A middle aged man (
Steve Carell) heads off on a road trip to reconnect with the one that got away, with his kooky neighbour (
Kiera Knightley) in tow. Did we mention there are just three weeks left until a giant asteroid ends all life on the planet…?
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World is not your run of the mill ‘last chance’ romantic drama – combining as it does elements of comedy, drama and pending apocalypse which could make for uneasy bedfellows. There are also warning signals in the form of it being helmed by first time director
Scafaria, whose only real previous credit is the story for 2008s
Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist.
But there’s hope here too – principally in the form of
Carell. It’s hard to believe that he was an unknown a mere seven years ago, becoming a fully fldeged comedy leading man in rapid fashion after the success of
The 40 Year Old Virgin. Next to the
Sandlers,
Stiller’s and
Ferrells, there’s still a sense of modesty around
Carell, of an actor who is still willing to try his best to make every movie work.
Carell is paired with real life wife Nancy on for a spell here but spends most of the running time opposite
Knightley. Her comedy credits are a little less obvious, though we did find her gyrations in
A Dangerous Method hilarious. Supporting players include the sometimes funny
Rob Corddry,
Adam Brody and
Melanie Lynskey.
The final hurdle for
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World is that it seems to be setting itself up for a pretty dour tone. Scafaria will have to be careful to mine laughs from this material without depressing the audience, especially if the ending goes in the direction we suspect.