Due Date
Due Date | |
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Directed by | Todd Phillips |
Screenplay by |
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Story by |
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Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Lawrence Sher |
Edited by | Debra Neil-Fisher |
Music by | Christophe Beck |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 95 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $65 million[2] |
Box office | $211.8 million[3] |
Due Dateis a 2010 Americanblack comedyroad filmdirected byTodd Phillips,who wrote the screenplay with Alan R. Cohen, Alan Freedland, andAdam Sztykiel.The film follows a man (Robert Downey Jr.) who must get across the country toLos Angelesin time for the birth of his child and is forced to road-trip with an aspiring actor (Zach Galifianakis).Michelle Monaghan,Juliette Lewis,andJamie Foxxalso star. Shot inLas Cruces, New Mexico,Atlanta,Georgia,andTuscaloosa, Alabama,the film was released on November 5, 2010.[4]It received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $211 million worldwide.
Plot
[edit]Peter Highman, a successful architect, is due to fly home from Atlanta to Los Angeles to be with his wife Sarah, who is about to give birth. On the way to the airport, he has a chance encounter with Ethan Tremblay with his dog Sonny, who is going to Los Angeles to be an actor and is planning to scatter his recently deceased father's ashes at theGrand Canyon.When Ethan misuses the words "terrorist"and" bomb "while talking to Peter, they are both escorted off the plane. Peter, now on theNo Fly Listand missing his wallet, agrees to drive with Ethan to Los Angeles.
Ethan stops to buymarijuana,and Peter discovers that they are nearly out of money. Since Peter has no I.D., he gets his wife to wire money to Ethan, but discovers Ethan had the money wired to his stage name instead of his legal name. When the Western Union employee refuses to accept Ethan's "Stage name I.D." it leads to a violent altercation.
After a night at arest stop,Peter decides to drive off and abandon Ethan, but realizes that he has forgotten to unload the ashes of Ethan's father when he left. This causes him to wrestle with his conscience, before deciding to return, and covering for his absence by saying he had gone to buy breakfast. Ethan takes over driver duty so Peter can get some rest after a sleepless night, but he falls asleep at the wheel and crashes the car. Peter calls his friend, Darryl, for assistance and decides to part with Ethan, but Darryl persuades Peter otherwise. They arrive at Darryl's house for rest. During their conversation, Ethan discovers hints that Sarah may have been unfaithful, triggering Peter to question Sarah's timely pregnancy. Darryl throws both of them out after mistakenly drinking some of Ethan's father's ashes, which were stored in a coffee tin.
Darryl lets them use hisRange Roverto make the rest of the trip. Ethan and Peter get high and begin to bond, but Ethan then mistakenly drives to theMexico–United States border.Despite assuring Peter that he'll handle the situation, Ethan flees, and Peter is arrested for possession of marijuana. TheMexican Federal Policelock Peter up, but Ethan steals a truck and breaks him out, causing several car crashes in the process.
Peter decides to stop at theGrand Canyonfor Ethan, who finally scatters his father's ashes. Peter then confesses that he tried to leave Ethan at the rest area. Ethan makes a confession of his own: he has had Peter's wallet and I.D the entire time. Peter seemingly forgives him but then attacks Ethan in a rage, but is interrupted by a call from Sarah, who has just gone into labor. Peter and Ethan leave for California. Ethan finds a gun in the truck and he accidentally shoots Peter. Arriving at the hospital where Sarah is in labor, Peter passes out from loss of blood.
Sarah delivers the baby safely, and Peter expresses his discomfort at his new daughter being named Rosie Highman. Ethan leaves to meet with a Hollywood agent while telling Peter to call him. At the end, Ethan guest stars on an episode of his favorite television program,Two and a Half Men,with Peter and Sarah watching it in bed with their daughter. Ethan texts Peter during the episode, indicating that the two have become friends.
Cast
[edit]- Robert Downey Jr.as Peter Highman
- Zach Galifianakisas Ethan Tremblay / Ethan Chase
- Michelle Monaghanas Sarah Highman
- Juliette Lewisas Heidi (Playing the same character fromOld School)
- Jamie Foxxas Darryl Johnson
- Matt Walshas TSA Agent
- RZAas Airline Screener
- Danny McBrideas Western Union Employee Lonnie
- Todd Phillipsas Barry
- Mimi Kennedyas Sarah's Mom
- Keegan-Michael Keyas New Father
- Aaron Lustigas Dr. Greene
- Marco Rodríguezas Federal Agent
- Brody Stevensas Chauffeur
- Charlie SheenasCharlie Harper(Cameo)
- Jon CryerasAlan Harper(Cameo)
- Angus T. JonesasJake Harper(Cameo)
Marketing
[edit]The first trailer was released July 14, 2010. It was seen withInception,Dinner for SchmucksandThe Other Guys.The international trailer was released on September 2, 2010, and the full length trailer was released online on September 16, 2010. It was shown beforeThe Town,andLife as We Know It.
Previews for the film feature the songs "New Moon Rising" byWolfmotherand the original version of "Check Yo Self"byIce Cube.
In the film, Ethan is a huge fan of the sitcomTwo and a Half Men.He also mentions that he started a website calleditsrainingtwoandahalfmen.As a joke, a website was actually launched with the same name.[5]Ethan is also shown in the film as guest starring in aTwo and a Half Menepisode. This was a special short produced for the film's use, and did not become part of an official episode of the sitcom. The short was partially shown in the film and the full short isavailable online.
Music
[edit]Due Date (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)was released on November 2, 2010 byWaterTower Music.
Due Date (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | |
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Soundtrack albumby Various Artists | |
Released | November 2, 2010 |
Recorded | 2010 |
Label | WaterTower Music |
iTunes version
[edit]No. | Title | Artist | Length |
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1. | "Hold On, I'm Comin'" | Sam & Dave | 2:31 |
2. | "New Moon Rising" | Wolfmother | 3:47 |
3. | "Is There a Ghost" | Band of Horses | 2:59 |
4. | "People Are Crazy" | Billy Currington | 3:51 |
5. | "White Room" | Cream | 4:58 |
6. | "This Is Why I'm Hot" | MIMS | 4:17 |
7. | "Sweet Jane" | Cowboy Junkies | 3:35 |
8. | "Amazing Grace" | Rod Stewart | 2:02 |
9. | "Check Ya Self 2010"(feat.Chuck DwithLisa Kekaula) | Ice Cube | 3:25 |
10. | "Glaucoma" | Christophe Beck | 2:13 |
11. | "A Good Sign" | Christophe Beck | 1:36 |
12. | "Ethan's Theme" | Christophe Beck | 1:19 |
- Additional songs
The following songs are not included in the soundtrack, but they appear in some parts of the film:
- Closing Time –Danny McBride
- Mykonos–Fleet Foxes
- Old Man(Live at Massey Hall) –Neil Young
- Hey You–Pink Floyd
- Theme fromTwo and a Half Men
Release
[edit]Box office
[edit]Due Dategrossed $100.5 million in the U.S. and Canada and $111.2 million in other territories for a total of $211.8 million worldwide, against a production budget of $65 million.[3]
The film earned $12.2 million at the North American domestic box office on its release day and $43.5 million on its first week, placing behindMegamindbut was number one in the UK for two consecutive weekends. On November 8, 2010, it went up to #1 overtakingMegamind.On November 12, it went down to #3 behindUnstoppableandMegamind.On November 15, it went up to #2 behindUnstoppable.On November 24, it went down to #8 behindHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1,Tangled,Burlesque,Megamind,Love & Other Drugs,UnstoppableandFaster.It closed in theaters on January 27, 2011.
Home media
[edit]Due Datewas released onDVDandBlu-rayon February 22, 2011.[6]
Critical response
[edit]OnRotten Tomatoesthe film holds an approval rating of 40% based on 196 reviews and an average rating of 5.20/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Shamelessly derivative and only sporadically funny,Due Datedoesn't live up to the possibilities suggested by its talented director and marvelously mismatched stars. "[7]OnMetacriticthe film has a weighted average score of 51 out of 100, based on 39 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[8]Audiences polled byCinemaScoregave the film an average grade of "B−" on an A+ to F scale.[9]
Roger Ebertof theChicago Sun-Timesgave the film two and a half stars out of a possible four, noting "The movie probably contains enough laughs to satisfy the weekend audience. Where it falls short is in the characters and relationships." Ebert comparedDue Dateto the 1987 filmPlanes, Trains and Automobiles,but bemoaned thatDue Datecould have learned and offered more.[10]
References
[edit]- ^"DUE DATE (2010)".American Film Institute.Archivedfrom the original on April 19, 2023.RetrievedApril 19,2023.
- ^Fritz, Ben (November 4, 2010)."Movie projector: Hollywood looking for huge weekend as 'Megamind,' 'Due Date' and 'Colored Girls' open".Los Angeles Times.Archivedfrom the original on September 23, 2020.RetrievedNovember 5,2010.
The movie is relatively expensive for a comedy, with a budget of about $65 million split between Legendary Pictures with Warner.
- ^ab"Due Date (2010)".Box Office Mojo.Archivedfrom the original on May 15, 2019.RetrievedJanuary 22,2011.
- ^'Iron Man' Robert Downey Jr. Joins Zack Galifianakis In The Todd Phillips Comedy 'Due Date'ArchivedApril 9, 2012, at theWayback Machine.MTV.Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ^"It's Raining Two and A Half Men".Archived from the original on July 13, 2011.RetrievedDecember 17,2011.
{{cite web}}
:CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link).Retrieved 2011-01-10. - ^"Due Date Blu-ray (Blu-ray + DVD)".Archivedfrom the original on January 17, 2011.RetrievedApril 10,2011.
- ^"Due Date (2010)".Rotten Tomatoes.Fandango Media.Archivedfrom the original on September 25, 2021.RetrievedSeptember 1,2021.
- ^"Due Date Reviews".Metacritic.CBS.Archivedfrom the original on April 22, 2021.RetrievedSeptember 18,2013.
- ^Finke, Nikki (November 7, 2010)."#1 'Megamind', #2 'Due Date', #3 'For Colored Girls' All Meet Expectations; Long Lines And Sell-Outs For '127 Hours'".Deadline.Archivedfrom the original on September 4, 2021.RetrievedSeptember 4,2021.
Audiences gave it a "B-" CinemaScore
- ^Roger Ebert(November 3, 2010)."Due Date".Chicago Sun Times.Archived fromthe originalon October 10, 2012.RetrievedDecember 11,2010.
External links
[edit]- 2010 films
- 2010 black comedy films
- 2010s buddy comedy-drama films
- 2010 comedy-drama films
- 2010s pregnancy films
- 2010s road comedy-drama films
- 2010s screwball comedy films
- 2010s adventure comedy-drama films
- American adventure comedy-drama films
- American black comedy films
- American buddy comedy-drama films
- American pregnancy films
- American road comedy-drama films
- American screwball comedy films
- 2010s English-language films
- Films scored by Christophe Beck
- Films directed by Todd Phillips
- Films produced by Todd Phillips
- Films set in Alabama
- Films set in Atlanta
- Films set in Arizona
- Films set in California
- Films set in Georgia (U.S. state)
- Films set in Los Angeles
- Films set in Louisiana
- Films set in Mississippi
- Films set in New Mexico
- Films set in Texas
- Films shot in New Mexico
- Legendary Pictures films
- Warner Bros. films
- 2010s American films
- Films with screenplays by Adam Sztykiel
- Films about actors
- English-language black comedy films