American Dreamer (2022 film)

Last updated

American Dreamer
American Dreamer 2022 film poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPaul Dektor
Screenplay by Theodore Melfi
Story by
  • Theodore Melfi
  • Chris Wehner [1]
Based onA segment from This American Life
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Nicolas Bolduc
Edited byLisa Jane Robison
Music by Jeff Russo
Production
companies
Distributed by Vertical
Release dates
  • June 11, 2022 (2022-06-11)(Tribeca)
  • March 8, 2024 (2024-03-08)(United States)
Running time
106 minutes [2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

American Dreamer is a 2022 American black comedy film directed by Paul Dektor and written by Theodore Melfi. Based on a segment from the radio show This American Life , it stars Peter Dinklage as a professor who tries to buy the estate of a lonely widow played by Shirley MacLaine. Kim Quinn, Danny Pudi, Danny Glover, and Matt Dillon also star.

Contents

The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 11, 2022. It was released in the United States on March 8, 2024.

Plot

Dr. Phil Loder, a low-level, adjunct professor of economics, has always dreamed of owning a home. His braggadocious real estate broker Dell advises him to seek smaller property, but Phil sees an advertisement he cannot resist: lonely widow Astrid, offers to sell her gorgeous $5 million dollar home for $240,000 cash provided that she be allowed to live the rest of her days there, while the buyer lives in the much humbler upper level, inheriting the home upon her passing. Phil liquidates all his belongings and cashes out his savings to buy into the agreement. He finds Astrid prickly, and is later alarmed when she introduces a Greek plumber, Boris, and a brokerage lawyer, Maggie, as two of her kids. Phil becomes concerned that despite sinking all he owns into the agreement, Astrid's children will contest the will. Indeed, upon learning of Phil and Astrid's agreement, Maggie threatens to have him evicted and the agreement dissolved.

Phil hires a legally blind private investigator, Jerry, to dig up information on Maggie. Maggie and Phil inexplicably grow closer. Astrid slips and falls, falling into a coma before being discovered by Phil. Though Astrid eventually recovers, viewing Phil as her savior and breaking the ice between them, Phil's misanthropy alienates Maggie, who resolves to remove him from the home. Worse still, a brief affair with one of his graduate students, Clare, and an unhinged mental break from the stress of his precarious financial situation during one of his lectures results in Phil being suspended by the dean, Craig.

Maggie, consulting with Astrid's other kids, offers Phil a partial refund of his money —$50,000— to leave, which he reluctantly accepts, though Phil is concerned about Astrid's future care. As he prepares to move his things, Astrid experiences several additional accidents, and Phil rescues her each time, growing the bond between them. However, Astrid experiences a final medical emergency and dies, despite Phil's attempts to save her. Phil is stricken, and prepares to leave the house, telling Maggie he plans to sign the vacating agreement. However, upon attending Astrid's memorial and learning that Astrid's "kids" are the children in need who she cared for through her summer camp, he opts not to sign the agreement and is granted ownership of the house. Seeing that the home, which still serves as the grounds of the summer camp, is a place special to many people, he refuses to sell it and opts to maintain it. Meanwhile, Jerry returns with photos he had taken, but surprises Phil when they turn out to be photos he had taken while mistakenly tailing Clare, thinking she was Maggie. The photos reveal an affair between Clare and Craig, providing Phil the leverage he needs to be released from suspension.

Cast

Production

The independent film American Dreamer was first announced on February 2, 2021, with Peter Dinklage, Shirley MacLaine, and Kimberly Quinn attached to star. [3] In March, Danny Glover, Matt Dillon, Danny Pudi, and Michelle Mylett joined the cast; [4] production began on March 15 in Vancouver, and was set to conclude on April 16, 2021. [5] Filming also took place in Victoria, British Columbia, where partial parts of the British Columbia Parliament Buildings were converted into "Brockton University" as the film is set in Massachusetts. [6]

Release

American Dreamer had a world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 11, 2022. [2] [7] It was released in the United States by Vertical Entertainment on March 8, 2024. [8]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 50% of 34 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.5/10. [9] Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 60 out of 100, based on 6 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. [10]

Carla Renata of RogerEbert.com gave the film three out of four stars and wrote, "Emmy winner Peter Dinklage is a perfect thespian match for the legendary Shirley MacLaine when it comes to curmudgeon-laced dialogue, while simultaneously giving these characters so much heart and grit that audiences will be inspired to reach into the screen to give them a hug. They're a wonderful duo, and it's their contributions and chemistry that anchor the film." [11]

Related Research Articles

<i>Terms of Endearment</i> 1983 drama film directed by James L. Brooks

Terms of Endearment is a 1983 American family tragicomedy film directed, written, and produced by James L. Brooks, adapted from Larry McMurtry's 1975 novel of the same name. It stars Debra Winger, Shirley MacLaine, Jack Nicholson, Danny DeVito, Jeff Daniels, and John Lithgow. The film covers 30 years of the relationship between Aurora Greenway (MacLaine) and her daughter Emma Greenway-Horton (Winger).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shirley MacLaine</span> American actress, and author (born 1934)

Shirley MacLaine is an American actress and author. With a career spanning over 70 years, she has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, an Emmy Award, two BAFTA Awards, six Golden Globe Awards, two Volpi Cups, and two Silver Bears. She has been honored with the Film Society of Lincoln Center Tribute in 1995, the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1998, the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2012, and the Kennedy Center Honor in 2014. MacLaine is one of the last remaining stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Dillon</span> American actor (born 1964)

Matthew Raymond Dillon is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including an Academy Award nomination and Grammy nomination.

<i>American Playhouse</i> Anthology television series

American Playhouse is an American anthology television series periodically broadcast by Public Broadcasting Service (PBS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Danny Pudi</span> American actor (born 1979)

Daniel Mark Pudi is an American actor and director. His roles include Abed Nadir on the NBC sitcom Community (2009–2015), for which he received three nominations for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and one nomination for the TCA Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy. Since 2020 he has starred as Brad Bakshi in the Apple TV+ comedy series Mythic Quest. He was the voice of Huey Duck on the 2017 reboot of DuckTales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abed Nadir</span> Fictional character in Community

Abed Gubi Nadir is a fictional character on the NBC/Yahoo! Screen sitcom series Community, created by Dan Harmon and portrayed by Danny Pudi.

<i>Knights of Badassdom</i> 2013 American comedy-horror film directed by Joe Lynch

Knights of Badassdom is a 2013 American comedy horror film, directed by Joe Lynch, written by Kevin Dreyfuss and Matt Wall. It stars Ryan Kwanten, Steve Zahn, Summer Glau, and Peter Dinklage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series</span>

The Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series is one of the award categories presented annually by the Critics' Choice Television Awards (BTJA) to recognize the work done by television actors. It was introduced in 2011 when the event was first initiated. The winners are selected by a group of television critics that are part of the Broadcast Television Critics Association.

<i>Wild Oats</i> (film) 2016 American film

Wild Oats is a 2016 American comedy film directed by Andy Tennant and written by Gary Kanew and Claudia Myers. The film stars Shirley MacLaine, Jessica Lange, Demi Moore, and Billy Connolly in his final film role before retirement. The film premiered on Lifetime on August 22, 2016, prior to being released in a limited release on September 16, 2016, by The Weinstein Company and RADiUS-TWC.

Kimberly Pita Quinn is an American actress, writer and film producer. She made her film debut playing a leading role and co-writing in the 1999 independent drama film Winding Roads. Quinn later produced and played supporting roles in a number of films, include St. Vincent (2014), Hidden Figures (2016), and The Starling (2020). She is married to director Theodore Melfi, together they own production company Goldenlight Films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Dinklage on screen and stage</span> Filmography

Peter Dinklage is an American actor and producer. He studied acting at the Bennington College where he starred in a number of amateur stage productions. He made his film debut in the 1995 comedy-drama Living in Oblivion. After appearing in a series of supporting parts in much of the 1990s and early 2000s, he made his breakthrough by starring in the Tom McCarthy-directed comedy-drama The Station Agent (2003), which had him play a railroad-obsessed introvert who inherits an abandoned train depot. He was cast in the role by director Tom McCarthy who recalled fondly his appearance in McCarthy's play The Killing Act (1995). For his performance, he received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Best Actor and an Independent Spirit Awards nomination for Best Male Lead. In the same year, Dinklage played the title role in the play Richard III at The Public Theater. He also played a children's book author in the comedy Elf. In 2006, he appeared in the Sidney Lumet-directed crime film Find Me Guilty. He followed with roles in the films Underdog (2007), the British film Death at a Funeral (2007), with its American remake of the same name (2010) and Trumpkin in the high fantasy film The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008).

<i>The Argument</i> (film) Film directed by Robert Coppola Schwartzman

The Argument is a 2020 American drama film, directed by Robert Schwartzman, from a screenplay by Zac Stanford. It stars Maggie Q, Danny Pudi, Cleopatra Coleman, Tyler James Williams, Dan Fogler, and Emma Bell.

Robyn Michelle Mylett is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her role as Katy on the comedy series Letterkenny (2016–2023).

<i>The Lost Daughter</i> (film) 2021 film by Maggie Gyllenhaal

The Lost Daughter is a 2021 psychological drama film written and directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal, based on the 2006 novel by Elena Ferrante. The film stars Olivia Colman, Dakota Johnson, Jessie Buckley, Paul Mescal, Dagmara Domińczyk, Jack Farthing, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Peter Sarsgaard, and Ed Harris. Colman also served as an executive producer.

<i>Mark, Mary & Some Other People</i> 2021 American film

Mark, Mary & Some Other People is a 2021 American comedy film, written, directed, and produced by Hannah Marks. It stars Hayley Law, Ben Rosenfield, Odessa A'zion, Nik Dodani, Matt Shively, Sofia Bryant, Gillian Jacobs, Joe Lo Truglio, Steve Little, Kelli Berglund, Haley Ramm, Peter Williams and Lea Thompson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Danny Glover filmography</span>

The following are the performance credits of the American actor Danny Glover.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phil Dunster</span> British actor

Philip James Dunster is an English actor. He is known for his roles in the Sky One drama Strike Back (2017–2018), the Channel 4 science fiction series Humans (2018), the ITV comedy-drama The Trouble with Maggie Cole (2020), the Apple TV+ sports series Ted Lasso (2020–2023), and the Amazon Prime thriller The Devil's Hour (2022). For his role in Ted Lasso, Dunster was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 2023.

<i>Corner Office</i> (film) 2022 American film by Joachim Back

Corner Office is a 2022 American comedy drama film directed by Joachim Back and written by Ted Kupper, based on the short story The Room by Jonas Karlsson. The film stars Jon Hamm, Danny Pudi, Sarah Gadon and Christopher Heyerdahl.

<i>Brothers</i> (2024 film) 2024 film by Max Barbakow

Brothers is a 2024 American crime comedy film directed by Max Barbakow with a screenplay by Macon Blair from a story by Etan Cohen. The film stars Josh Brolin, Peter Dinklage, Taylour Paige, M. Emmet Walsh, Jennifer Landon, Brendan Fraser, and Glenn Close.

References

  1. ↑ "American Dreamer". Writers Guild of America West . September 2, 2021. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
  2. 1 2 "American Dreamer". Tribeca Film Festival . Retrieved April 21, 2022.
  3. ↑ Fleming, Mike Jr. (February 2, 2021). "Peter Dinklage, Shirley MacLaine To Star In Paul Dektor-Helmed American Dreamer; Ted Melfi Script". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  4. ↑ Fleming, Mike Jr. (March 22, 2021). "Dark Comedy American Dreamer Adds Danny Glover, Matt Dillon, Danny Pudi, Michelle Mylett". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on March 22, 2021. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
  5. ↑ "DGC BC Production List" (PDF). Directors Guild of Canada . March 5, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 27, 2021. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
  6. ↑ "Peter Dinklage, Shirley MacLaine among stars of movie being filmed in Victoria". CIVI-DT . April 5, 2021. Archived from the original on April 6, 2021. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  7. ↑ Goldsmith, Jill (April 19, 2022). "Tribeca Festival Lineup Includes Corner Office With Jon Hamm, Ray Romano's Somewhere In Queens, More". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved April 19, 2022.
  8. ↑ Grobar, Matt (February 1, 2024). "Tribeca Comedy 'American Dreamer' Starring Peter Dinklage, Shirley MacLaine Goes To Vertical". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved February 1, 2024.
  9. ↑ "American Dreamer". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved September 2, 2024. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  10. ↑ "American Dreamer". Metacritic . Fandom, Inc. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  11. ↑ Renata, Carla (March 8, 2024). "American Dreamer". RogerEbert.com . Retrieved March 9, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.