I clicked play on the trailer for Seeking a Friend at the End of the World (the directorial debut of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist screenwriter Lorene Scafaria), prepared to see Steve Carell slumming it in yet another mediocre broad comedy, but instead it opened with a catchy plot – the mission to save Earth has failed, there’s an asteroid on a collision course with Earth and everyone has three weeks to live – then our buddy Rob Huebel showed up, and by the time Patton Oswalt arrived as a boozy dude drinking wine straight from a carafe at an end-of-the-world booze orgy, I had already glee-fainted and was leaking saliva on the linoleum. Excuse me for saying, but this looks really good! Oops, I don’t often use exclamation points, as I consider them campy and effeminate. GRRR, FOOTBALL.
Just the fact that they used Talking Heads and not “It’s the End of the World As We Know It” screams “restraint” and bodes well for the movie. It may not seem like a lot, but keep in mind that Tyler Perry is currently playing a guy named “Deeds” in a film called “Good Deeds” about learning the value of good deeds. (Move over, M. Night Shyamalan!)
[Opens June 22nd]
Jake Gyllenhaal was always more of a “bright side” guy.