In any Crowe movie, one can always count on introspective and honest writing as well as a phenomenal soundtrack. Crowe has always possessed a certain finesse when it comes to choosing music to accompany his movies. He uses music to accentuate and enliven his scenes, and the former Rolling Stone writer is always successful in doing so. One may recall Tom Cruise in "Jerry Maguire" driving down an open road singing along to Tom Petty's "Free Falling," or John Cusack holding up a boombox to Ione Skye's window, playing Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes" in "Say Anything ... ." "Elizabethtown" is no exception-the writing is still idiosyncratic, and Crowe's soundtrack is once again, amazing-but it isn't exceptional by any means. "Elizabethtown" is a bit of a mess. A fun, warm, sometimes life-echoing mess, but a mess all the same. There are plot holes, storylines running rampant and unchecked and even plot incongruities. One can let the mess destroy the movie, or one can take the mess in stride, valuing the good more than the bad.
The movie opens with a voiceover by Drew Baylor (Orlando Bloom), channeling Cruise in "Jerry Maguire": "What's the difference between a failure and a fiasco? A failure is simply the non-presence of success. But a fiasco is of mythic proportions, a folk tale that makes other people feel more alive because it didn't happen to them." It doesn't take long for one to realize that Drew has not failed but "fiascoed." It's a billion-dollar fiasco, as his former boss (humorously played by Alec Baldwin), informs him. Drew has spent the past eight years perfecting a shoe design called "the Spasmodica." Unfortunately for Drew, there is a recall. Things get worse. His co-worker girlfriend (Jessica Biel, taking notes from Kelly Preston's character in "Jerry Maguire") gives him one of those "last looks," and when he returns home to try and kill himself, he still can't catch a break. He is interrupted by his sister, Heather (Judy Greer), who informs him in between sobs that their father has died while visiting family in Elizabethtown, Ky. Being the oldest, it becomes Drew's responsibility to retrieve his father's body since his mother (Susan Sarandon) is utterly incapable of doing so. Drew agrees to help out, fully intending to commit suicide upon arriving back home.
Drew is the only person on his red-eye flight to Elizabethtown, and Claire Colburn (Kirsten Dunst) is the only flight attendant on duty. Claire practically forces him to engage in a conversation with her and tries desperately to lift his obviously low spirits. As a last-ditch effort she hands him her phone number, in case he ever needs to talk. After getting lost on the way to Elizabethtown-and trying to beat up his car out of frustration in the process-Drew finally reaches his destination and meets his father's family in a hilarious whirlwind of meet-and-greets that rings truly and touchingly. Later, Drew checks into his hotel room and realizes that he's utterly alone. Feeling desperate, he calls Claire, and so begins a phone call that lasts until the next morning when the two agree to meet and watch the sunrise. Drew and Claire's relationship-though sometimes frustrating due to Claire's tendency to overwhelm-is full of bits and pieces of real relationship quirks and confessions. Claire is often the one to point these out, first by admitting, "I think we peaked on the phone." Later, she scolds Drew: "Why is it that you're always trying to break up with me when we're not even going out?" And finally, she says with a smile, "Just tell me you love me and get it over with."
Crowe often touches upon the theme of redemption made possible by a woman, so this movie's outcome should come as no surprise. The movie approaches its very predictable outcome by throwing in unexpected scenes-some of the best produced by Sarandon and Drew's cousin's (Paul Schneider) band at his father's tribute-but Crowe's endearing writing style wins you over in the end, even if the movie's plot is less than stellar. While Dunst is probably exactly what Crowe had in mind for the role of the rather exasperating Claire, Bloom continues to appear slightly pathetic on screen. Though this role is probably his only one without a weapon of some sort, he succeeds in seeming stronger and less feeble. In the end, though the movie is most probably Crowe's worst, his eccentric and charming writing is not completely absent. "Elizabethtown" isn't a spectacular visit, but it's worth your while.