| Review:
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The 'he said, she said' gabby Away We Go could very
well be viewed as a comedic alternative to director Sam
Mendes' radically darker Revolutionary Road. Or maybe just
a way for the filmmaker with daydreamer wanderlust tendencies,
to wind down from that claustrophobic morbid venture into
suburban family values, twisted and otherwise. Based on
the screenplay by Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida, this likewise
intended matrimonial road movie unfortunately sends out
negative vibes before the cinematic journey even begins.
Verona (an uncharacteristically glum Maya Rudolph) and Burt
(John Krasinski) are a likeable enough interracial couple
currently caught by surprise in the metaphorical noose of
expectant surprise parenthood, and while also on the brink
of turning a corner age-wise into the big 40.***
Though likeability in this case does tend to stop at
the too much information bedroom door. For instance, do
we really need to know during the opening scene of this
movie that Burt has a unique talent for detecting flavor
variations of female crotches over time?***
And the rather immature couple who seem to be commitment
challenged in life beyond their loyalty to one another,
make an impulsive decision to drop everything and embark
on a cross-country search for roots somewhere or other,
and a place to nest among a dubious menu of family and old
friends. The potential selections on hand to call home,
as Verona's pregancy progresses along the way, by contrast
dwindle sharply into an unpalatable, ever exceedingly short
list.***
First there are Burt's egotistical boomer parents (Jeff
Daniels and Catherine O'Hara), who decide at this inopportune
moment for the expectant pair, to skip the country on a
journey of discovery of their own, while boorishly wondering
out loud just how black this baby is going to be. Still
later it's off to Wisconsin, and Burt's brash New Age cousin
(Maggie Gyllenhaal) who insists that having sex in front
of children is essential to their emotional development.
Other ill-advised pit stops find the equally bad parenting
of likely traumatized kids to be funny, or infertility elsewhere
as a source of obsessive nagging neurosis.***
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