Seeing A Friend For The End Of The World

Set in a too-near future, a man searches for a meaningful connection as humanity's last days are at hand, in Focus Features’ new comedy “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World.” Can he find his greatest love at the worst possible time? Dodge (Steve Carell) is a man who has always played by the rules of life, while his neighbor Penny (Academy Award nominee Keira Knightley) is an extroverted woman who hasn't. From these opposite perspectives, both initially choose to navigate the impending end of the world with blinders on. Dodge declines joining his friends in increasingly reckless behavior, while Penny fixates on her relationship issues with a self-absorbed musician.

The two misfits meet first when Penny has a rough night and then again when she belatedly delivers Dodge a lost letter. That letter could alter Dodge's future; it's from his high-school sweetheart Olivia, the love of his life. When a riot breaks out around their apartment building, Dodge realizes that he must seek Olivia out before it's too late while Penny makes the decision to spend her last days with family in England. Seizing the moment, Dodge promises to help Penny reach her family if she will provide transport for the two of them in her car immediately. She agrees, and they escape. On the road together, the unlikely traveling companions' respective personal journeys accelerate, and their outlooks - if not the world's - brighten. We've all imagined the end of the world - along with the attendant floods, fires, earthquakes, pandemic viruses, and the asteroid hurtling towards Earth which will be destroyed at the last possible moment by human intervention of epic proportions. That is not the end of the world as Lorene Scafaria sees it. In writing her feature directorial debut “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World,” Scafaria was more intrigued by what could happen to ordinary people - and how they would interact with each other - in the days preceding The Event. Scafaria found herself casting a cockeyed glance at "apocalyptic tradition." She notes, "I had a small obsession with 'the end is near,' and a larger obsession with love. So it became a fun challenge to see what would happen when worlds collide - so to speak. I figured I would keep the screenplay at a very human level in scope and tell a story of relationships; what people would do, and how a person with feelings towards another person would be affected." The writer/director didn't necessarily want to make "a 'road movie.' I kept trying not to write it as that, though eventually I gave in and started to embrace the concept a little more - but I keep halting the lead characters' road trip because of basic things like gas. They find themselves in some pickles along their route." A couple of drafts were written, but work stopped and Scafaria's perspective changed once her father fell ill and passed away. She reflects, "I took six months off. Then I came back and rewrote the script, concentrating more on the concept of time - having it, and losing it." Ultimately, she offers, "There is a lot in this story that is me; of the two lead characters, I'm more the Penny type, but I have a strong dose of Dodge in me as well. "Up until this tipping point, these two people have lived their lives very differently. As much as Dodge has avoided life, Penny has been diving in head first. Together, they find they can face the end of the world." “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World” will be shown soon exclusively at Ayala Malls Cinemas (Glorietta 4, Greenbelt3 and Trinoma).

Funny Director Shawn Levy Twits "Date Night"

Family and kid-friendly filmmaker Shawn Levy who helmed the hits “Cheaper By the Dozen” and “Night at the Museum 1 & 2” pens on his own date nights with a twist in the upcoming for-couples-only movie “Date Night” starring Steve Carell and Tina Fey.


In “Date Night,” Carell and Fey portray a suburban married couple who venture into the heart of Manhattan for a romantic date intending to spice up their relationship. But the unsuspecting Phil (Carell) and Claire (Fey) get more than their fair share of thrills following a case of mistaken identity. Becoming embroiled in the city’s criminal underworld, they find themselves on a wild, high-risk and hilarious adventure.

They go to one the city’s most fashionable restaurants but the problem is, they do not have a reservation. They impulsively take a table belonging to another couple who haven’t turned up for dinner. The Fosters become “The Tripplehorns”, which leads to a host of problems that rapidly begin to unravel.

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Below is a Q&A;a with director Levy who gamely shares his own thoughts on married life and date nights.
Q: Can you explain the plot of the film, which sounds intriguing?
A: “Phil and Claire Foster go on a special date night into New York City instead of going to their usual, local neighborhood joint in New Jersey. They decide to go somewhere fabulous, filled with people who are younger and more beautiful than they are, but they can’t get a table.
Q: What kind of trouble do they get involved in?
A: “They are chased by dirty, corrupt cops, mafia killers, and various assorted criminals and bad guys. They have to survive and prove that they’re not who the bad guys think they are. It all takes place during the course of one night between sundown and dawn. On the other hand, they end up seeing each other in a new light. They each reclaim an appreciation for the person they chose to marry.”
Q: Did this film present a major new challenge for you?
A: “It did. I certainly feel a comfort in comedy and with visual effects. I definitely feel a comfort in family films so to do a more adult themed, adult targeted comedy with a lot of action and a lot of heart was great, and involved using muscles I haven’t been using as much. Consequently, it was very stimulating, very interesting and really satisfying.”
Q: What kind of couple do Steve and Tina play?
A: “This is not a couple at risk. They aren’t thinking about breaking up. They are just going through the daily, exhausting grind of parenthood and work. They only have a sliver of time to exercise or do anything for themselves. Often we only have a shred of energy at 10:30 at night to give to our partner. We meet the couple and find out that they love and respect each other, but the passion has faded a little.”
Q: What makes Tina Fey special?
A: “Well, Tina is certainly the biggest female comic working right now - period. That’s a bold claim, but I can’t think of any woman working in comedy who is more popular, more admired and frankly more interesting than Tina Fey. The film also has great dramatic scenes, which Tina has not done on her TV show or in her previous movies. So my hope is that the movie introduces audiences both here in the U.S. and internationally, to this new female star who really deserves to be broadly recognized as a great actress.”
Q: What makes Steve Carell stand out in your opinion?
A: “Steve has a humanity and a relatable honesty that is at once hilarious and heartbreaking. I think it was illustrated in THE 40 YEAR OLD VIRGIN and in the TV show THE OFFICE, also in LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE. He is a great actor and a great comic. His performance in this picture is so touching and honest. The movie just feels true and audiences will relate to him. ”
Q: What do you think is the overall theme of the movie?
A: “It is about the attention that we must give to our relationships, because over time of course the passion can vanish and no one wants to live that way. It certainly is a reminder to appreciate one’s partner. It is also very much a love letter to marriage, to commitment and to partnership.”

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Shawn Levy graduated from the Drama Department of Yale University. His early films include “Just Married” and “Big Fat Liar.” He directed “The Pink Panther” and “Cheaper By the Dozen 1 and 2.” He produced and directed the original global hits “Night at the Museum 1 and 2.”

Cancel your appointments and set your “Date Night” when it opens April 9 (Friday) in theaters nationwide from 20th Century Fox to be distributed by Warner Bros.