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Note: May contain spoilers. Proceed with caution.
It's the end of the world!... for the 100th time in three years. Yes, while the whole end of the world theme has been pretty overdone recently, none of those films even come close to the beauty of this one. As the credits started rolling I found myself in tears and I wasn't able to regain my composure for a good fifteen minutes. Still, as I continued to fight back tears for the remainder of the night, I found myself unable to take my mind off of what I just watched. The emotion was so raw, the romance so pure, it was unlike anything I have witnessed in a movie. Don't get me wrong, there's been films that have made me emotional, but what went down with Seeking a Friend for the End of the World was an entirely different experience.
As the movie begins you quickly get caught up on what's going on. At this point we meet Dodge Paterson (Steve Carell) and learn that the mission to take down the asteroid known as Matilda has failed. Not only that, but the people of Earth only have three weeks left to live. It doesn't take long before Dodge meets Penny (Keira Knightley) and pretty soon they're off on their adventure together. You see, they both have different goals. Dodge wants to reconnect with the one that got away while Penny wants to get back to her family. Along the way an unexpected romance surfaces between these two individuals and the audience sees that, in some cases, opposites really do attract. Carell's character is a man we've seen him play many times before; unsure of himself, a little hesitant about interacting with people, etc. Penny, on the other hand, is this raw, unkempt woman who was never able to find her path in life.
One of the things I really loved about this movie was seeing just how different everyone reacted to what was going on. Some people started riots, some partied, worked on their bucket list, continued with their daily routine (work, mowing the lawn, etc.), went back to their families, or hid in a shelter. It gave me a weird feeling because how are you even supposed to react to something like that? There isn't a guideline on how to live when you know that the end is coming; you just have to figure it out yourself. It was all very dark because some people gave up while others seemed to be in denial.
Now I would have never thought that a Carell/Knightley team-up would work, but I would be lying if I said it didn't. While these two don't have what would be considered "normal" chemistry, it works given the context of the movie. Because their time is coming to a close they no longer have the same judgmental attitude that probably plagued them in the past. Instead, they got to know each other on a purely fundamental level and they're genuinely interested in learning about who they are and where they're from because they were previously living on completely opposite sides of the spectrum. With that said, towards the end I felt the advancement of their relationship felt a bit rushed, but it was something that had to be done to achieve the beautiful ending we were given.
Which brings me to my last major point about the plot, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World is not a comedy. Well, not really anyway. It can be funny at times, but it's not meant to be laugh out loud funny. Instead, most of the laughs come from seeing just how different everyone is reacting to their current situation. Whether it's Dodge's cleaning lady who won't stop cleaning his place or the cop who's still taking his job too seriously, it's the social aspect that makes you chuckle right before it gets you thinking. Also, the ending is harsh. The conclusion to the story isn't happy and it's basically there to make you feel sad. The emotional impact wouldn't have been possible without that weird chemistry between Carell and Knightley that I was talking about earlier. If anything, Seeking a Friend could probably be labeled as a RomCom that relies heavily on Drama. It's very heavy and touching, but with light comedic elements to not make it feel like a burden to watch.
The casting in the film was very well done. On the main front you have Carell and Knightley, but the movie is also filled with more than a few minor appearances. It would be a chore to list them all, so I'll just name a few. Along with the two leads you get appearances by Patton Oswalt, Martin Sheen, T.J. Miller, Melanie Lynskey, and Rob Corddry. Carell and Knightley, of course, steal the show, but it was nice to see a few familiar faces. Carell plays the same character we've seen him play before, but Knightley's performance helps add some spice to the mix. This has to be the first role I've seen her in where she wasn't playing a serious character, but she pulled it off wonderfully. After watching the movie I can't picture anyone else playing Penny.
Finally, the music in this movie is fantastic. Between the soundtrack and the score, composed by Rob Simonsen & Jonathan Sadoff, your ears are constantly being serenaded by beautiful sounds. The score was beautifully composed, bringing an added touch of emotion to each and every scene. Then the soundtrack - which consists of music from The Beach Boys, The Hollies, and The Walker Brothers - seems to add this somber peacefulness to an otherwise dire situation. I don't know, it all just seemed to fit perfectly with what was going on in each scene.
Overall Score: 8.75/10 - I find it difficult to sum up my feelings for Seeking a Friend. It was better than I anticipated while at the same time giving me something totally different than what I expected. I wasn't expecting it to move me the way it did, but I'm kind of glad it did. It's pure and it's honest and the ending is heartbreakingly beautiful. I can't recommend it enough.
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Customer reviews
Not formatted to play in America - sad.
Reviewed in the United States on March 8, 2020
A great movie, but formatted to not work in the United States. So, I paid for it and didn’t get to watch it. The seller offered solutions, but everything was on me to do and or pay for. Poor customer service. They should have provided me with a working copy, and they didn’t.
Reviewed in the United States on March 8, 2020
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