''Elizabethtown'' is a 2005 American romantic

tragicomedy Tragicomedy is a literary genre that blends aspects of both tragic and comic forms. Most often seen in dramatic literature, the term can describe either a tragic play which contains enough comic elements to lighten the overall mood or a seriou ...

film written and directed by

Cameron Crowe Cameron Bruce Crowe (born July 13, 1957) is an American journalist, author, writer, producer, director, actor, lyricist, and playwright. Before moving into the film industry, Crowe was a contributing editor at '' Rolling Stone'' magazine, for w ...

and distributed by Paramount Pictures. Its story follows a young shoe designer, Drew Baylor, who is fired from his job after costing his company an industry record of nearly one billion dollars. On the verge of suicide, Drew receives a call from his sister telling him that their father has died while visiting their former hometown of

Elizabethtown, Kentucky Elizabethtown is a home rule-class city and the county seat of Hardin County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 28,531 at the 2010 census, and was estimated at 30,289 by the U.S. Census Bureau in 2019, making it the 11th-largest city ...

. Deciding to postpone his suicide and bring their father's body back to Oregon, he then becomes involved in an unexpected romance with Claire Colburn, who he meets near the start of his journey. ''Elizabethtown'' stars Orlando Bloom,

Kirsten Dunst Kirsten Caroline Dunst (; born April 30, 1982) is an American actress. She made her acting debut in the short ''Oedipus Wrecks'' directed by Woody Allen in the anthology film '' New York Stories'' (1989). She then gained recognition for her ro ...

, Alec Baldwin, and

Susan Sarandon Susan Abigail Sarandon (; née Tomalin; born October 4, 1946) is an American actorMcCabe, Bruce"Susan Sarandon, the 'actor'" ''Boston Globe''. April 17, 1981. Retrieved January 21, 2021. and activist. She is the recipient of various accolades, ...

. The film was produced by

Cruise/Wagner Productions Cruise/Wagner Productions, also abbreviated as C/W Productions, was an American independent film production company. It was founded by actor Tom Cruise and his agent Paula Wagner in July 1992. Wagner had been representing Cruise for eleven years b ...

and

Vinyl Films Vinyl Films is an American film and television production company founded by producer and director, Cameron Crowe. He launched the film and television production company in 1996. Films * ''Jerry Maguire'' (1996) * ''Almost Famous'' (2000) * '' V ...

. It premiered September 4, 2005, at the

2005 Venice Film Festival The 62nd annual Venice International Film Festival opened on 31 August 2005 with Tsui Hark's ''Seven Swords'' and closed on 10 September 2005 with a screening of Peter Ho-sun Chan's musical '' Perhaps Love''. The lineups were announced by the fe ...

and was released worldwide on October 14, 2005. It grossed $10.6 million in its opening weekend and $52.2 million worldwide, against a budget of $45 million. It received generally negative reviews from critics.

Plot

Drew Baylor is a shoe designer for Mercury, a global sportswear company. When his latest shoe, meant to be his great life accomplishment, is found to have a flaw, it costs the company $972 million, and Drew is shamed by his boss, Phil, before he is asked to speak to the press—his future unknown and likely finished at Mercury. Disappointed in his failure, and the subsequent breakup with his fair-weather office girlfriend, Ellen, Drew stacks his expensive clothes and other valuables on the street for scavengers to take, then prepares to commit suicide. He stops at the last moment to answer a persistent phone caller, who turns out to be his sister, Heather, telling him that his father, Mitch, has died while visiting family in

. When his mother, Hollie, refuses to go because of a long-time dispute between her and the Kentucky Baylors, who are bitter about Hollie and Mitch moving to the West Coast, Drew volunteers to retrieve his father's remains and plans to go through with the suicide upon his return. On the flight to

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

, Drew meets flight attendant Claire, who is managing the almost completely empty 747. To make her shift easier, she strikes up a conversation with Drew and invites him to move up to first-class seating. Depressed about his work failure, he tries to ignore the bubbly, quirky Claire who has nothing to do on the flight except talk to him incessantly about Kentucky and alludes to her boyfriend, "Ben", who is a workaholic. At the end of the trip, Claire gives him a paper with directions, helpful tips, and her phone number to help him get to his destination before they part. Drew dismisses Claire, who seems to be trying to get the last of his attentions as he seeks the airport exit. Arriving to Elizabethtown, Drew is met by the family. He makes arrangements for

cremation Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre is ...

at his mother's request, despite the family's objections. While staying at a hotel, where a raucous bachelor party and wedding reception is being held, Drew calls his mother and sister, then his ex, Ellen, as he struggles with boredom and depression. Finally, he calls Claire, who is also alone because Ben is away working, and they talk for hours. She impulsively suggests they meet at sunrise, before she has to depart on a flight to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

. They have a quiet, platonic moment, and then they part ways as she leaves for her trip. Drew struggles between the family members and his mother's demands regarding burial arrangements. His mother is manically attempting self-improvement to compensate for the loss of her husband. Claire suddenly appears at the hotel, claiming Drew's needs for help outweigh her needs for a tropical vacation. They tour various parts of Kentucky and she helps him at the funeral home, picking out the urn and keeping Drew emotionally on track. During a post-dinner discussion with the older family, Drew sees the stovetop flame and panics about the cremation. Rushing to the funeral home, he is too late to stop his father's cremation. Solemn, he takes the urn back to the hotel, where Claire has crashed the bachelorette party. Things lead to their physical conclusion in his hotel room, but Drew is still wrapped up in his job and self-pity and they part on strained terms. Hollie and Heather arrive for the service, and Hollie, with newfound self-confidence, makes a breakthrough with the family with a standup comedy routine and a farewell tap dance to Mitch. Claire arrives, and tells Drew to take a final trip with his father, giving him a binder box with customized itineraries and mix CDs for the road trip. Drew follows Claire's map home, spreading his father's ashes at memorable destinations along the way until he reaches the "World's Second Largest Farmer's Market" in Nebraska. There, a series of notes and clues gives him a choice: to either follow the map home or to go in a new direction, searching for the "girl in the red hat." He finds Claire, they kiss, and Drew realizes he loves her.

Cast

* Orlando Bloom as Drew Baylor *

as Claire Colburn *

as Hollie Baylor * Alec Baldwin as Phil DeVoss *

Bruce McGill Bruce Travis McGill (born July 11, 1950) is an American actor. He worked with director Michael Mann in the movies '' The Insider'' (1999), ''Ali'' (2001), and '' Collateral'' (2004). McGill's other notable film roles include Daniel Simpson "D-Da ...

as Bill Banyon *

Judy Greer Judith Therese Evans (born July 20, 1975), known professionally as Judy Greer, is an American actress. She is primarily known as a character actress, who has appeared in a wide variety of films. She first rose to prominence in a variety of suppor ...

as Heather Baylor *

Jessica Biel Jessica Claire Timberlake ( née Biel ; born March 3, 1982) is an American actress and model. She has received various accolades, including a Young Artist Award, and nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award and two Golden Globe Awards. Bie ...

as Ellen Kishmore * Paul Schneider as Jesse Baylor *

Loudon Wainwright III Loudon Snowden Wainwright III (born September 5, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actor. He has released twenty-six studio albums, four live albums, and six compilations. Some of his best-known songs include "The Swimmin ...

as Uncle Dale *

Gailard Sartain Gailard Sartain (born September 18, 1946) is an American retired actor, often playing characters with roots in the South. He was a regular on the country music variety series ''Hee Haw''. He is also known for his roles in three of the Ernest m ...

as Charles Dean *

Jed Rees Jed Rees (born March 8, 1970) is a Canadian actor, best known for his roles in movies such as ''Galaxy Quest'' (1999), '' The Ringer'' (2005), ''Deadpool'' (2016), and '' American Made'' (2017). Early life Rees studied music for two years in co ...

as Chuck Hasboro * Jim Fitzpatrick as Rusty *

Paula Deen Paula Ann Hiers Deen (born January 19, 1947) is an American chef, cookbook author, and TV personality. Deen resides in Savannah, Georgia, where she owns and operates The Lady & Sons restaurant and Paula Deen's Creek House with her sons, Jamie ...

as Aunt Dora * Dan Biggers as Uncle Roy * Alice Marie Crowe as Aunt Lena * Tim Devitt as Mitch Baylor * Ted Manson as Sad Joe *

Shane Lyons Shane Lyons (born February 18, 1988) is an American chef, restaurateur and actor. He and partner Nick Lovvachini opened their New York restaurant in June 2013. Lyons was also a contestant on the 4th season of the Food Network Food Network ...

as Charlie Bill *

Emily Rutherfurd Emily Kernan Rutherfurd (born September 18, 1974) is an American actress. She played Christine "New Christine" Hunter in the CBS sitcom, ''The New Adventures of Old Christine'' (2006–10). Personal life Rutherfurd was born and raised in New Yo ...

as Cindy Hasboro

Production

Jane Fonda was cast in Sarandon's role, but had to drop out.

Ashton Kutcher Christopher Ashton Kutcher (; born February 7, 1978) is an American actor, producer, entrepreneur, and former model. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a People's Choice Award, and nominations for two Young Artist Awards, a ...

Seann William Scott Seann William Scott (born October 3, 1976) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Steve Stifler in the '' American Pie'' franchise, and also for his role as Doug Glatt in both '' Goon'' and '' Goon: Last of the Enforcers''. He has al ...

Colin Hanks Colin Lewes Hanks (born November 24, 1977) is an American actor. He has starred in films including '' Orange County'', ''King Kong'', '' The House Bunny'', '' The Great Buck Howard'', and the ''Jumanji'' film series. His television credits includ ...

, Chris Evans, and

James Franco James Edward Franco (born April 19, 1978) is an American actor and filmmaker. For his role in '' 127 Hours'' (2010), he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. Franco is known for his roles in films, such as Sam Raimi's ''Spider-M ...

all auditioned for Bloom's part. Kutcher was actually hired to play Drew, but director Cameron Crowe decided during filming that the chemistry between him and Dunst was not right and Kutcher left the project. Biel auditioned for the female lead, but was given a smaller role as Drew's ex-girlfriend. There is a character named Ben who is mentioned as a love interest of Claire. In the original cut of the film, Ben is revealed to be Claire's brother. Recognizable settings for scenes shot in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, include the Brown Hotel, Highland Middle School, and

Cave Hill Cemetery Cave Hill Cemetery is a Victorian era National Cemetery and arboretum located at Louisville, Kentucky. Its main entrance is on Baxter Avenue and there is a secondary one on Grinstead Drive. It is the largest cemetery by area and number of buri ...

. Opening scene shows a helicopter flying over downtown

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

, and the

Fremont Bridge Fremont Bridge may refer to: * Fremont Bridge (Portland, Oregon) * Fremont Bridge (Seattle) The Fremont Bridge is a double-leaf bascule bridge that spans the Fremont Cut in Seattle, Washington. The bridge, which connects Fremont Avenue North an ...

. Although the exterior, lobby, and corridors of the Brown Hotel are seen, the hotel'
Crystal Ball Room
was replicated on a soundstage. While Bloom's character is supposedly driving to Elizabethtown, he is traveling in the wrong direction. He is also pictured going through the Cherokee Park tunnel on

I-64 Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at I-70, U.S. Route 40 (US 40), and US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern terminus is at an interchang ...

although Elizabethtown is on

I-65 Interstate 65 (I-65) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates ending in 5, it is a major crosscountry, north–south route, connecting between the Great Lakes and the Gulf ...

, about in the other direction. Despite the film's title, most of the smalltown scenes were filmed in

Versailles, Kentucky Versailles () is a home rule-class city in Woodford County, Kentucky, United States. It lies by road west of Lexington and is part of the Lexington-Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. Versailles has a population of 9,316 according to 2017 cen ...

. Only two scenes portraying distinctive landmarks were filmed in Elizabethtown, because many of its historic buildings have been replaced by

chain stores A chain store or retail chain is a retail outlet in which several locations share a brand, central management and standardized business practices. They have come to dominate the retail and dining markets and many service categories, in many pa ...

and

Urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city." Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted growt ...

. A few scenes were filmed in LaGrange. Other local scenes were filmed in Otter Creek Park in Meade County, near

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...

. Filming also took place in

Scottsbluff, Nebraska Scottsbluff is a city in Scotts Bluff County, in the western part of the state of Nebraska, in the Great Plains region of the United States. The population was 14,436 at the 2020 census. Scottsbluff is the largest city in the Nebraska Panhand ...

;

Eureka Springs, Arkansas Eureka Springs is a city in Carroll County, Arkansas, United States, and one of two county seats for the county. It is located in the Ozark Mountains of northwest Arkansas, near the border with Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the city populati ...

;

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

; and

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

. In the original cut of the film shown at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...

, an epilogue reveals that the flaw in the shoe designed by Drew, that it whistles while walking, turns out to be a hit with consumers. This was cut from the release version of the film to prevent the ending from seeming overly drawn-out. Joni Mitchell's painting ''Hyde Park'' appears in the film. One of her paintings had previously appeared in Crowe's ''

Vanilla Sky ''Vanilla Sky'' is a 2001 American science fiction thriller film directed, written, and co-produced by Cameron Crowe. It is an English-language remake of Alejandro Amenábar's 1997 Spanish film '' Open Your Eyes'', which was written by Amenábar ...

'' (2001).

Themes

On a second viewing of the movie, Roger Ebert makes the observation that the film is really a hidden story of an

angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles inclu ...

who has fallen from grace. Claire, the angel, is met in the heavens (the empty plane) and has decided to guide Drew through his depression, suicidal thoughts and redeem himself from failure. Character names, the corporation, etc. were found to be allusions to Hell,

The Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

sin In a religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered immoral, selfish, s ...

and the

devil A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of ...

. Drew has to redeem and cleanse himself from working with the devil. Claire also needs to make the choice to remain on

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

at the end. The movie is thought to take various cues from the films ''

It's a Wonderful Life ''It's a Wonderful Life'' is a 1946 American Christmas fantasy drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra, based on the short story and booklet ''The Greatest Gift'', which Philip Van Doren Stern self-published in 1943 and is in turn loos ...

'' (1946), '' City of Angels'' (1998), and ''

Dogma Dogma is a belief or set of beliefs that is accepted by the members of a group without being questioned or doubted. It may be in the form of an official system of principles or doctrines of a religion, such as Roman Catholicism, Judaism, Isla ...

'' (1999).

Release

Critical reception

''Elizabethtown'' received mostly negative reviews from critics.

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

gives the film a 28% approval rating based on 178 reviews, with an average score of 4.8/10. The site's consensus is "this story of a floundering shoe designer who returns home for a family tragedy gets lost in undeveloped plot lines and lackluster performances." It holds a

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

score of 45 out of 100 from 37 critics. Film critic Roger Ebert gave the film a positive review with three stars out of four. He describes the story as the most unrelenting "

Meet Cute In film and television, a meet cute is a scene in which the two people who will form a future romantic couple meet for the first time, typically under unusual, humorous, or cute circumstances. This type of scene is a staple of romantic comedies, ...

" in movie history. He went on to say "the film is nowhere near one of Crowe's great films (like ''

Almost Famous ''Almost Famous'' is a 2000 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Cameron Crowe, and starring Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson, and Patrick Fugit. It tells the story of a teenage journalist writing for ''Rolling Stone ...

''), but it is sweet and good-hearted and has some real laughs." Ebert later reprinted on his site an analysis of the film pointing out various plot elements supporting the idea that Claire is actually an angel. In his review,

Nathan Rabin Nathan Rabin (; born April 24, 1976) is an American film and music critic. Rabin was the first head writer for '' The A.V. Club'', a position he held until he left the ''Onion'' organization in 2013.

of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' created the term "

Manic Pixie Dream Girl A Manic Pixie Dream Girl (MPDG) is a stock character type in films. Film critic Nathan Rabin, who coined the term after observing Kirsten Dunst's character in '' Elizabethtown'' (2005), said that the MPDG "exists solely in the fevered imaginatio ...

" to describe the "bubbly, shallow cinematic creature" stock character type that he stated Dunst plays in the film.

Box office

''Elizabethtown'' was commercially released on October 14, 2005, in the United States. It was distributed to 2,517 theaters and grossed $4,050,915 on its opening day. At the end of its opening weekend, the film had grossed $10,618,711, making it the third-highest gross for that weekend. Overall, the film grossed $52,034,889 worldwide during its 68-day release.

Soundtrack

The film features dozens of contemporary

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

songs, and Kentucky natives

My Morning Jacket My Morning Jacket is an American rock band formed in Louisville, Kentucky in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, guitarist Carl Broemel, and keyboardist Bo Koster. The ...

appear as 'Ruckus', a fictional rock group who reunite during the film.

References

External links

*
''Cinetext'' Elizabethtown Essay
{{Authority control 2005 films 2005 romantic comedy-drama films American romantic comedy-drama films Cruise/Wagner Productions films Elizabethtown, Kentucky 2000s English-language films Films directed by Cameron Crowe Films produced by Cameron Crowe Films produced by Tom Cruise Films set in Kentucky Films set in Oregon Films shot in Arkansas Films shot in Kentucky Films shot in Nebraska Films shot in Oklahoma Films shot in Portland, Oregon Films shot in Tennessee Films with screenplays by Cameron Crowe Films about angels Paramount Pictures films Tragicomedy films Vinyl Films films American road comedy-drama films 2000s American films