Review of Elizabethtown (2005) by Rhett D — 11 Jun 2018

Drew Baylor (Orlando Bloom, sporting the American accent) is a promising shoe designer until he quickly learns how failure feels when a bad sneaker design becomes the humiliation of the footwear industry. As a result of losing his job and the company nearly a billion dollars, Drew goes home where he?s fashioned a ?suicide machine? out of an exercise bike and a knife. Before he can off himself in medieval fashion, he is interrupted by his cell phone ringing (ring tone: ?I Can?t Get Next to You? by the Temptations). It?s his sister telling him that his father has died while on a trip to his home town of Elizabethtown, Kentucky.

Drew?s mother (Susan Sarandon) immediately elects him to go deal with the arrangements because he is the ?responsible" and "successful" one. Well, Drew?s life has ended and there is no need for the suicide machine anymore. He takes a redeye flight ASAP. While being the only passenger on the plane, Drew meets a perky, young flight attendant named Claire (played by the beautiful Kirsten Dunst). She tells him all about herself even if he doesn?t want to know. After the flight has ended, Claire supplies Drew with a hand-drawn map to Elizabethtown. Upon arrival, he meets wacky relatives who seemed to have known his father better than he did. Drew also stumbles into a romance with weird but charming Claire, whose wisdom, lust for life, and good taste in music may help Drew come to terms with his new place in the world, and possibly a better one.

?Elizabethtown? is classic Cameron Crowe. All of the sensational and offbeat characters are there, and there?s always a great soundtrack. The film features great tracks from Tom Petty, Elton John, and Ryan Adams. The film is about finding yourself in one of the last places you would ever look. It?s a very memorable romantic road trip movie. At the end, Drew hits the road with his father's ashes and a mix tape from Claire that lets Crowe show how rock & roll can remind us of what makes life worth living. This part of the movie should go down in cinematic history. It?s well-filmed and heartfelt.

Crowe has made a blend of his previous films ?Say Anything? and ?Almost Famous? and come out with a great cocktail of a movie. It?s well-acted, filmed and well-edited, and it captures an aspect of the country not everyone has seen. It is definitely worth seeing not only once, but twice. Crowe is a splendid film maker and it is proven in ?Elizabethtown.?