Seeking a Friend for the End of the World
What would you do if you knew that the world was coming to an end in three weeks? Would you go all Caligula and have non-stop orgies? Would you reconnect with those you’ve lost contact with? Or would you just go about your life as if it was going to continue on?
All of these questions are explored in Lorene Scafaria’s ambitious, hilarious dramatic comedy. Making her directorial debut, the writer of 2008’s underrated “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist” has no shortage of bold ideas in this story of Dodge (Steve Carell), an insurance salesman whose wife has just run out on him (literally) when news hits that humanity’s last chance at destroying a world-ending asteroid fails. Now he’s alone, counting down the end of days with everyone else. While his friends have their plans set, Dodge just seems to be going through the motions of life until one of his neighbors, Penny (Keira Knightley), drops in, teary-eyed, and in need of companionship. Penny is upset about not getting to see her parents again (all flights have stopped), while Dodge is thinking about Olivia, or as most movies know her, “the one who got away.” Dodge knows someone with an airplane, and Penny seems like pretty good company to be with as he goes looking for the love of his life. As they hit the road, they see how others are trying to cope, and it makes them wonder about whether their priorities in the right place.
Scafaria isn’t interested in massive visual effects or “Armageddon”-like heroics. This is a film about the human perspective of the world ending. Perhaps one of the most fascinating exchanges in the movie is when Penny and Dodge end up in jail, along with a doomsday enthusiast with a sign saying, “The end is here.” Dodge admires the enthusiast’s Zen-like peace, having found contentment because, well, he was right. Those type of moments give “Seeking a Friend” a personal foundation that it builds on with the performances by Carell (who continues to get better and bolder as an actor) and Knightley (in, arguably, her best performance since “Pride & Prejudice”). If I am around for the end times (and I’ll admit, I kind of want to be to see what it’s like), I hope that I have people like Dodge and Penny to spend the time I have left with, and that my time will be filled with the same mixture of funny and profoundly touching moments as this jewel is. That way, I could spend my last moments on Earth with the same level of peace the guy in the jail cell has. That’d be a good way to go.
