Review of Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012) by Metamotivcritic — 22 Jun 2012

The first point to be made here is that I certainly wouldn't choose Betsy Sharkey or A. O. Scott or the previous "users" as my critics of choice for the end of the world (though some would certainly qualify for the role of buzz-kill if I needed one.

). This is a surprisingly sweet movie (an observation from someone who usually doesn't like "sweet" movies), and it is precisely the setting of this rather corny but affecting relationship element against the "dark" but never-taken-too-seriously background of the "end of the world" that makes it so effective.

(Apparently some people were expecting "Dinner with Schmucks" while others wanted either "On the Beach" or John Paul Sartre.) I don't usually like Steve Carell (too glib) and think that Keira Knightley is somewhat overrated.

But here Carell's basic "sweetness" (that word again) and decency shine through his deadpan performance, and Knightley proves to be a surprisingly charming comedienne. (Sorry, I didn't see the Pirates of the Carribbean movies.

) The script is admittedly uneven, but there are nevertheless some great moments (esp., the lame boyfriend, but also the cop who insists on giving the tickets despite the impending apocalypse and the employer asking the few remaining employees who wants to be CFO).

More importantly, it is the evolving (albeit not entirely believable--though Scott's "copping a cuddle" seems misanthropic in the extreme) relationship between the two opposite "losers in love" and the fact that, once again, the writer never takes herself too seriously (unlike, for example, Lans von Trier) that makes the movie both likable and fairly touching.