems that they have just been added to say there are extras but it is nothing different from what you have already seen.

The film is slightly funny in places; it made me smile at times. I am not sure if was supposed to be a comedy but can definitely say it is a lighthearted film that was enjoyable to watch. I would not watch it again though. It is a film that I could easily forget about and not one that I could have a chat about and discuss. At two hours long I did find I was clock watching at times but it was never dull enough that I wanted to turn it off and as I have said before, for the most part I enjoyed it.

This is a film that I have sure a lot of people will have different views on. I would say this was average but it was nice to watch on a Sunday afternoon. It was enjoyable and light hearted so if that is the type of movie you are looking to watch, nothing to serious, then I would recommend it. Not one I would say go out and buy but maybe rent it (but not as a priority if there is something else available) or watch it one day on TV.

Thanks for reading