Now on DVD: Away We Go

Months ago, I saw Away We Go in the movie theater and thought that it was cute and humorous in the way that made me smirk but not laugh out loud. I decided to watch the film again with my girlfriend who had not seen it. I am so thrilled that I did! Whatever I thought was lacking in my first viewing, I was able to better understand the second time I saw it.

The plot is simple. Burt (John Krasinski) and his girlfriend Verona (Maya Rudolph) are two thirty-somethings who believe that they have never exactly gotten their lives together. When Verona finds that she is pregnant, all of their insecurities are brought into the foreground. The couple believes that they cannot raise the child alone and therefore decide to travel across the country (and into Canada) to find a place near family or friends that feels like home to them. With each stop on their trip, Burt and Verona come to realize that there is no such thing as normalcy and that the best family is one that you make yourself.

I found the plot to be pretty predictable but that did not stop me from enjoying the film. Krasinski and Rudolph fit their characters perfectly! Their vignettes in various cities spotlight Jeff Daniels, Alison Janney, Jim Gaffigan, and Maggie Gyllenhaal each of whom do and exceptional job in depicting various views on parenthood. Though this film is not laugh out loud funny, I definitely giggled numerous times and smiled for almost the entire two hours. It is tender in all the ways a good movie should be. It shares many of the same themes that Juno does: pregnancy is not the end of the earth, in fact, it can help you find yourself and those you love. Overall, it's worth a viewing...maybe two.

-DLP