Away We Go (2009)

A lot of the movies I missed while in Germany (most of the smaller-release ones either don't come out there at all or take many months to arrive) are starting to come to DVD, which is exciting for me, and hopefully for you, too! Now you get to read about movies you probably already saw or heard tons about months ago, so really I'm giving you a chance to relive your summer during this impossibly cold October. You're welcome.

Written by awesome spousal team Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida, Away We Go focuses on thirtysomething couple Burt (John Krasinski) and Verona (Maya Rudolph), who are expecting their first child. When they learn that Burt's parents (Jeff Daniels and Catherine O'Hara), on whom they'd planned to lean while trying to support their new son, are moving to Belgium before he's even born, they decide to find a new place to live. They visit various old friends and family members scattered around North America, testing out different cities to see what's right for them. They see Verona's wacky old boss (Allison Janney) and sister (Carmen Ejogo) in Phoenix, Burt's pretentious hippie childhood friend LN (Maggie Gyllenhaal) in Chicago, old college buddies (Melanie Lynskey and Chris Messina) in Montreal, and Burt's brother (Paul Schneider) in Miami.

All of the people they visit give varying amounts of unsolicited advice on parenting and relationships, often pointing out the couple's unmarried status. The effect of Verona's parents' deaths when she was in her early 20's is also brought up fairly frequently. For the most part, the couple rejects their friends' lifestyles, relying on their own strong relationship and mutual respect to realize what they really want out of their future.

I just realized that while I have heard so much about him, I've never actually seen a Sam Mendes film. I'm pretty sure Away We Go is more lighthearted than his other works, but I think he handled the combination of comedy and drama well. The structure is that of a typical road movie, broken up into several segments with the central figures meeting different kooky characters and learning things about themselves along the way. Its strength lies in Burt and Verona's relationship, and their excellent characterization by Krasinski and Rudolph. I really liked the little moments of just Burt and Verona talking about their problems, worrying about the future, reveling in inside jokes, and just hanging out. Their conversations are engaging and realistic, and just nice to watch.

The different segments are, to me, hit and miss. I didn't enjoy the part with Allison Janney because her character is too unlikable. Maggie Gyllenhaal's part is pretty funny, but also made me uncomfortable. I liked the trips to Montreal and Miami, though. The main thing about Away We Go which I found alienating is the heavy amount of pregnancy/baby/parenting talk. As a person who has no interest in having kids, and who doesn't really enjoy talking about it in detail with people who love children, I just wasn't particularly interested in a lot of the conversations. It's still an interesting film with strong lead characters and great direction, just not really my thing in general I guess.

3.5/5