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| Amy Schumer and Bill Hader want your attention on the poster for Judd Apatow's Trainwreck |
If you haven't heard of Trainwreck by now, you can be certain that you're not an in person. You don't know what's going on today; you're not hip, you're not riding the hip-train. Because the hip city folk of today have heard of or seen Trainwreck already.
Amy is a New Yorker single woman, who works on a trashy gossip magazine and has so far been following her father's advice of mistrusting monogamy. But as she now meets and falls for a grounded sports doctor, she begins to reevaluate her life choices.
Trainwreck is written by its star Amy Schumer (Inside Amy Schumer (2013-15)) and directed by master filmmaker Judd Apatow (Knocked Up (2007)), and in a way it's the story of a Carrie Bradshaw-like woman (of Sex and the City (1998-04) fame), without the alleviating friends, and told in a different humorous tone.
Some of the critics and pundits who seem to bellow out 'gender revolution' across the plains at the arrival of Trainwreck may have forgotten this show and a long list of other woman-lead comedies before it. That being said, Trainwreck does turn some relationship dynamics on their head, - compared to their traditional depiction, - and that is part of the film's attraction for sure.
Trainwreck is a raunch comedy and a romcom. - I think it pushes its raunch label too squarely for its first about 45 minutes (of 124); Schumer and co-stars squeeze a 'fuck' and a 'tits' in whereever possible, and it stretches some of the realism a bit, (and doesn't always result in laughter or amusement.)
But Trainwreck is still a lot of fun and an event comedy that should be seen now, as it's in its full, fresh bloom.
The details:
Schumer jumps into the major spotlight in a rare way here, and even if you hold reservations towards her going in, they will most likely come down in the course of the film. As Trainwreck came to a close in the cinema where I saw it, SPOILER audiences certainly held no laughter back as Schumer presented her cheerleader/basketball abilities. - The scene is a heart-stealer.
Trainwreck is bolstered by Bill Hader (Inside Out (2015)) as Schumer's likable new boyfriend. Other funny actors include surprisingly strong supporting performances from John Cena (12 Rounds (2009)), who puts himself out there in a part that both includes nudity and implicit homosexuality. LeBron James (Entourage (2009) TV-series) is also a lot of fun here in his big screen debut. Tilda Swinton (Broken Flowers (2005)) is more mean and sociopathic than fun. She is rejoined with Film Excess favorite Ezra Miller (We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011)), who has a memorable, sexy and strange scene towards the end.
Trainwreck is Apatow's 5th big screen movie to date, and though I really like it, I still like his four other movies more.
Related reviews:
2011 in films - according to Film Excess
Judd Apatow: Bridesmaids (2011) - Subversive comedy with laughs a-plenty (producer)
The 40 Year-Old Virgin (2005) or, Let the Sunshine In
The Cable Guy (1996) - Stiller's dark comedy is a riot (producer)
Watch the trailer for the movie here
Cost: 35 mil. $
Box office: 137.7 mil. $ and counting
= Big hit
[Trainwreck was filmed in May-August 2014 in New York and on Long Island. It premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival and opened to stellar reviews and a 30 mil. $ opening weekend, Apatow's second-best to date, behind Knocked Up with 30.6 mil. $. It has grossed 108.7 mil. $ in North America to date, the large majority of its gross. Schumer has established herself in America, but the surrounding world is still hesitant, (or just slow.) Trainwreck is 85 % certified fresh with a 7.2 average on Rotten Tomatoes.]
What do you think of Trainwreck?
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