Review: Away We Go

I had no biases or ideas coming into Away We Go. I didn't see any trailers and I didn't read any reviews or articles. The only thing I did know going in, which I forgot until the credits rolled, was that it was directed by Sam Mendes. Some of you may know that he directed Revolutionary Road with Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, Jarhead with Jake Gyllenhaal, Tom Hanks' Road to Perdition, and American Beauty. All of these are good films to varying degrees with the exception perhaps of Road to Perdition which was kind of hit or miss as far as I was concerned. His high point was Revolutionary Road, which was at once one of the most real and depressing movies I have ever had the (dis?)pleasure to see. Anyways, as I mentioned before, I forgot that he directed Away We Go so why I went to such great lengths to recount his past films is beyond me.

I'd start by saying Away We Go is largely a harmless film. What I mean by this is that it never presents a specific conflict to be overcome or put our chief characters in a position that one wonders how they will survive. This isn't a bad thing, but I imagine that the movie leaves itself open to multiple interpretations. The story revolves around Burt (John Krasinski) and Verona (Maya Rudolph) discovering in an uncomfortable opening scene that they are going to have a baby. Shortly after informing Burt's parents (Verona's are dead, a plot point addressed half heartedly throughout the film), they discover that said parents are moving out of the country a month before the birth of their grandchild. This is shocking to the pair as they have apparently settled into a life devoid of connections outside of Burt's wacky parents; played to hilariously unnerving effect by Jeff Daniels and Catherine O'Hara. The obvious move? Fly across the country to 'test drive' different locations and friends/family until they find a place that they feel comfortable. Life lessons, unpleasantries, and acceptance follow closely in their wake as they both learn to put focus on their lives one experience at a time.

Right off the bat, the premise of the movie seemed slightly shaky to me. Deciding on a new place to live with more friends or acquaintances makes sense, but flying across the country and awkwardly meeting with estranged friends and family? It's hard to swallow, especially taking to light the fact that the apparent sub-middle class surroundings they call home don't exactly scream extra money to afford such an extravagant experiment. Needless to say, the movie is spared this slightly incongruous element by the amount of heart the filmmakers are able to inject into the story. This is thanks in no small part to both Krasinski and Rudolph. The former puts in what amounts to my favorite performance by the Office actor; infusing his character with some genuine emotions and for once non-generic delivery. Maya Rudolph was an x-factor for me and she defied my perceptions of her and created a likable and real character in spite of it. It helps that the two actors have a believable chemistry so much so that the film does not have to labor to convince you that they are good together. It's also worth noting here that this movie also contains the one performance I've ever enjoyed from Maggie Gyllenhaal. She's surprisingly funny and her timing is spot on here; she makes her character.

So they set off on their journey, and each encounter is significantly weirder than the next. These scenes almost push the envelope of believability, but the central couple plays well as the proverbial 'straight man' so that the insanity on screen is appropriately shared with the audience. The movie doesn't do much to provide a point to its proceedings besides one vignette to the next. Despite all this I believe that a discernible meaning to it all can be plundered from all of the experiences our characters happen upon. The movie seems to deal with the inevitability of life and the things that happen to everyone. Burt and Verona visit different sets of people whom have all experienced life and dealt with it in different ways with the exception of Verona's sister who helps them realize they've been lucky together. They experience the unhappy couple who are not dealing with parent and adulthood very well. They meet the couple that seems to have a perfect situation, but secretly struggle with dark personal demons that at once cement their bonds and test their emotional strength. They also view the remnants of a couple destroyed by the pressures of what Burt and Verona are venturing into. It's at this juncture that they learn the most important lesson: there's no telling what the future will bring suffice it to face it together and to use the lessons of the past.

Away We Go ends up being much lighter fare than some of Mendes' previous efforts and ends up falling victim to some 'indie movie' tropes, but has enough heart to still be worth seeing. I imagine that people closer to the age of the principal characters will find many more lessons about adulthood than someone in my shoes, but the movie is still worth it in a much more general sense of growing up. There's a sense of inevitability to the proceedings in this film and to real life by proxy. The audience is left with the same feeling as the characters in the final scene: We can only do what we can do and hope that it gets us through until life throws the next curve at us. Overall though, Away We Go is a heartfelt movie that will leave you with a sense of hope even though it doesn't outright promise that life will always yield it.