Run Fat Boy Run is the 2007 comedy directed by David Schwimmer. I'm certain that everyone will know David Schwimmer from the fantastic American sit-com Friends however not everybody is aware that he is also a an acclaimed director. He directed numerous episodes of Friends. His most recent directorial role was on episodes of Little Britain USA which was very well received in both Britain & the US. Run Fat Boy Run was his first feature film in which he directed. He has acted in several films previously including Big Nothing starring Simon Pegg & he also did a voice over for the very successful animation Madagascar.
Run Fat Boy Run was released on 7th September 2007 & stars Simon Pegg, Thandie Newton & Hank Azaria.
Simon Pegg is an award winning English writer, actor, director & comedian. He is best known for the fantastic Shaun Of The Dead & Hot Fuzz but has recently made a successful move to Hollywood, starring in How To Lose Friends & Alienate People, he starred opposite acclaimed American actress Kirsten Dunst. The film didn't do as well as expected at the box office & with the critics however that hasn't put him off, he's starring in the up-coming Star-Trek revival film which is released in May this year.
Thandie
Newton is an English Bafta award winning actress who has definitely cracked America. She's starred in many big budget movies including Mission Impossible II, The Pursuit Of Happyness & Crash. She was also scheduled to be in the Charlie's Angels film however she had other commitments & her role ended up going to Lucy Liu.
Hank Azaria is an American actor best known for his roles as David 'the scientist guy' in Friends & for playing numerous voices in The Simpsons. He's also starred in films Along Came Polly with Friends co-star Jennifer Aniston, The Birdcage & Godzilla. He has won four Emmys & a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Run Fat Boy Run was co-written by it's main star Simon Pegg. It had a budget of $10,000,000. It runs for 90 minutes & has a 12 rating. The film received mixed reviews. It topped the UK box office charts for four weeks straight. Worldwide the film grossed $34,986,194.
The film revolves around main character Dennis Doyle (Simon Pegg) he works as a security guard for a women's clothing store. He hates his life & where he lives. The only thing good in his life is his son Jake (Matthew Fenton) & ex-girlfriend Libby (Thandie Newton). Dennis is still madly in love with Libby however he blew his chance five years ago when he ran out on their wedding day, leaving a pregnant Libby devastated. She has forgiven Dennis for what he's done however she does not want to get back with him.
Libby has recently started seeing someone, much to the dismay of Dennis. Libby is seeing Whit (Hank Azaria, a good looking American with a great job. He runs marathons for charity, Dennis is obviously intimidated by him but tries his best not to let it show. Whit is also great with Jake. Libby is smitten with him.
Dennis is an un-fit layabout that has never followed through with anything in his life. He's a failure & he knows it. He lost the best thing in his life because he was too scared of commitment. With the marathon coming up in three weeks Dennis, after a conversation with Whit decides he is going to run too. He thinks that if he completes the marathon then Libby will take him back.
On first watching this film I wasn't expecting to enjoy it at all & I was extremely surprised when I did. I enjoyed some of Simon Pegg's previous films (Shaun Of The Dead) however some (Hot Fuzz) I didn't like at all so I was sceptical as to whether I would enjoy this.
Run Fat Boy Run has a pretty ridiculous storyline, the thought of a man training for three weeks then being able to complete a marathon is a little far-fetched however this is actually a very enjoyable film & unlike a lot of comedies these days it has a lot of funny moments. I would recommend this film to any fans of Simon Pegg, if you're not a fan then chances are you wont enjoy this as the humour is very similar to his other films however it's a lot more enjoyable than others. It's a real underdog story & everyone loves an underdog story! This is a film that you will ultimately love or hate. Some of the jokes are very predictable & some can be extremely silly & normally that would put me off a film but to my surprise it didn't put me off this. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's got just the right amount of comedy & romance to make it a really enjoyable film. There's also a memorable cameo appearance from Little Britain star David Walliams as the guy in the cake shop with all the outrageous orders.
The film's currently available from play.com for £4.99 & at £4.99 even if you don't like the film after buying it then you haven't exactly lost much have you?
The soundtrack is also available from play.com for £4.99. Nice Work If You Can Get It -Bing Crosby Radio Song - Dirty Pretty Things I Like That - Air Traffic Queen Bitch - David Bowie Something Kinda Ooooh - Girls Aloud Chelsea Dagger - Fratellis Beach Samba - Astrud Gilberto Girls And Boys In Love - Rumble Strips 54 46 Was My Number - Toots & The Maytals Story Problem - Envy Corps Ghetto Love - Macy Gray Magic Position - Patrick Wolf Better - Tom Baxter Everyday I Love You Less And Less - Kaiser Chiefs Concept - Teenage Fanclub Monkey Man - Amy Winehouse Keep On Running - Goldspot
Overall I would recommend you watch this film however if you're not really a fan of Simon Pegg it might be sensible to rent this first instead of buying it.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
Comedy - Director: Richard Boden, Mandie Fletcher, Martin Shardlow - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Hugh Laurie, Miranda Richardson, Stephen Fry, Brian Blessed, Tim McInnerny, Tony Robinson, Rowan Atkinson
Comedy - Director: Tony Dow - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: John Challis, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst, Tessa Peake-Jones, Gwyneth Strong
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