Elizabethtown (2005) [PG-13] ***/****

Drew Baylor (Orlando Bloom) designs running shoes for Mercury, Inc., in Oregon. He has spent the last several years working on the project of a lifetime, and it's turned out to be a monumental fiasco which will cost his company nearly a billion dollars. As CEO Phil DeVoss (Alec Baldwin) tells Drew during his exit interview, it may cause an entire generation to return to bare feet. Drew has decided to end it all when his sister Heather (Judy Greer) telephones with the news that his dad has died of a heart attack while on a visit to his home town of Elizabethtown, Kentucky.

So, painfully but dutifully, Drew takes a night flight east to represent his mother Hollie (Susan Sarandon) at the funeral. During the flight Drew meets Claire Colburn (Kirsten Dunst), a light-hearted and compassionate flight attendant, who intuitively understands what he is going through, and tries to cheer him up.

Arriving in Elizabethtown, Drew begins to appreciate how much his father was loved by his family and friends. Drew also reconnects with Claire, who lives in nearby Louisville, and their relationship grows deeper. As the days pass, the dual tragedies of his personal failure and his father's death begin to melt away as Drew is strengthened by the warm acceptance of his relatives and by Claire's growing affection for him; he also comes to realize that neither Claire nor his relatives care about his past failure.

Written and directed by Cameron Crowe, this is the tender story of a young man's journey of growth and self-discovery, a journey from failure, to life and love. It's also a delightful romance, and there is great chemistry between Orlando Bloom and Kirsten Dunst. Screenplay and direction are excellent, there's a terrific soundtrack, and Jessica Biel has a supporting role as Drew's girlfriend. If you enjoyed Wimbledon I can highly recommend Elizabethtown. 

Labels: comedy, drama, reunion, rom-drama-faves, romance     
Internet Movie Database 63/100     
MetaScore (critics=45, viewers=61)
RottenTomatoes Averages (critics=47, viewers=72)

Blu-ray

James Berardinelli's review (2.5 out of 4 stars)