Movie Review- Away We Go

Perfect casting, great writing, director Sam Mendes ("American Beauty") and an even better storyline has made "Away We Go" the best movie i have reviewed. How's that for an introduction?!

"Away We Go" follows the life of irreverent, underachievers Burt (John Krasinski), a college dropout who sells insurance to insurance companies and Verona (Maya Rudolph), an artist who paints intestines. The couple that has been together since college, discover that they are expecting. Happy, but nervous, they go to Burt's eccentric, hippie parents (Jeff Daniels and Catherine O'Hara) for a visit. The parents drop a bomb when they announce that Burt's father got a job in Belguim for two years and is leaving within the month. They offer them the house for 2 years as long as their real estate agent doesn't find a renter before then. Moments later he does. Later that night Verona comes up with an idea to find a new place to raise their child. With no drawbacks they hit the road meeting up with old friends and family, all the while discovering things about their lives and relationships.

Pros:
As I mentioned, perfect casting. Maya Rudolph and John Krasinski are perfect as an odd couple with no direction. They have really good chemistry and created believable, relateable characters. More so, the supporting cast of out-of-whack characters add to the blend of the film and added great laughs. All of the supporting cast, who aren't on screen longer than 10 minutes apiece, have a lot of depth to them, a consequence of impeccable writing. The dialogue is smart, even when it's lowbrow. But the lowbrow is acceptable mainly because it matches the character who is speaking at the time. The movie never misses a beat, from start to finish.

Cons:
The ending was predictable. Initially, I assumed the end would be a slow-motion, labor scene with all the characters smiling and laughing, and cooing at the new baby. Kudos for not doing that. But as soon as Verona's sister mentioned the house I knew exactly what the end was going to be. I wish they could have made that a little less obvious.

Recommendation:
Buy it.

Written By:
Dave Eggers
Vendela Vida

Directed By:
Sam Mendes

MAIN CAST:
John Krasinski ("License to Wed","Leatherheads")
Maya Rudolph ("Prairie Home Companion", "Idiocracy")
Jeff Daniels ("Dumb and Dumber", "State of Play")
Catherine O'Hara ("Home Alone", "A Mighty Wind")
Allyson Janey ("Drop Dead Gorgeous", TVs "The West Wing")
Jim Gaffigan ("13 Going on 30", "17 Again")
Carmen Ejogo ("The Brave One", "Pride and Glory")
Maggie Gyllenhaal ("Stranger then Fiction", "The Dark Knight")
Josh Hamilton ("Ice Age", "Bourne Identity")
Chris Messina ("Made of Honor", "Julie and Julia")
Melanie Lynskey ("Sweet Home Alabama", "The Informant")
Paul Schneider ("The Assassination of Jesse James...", "Lars and the Real Girl")

Similar Titles:
Garden State, Juno, American Beauty