Main Street (2010 film)

Last updated
Main Street
Main Street Poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by John Doyle
Written by Horton Foote [1]
Produced by Adi Shankar
Megan Ellison
Jonah Hirsch
Spencer Silna
Starring
Cinematography Donald McAlpine
Edited by Richard Francis-Bruce
Music by Patrick Doyle
Production
company
1984 Films
Distributed by Magnolia Pictures
Myriad Pictures (International) [2]
Release dates
  • October 21, 2010 (2010-10-21)(Austin Film Festival)
  • September 9, 2011 (2011-09-09)(United States)
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$2,560 [3]

Main Street is a 2010 American drama film about several residents of Durham, North Carolina, a city in the Southern U.S., whose lives are changed by the arrival of a stranger with a controversial plan to save their decaying hometown.

Contents

Plot

Each of the colorful citizens of a close-knit North Carolina community—from a once-wealthy tobacco heiress to the city's mayor to a local police officer—will search for ways to reinvent themselves, their relationships and the very heart of their neighborhood. [1] [4]

Cast

Production

Filming an action sequence on NC-540 near Durham, NC MainStreetFilmingI540.jpg
Filming an action sequence on NC-540 near Durham, NC

The film was shot nearly entirely in Durham, North Carolina in April and May 2009. [5] The screenplay was written by Pulitzer Prize–winning writer Horton Foote after he found downtown Durham empty on a weekend visit several years earlier. [6]

Myriad Pictures bought the international distribution rights in May 2009. The film was promoted at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival by its producers and stars. [7] [8]

Reception

Reception for the film has been generally negative. On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 14% approval rating based on reviews from seven critics, with an average score of 4.7/10. [9]

Blog Critics reviewed the film, saying, "Everything that occurs in the film feels shallow somehow, and it’s a shame because Main Street had all of the basic elements that would have made it truly, a great film." [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coen brothers</span> American filmmakers

Joel Daniel Coen and Ethan Jesse Coen, collectively known as the Coen brothers, are an American filmmaking duo. Their films span many genres and styles, which they frequently subvert or parody. Their most acclaimed works include Blood Simple (1984), Raising Arizona (1987), Miller's Crossing (1990), Barton Fink (1991), Fargo (1996), The Big Lebowski (1998), O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), No Country for Old Men (2007), A Serious Man (2009), True Grit (2010) and Inside Llewyn Davis (2013). Many of their films are distinctly American, often examining the culture of the American South and American West in both modern and historical contexts.

<i>Manhattan</i> (1979 film) 1979 film by Woody Allen

Manhattan is a 1979 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Woody Allen and produced by Charles H. Joffe from a screenplay written by Allen and Marshall Brickman. Allen co-stars as a twice-divorced 42-year-old comedy writer who dates a 17-year-old girl but falls in love with his best friend's mistress. Meryl Streep and Anne Byrne also star.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew Broderick</span> American actor (born 1962)

Matthew Broderick is an American actor. His roles include the Golden Globe–nominated portrayal of the title character in Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986), the voice of adult Simba in Disney's The Lion King (1994), and Leo Bloom in both the Broadway musical The Producers and its 2005 film adaptation. Other films he has starring credits in include WarGames (1983), Glory (1989), The Freshman (1990), The Cable Guy (1996), Godzilla (1998), Election (1999), Inspector Gadget (1999), You Can Count on Me (2000), and The Last Shot (2004). Broderick also directed himself in Infinity (1996) and provided voice work in Good Boy! (2003), Bee Movie (2007), and The Tale of Despereaux (2008).

<i>Bull Durham</i> 1988 US romantic sports comedy movie by Ron Shelton

Bull Durham is a 1988 American romantic comedy sports film. It is partly based upon the minor-league baseball experiences of writer/director Ron Shelton and depicts the players and fans of the Durham Bulls, a minor-league baseball team in Durham, North Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Linklater</span> American film director, producer and screenwriter (born 1960)

Richard Stuart Linklater is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is known for making films that deal thematically with suburban culture and the effects of the passage of time. His films include the comedies Slacker (1990) and Dazed and Confused (1993); the Before trilogy of romance films: Before Sunrise (1995), Before Sunset (2004), and Before Midnight (2013); the music-themed comedy School of Rock (2003); the adult animated films Waking Life (2001), A Scanner Darkly (2006), and Apollo 10 1⁄2: A Space Age Childhood (2022); the coming-of-age drama Boyhood (2014); and the comedy film Everybody Wants Some!! (2016).

<i>Ned Kelly</i> (2003 film) 2003 film

Ned Kelly is a 2003 Australian bushranger film based on Robert Drewe's 1991 novel Our Sunshine. Directed by Gregor Jordan, the film's adapted screenplay was written by John Michael McDonagh. The film dramatises the life of Ned Kelly, a legendary bushranger and outlaw who was active mostly in the colony of Victoria. In the film, Kelly, his brother Dan, and two other associates—Steve Hart and Joe Byrne—form a gang of bushrangers in response to acts of police brutality. Heath Ledger stars in the title role, with Orlando Bloom, Naomi Watts and Geoffrey Rush. The film received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $6 million worldwide.

<i>Broken Flowers</i> 2005 film by Jim Jarmusch

Broken Flowers is a 2005 French-American comedy-drama film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch and produced by Jon Kilik and Stacey Smith. The film focuses on an aging "Don Juan" who embarks on a cross-country journey to track down four of his former lovers after receiving an anonymous letter stating that he has a son. The film stars Bill Murray, Jeffrey Wright, Sharon Stone, Frances Conroy, Jessica Lange, Tilda Swinton, Julie Delpy, Mark Webber, Chloë Sevigny, Christopher McDonald, and Alexis Dziena.

<i>Bird</i> (1988 film) 1988 biographical film by Clint Eastwood

Bird is a 1988 American biographical musical drama film about jazz saxophonist Charlie "Bird" Parker, directed and produced by Clint Eastwood from a screenplay by Joel Oliansky. The film stars Forest Whitaker as Parker, and Diane Venora. It is constructed as a montage of scenes from Parker's life, from his childhood in Kansas City, through his early death at the age of 34.

<i>Down by Law</i> (film) 1986 film by Jim Jarmusch

Down by Law is a 1986 American black-and-white independent neo-beat noir comedy film. It was written and directed by Jim Jarmusch, and stars Tom Waits, John Lurie, and Roberto Benigni.

<i>The Holy Mountain</i> (1973 film) 1973 film by Alejandro Jodorowsky

The Holy Mountain is a 1973 Mexican surreal film directed, written, produced, co-scored, co-edited by and starring Alejandro Jodorowsky, who also participated as a set designer and costume designer on the film. Following Jodorowsky's underground hit El Topo, acclaimed by both John Lennon and George Harrison, the film was produced by the Beatles manager Allen Klein of ABKCO Music and Records. John Lennon and Yoko Ono put up production money. It was shown at various international film festivals in 1973, including Cannes, and limited screenings in New York and San Francisco.

<i>Vicky Cristina Barcelona</i> 2008 film directed by Woody Allen

Vicky Cristina Barcelona is a 2008 romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. The film stars Javier Bardem, Penélope Cruz, Rebecca Hall and Scarlett Johansson in lead roles. The plot centers on two American women, Vicky and Cristina, who spend a summer in Barcelona, where they meet an artist, Juan Antonio, who is attracted to both of them, while still enamored of his mentally and emotionally unstable ex-wife María Elena. The film was shot in Spain in Barcelona, Avilés, and Oviedo, and was Allen's fourth consecutive film shot outside the United States.

<i>24 City</i> 2008 Chinese film by Jia Zhangke

24 City is a 2008 Chinese film directed and co-written by Jia Zhangke. The film follows three generations of characters in Chengdu as a state-owned factory gives way to a modern apartment complex. The film was also known as The Story of 24 City during production.

<i>Stay Cool</i> 2009 American film

Stay Cool is a 2009 American comedy film directed by Michael Polish, and written by Mark Polish. The film stars Winona Ryder, Mark Polish, Hilary Duff, Sean Astin, Josh Holloway, Jon Cryer, and Chevy Chase. The film premiered at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival and released theatrically in 2011.

<i>Amy</i> (1997 film) 1997 Australian film

Amy is a 1997 Australian film written by David Parker and directed by Nadia Tass, starring Alana De Roma in the title role, Rachel Griffiths, Ben Mendelsohn, and Nick Barker.

<i>St Trinians 2: The Legend of Frittons Gold</i> 2009 British film

St Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold is a 2009 British adventure comedy film directed by Oliver Parker and Barnaby Thompson, both of whom directed the previous film in the series. It is the seventh in a long running series of films based on the works of cartoonist Ronald Searle, and the second film produced since the franchise was rebooted in 2007.

<i>India Song</i> 1975 film by Marguerite Duras

India Song is a 1975 French drama film written and directed by Marguerite Duras. It stars Delphine Seyrig, Michael Lonsdale, Mathieu Carrière, Claude Mann, Vernon Dobtcheff, Didier Flamand and Claude Juan. The film centres on Anne-Marie (Seyrig), the promiscuous wife of the French ambassador in India, and was based on an unproduced play written by Duras. Although set in India, the film was shot mostly on location at the Château Rothschild. It was selected as the French entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 48th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated.

<i>Romeo and Juliet</i> (2013 Broadway play) 2014 American film

Romeo and Juliet is a filmed performance of the 2013 Broadway theatrical production of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet starring Orlando Bloom and Condola Rashād which was produced as a 2014 film by BroadwayHD and Fathom Events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Satanic film</span> Subgenre of horror film which depicts the Devil and associated wicked themes

A Satanic film is a subgenre of horror film, and at times other film genres, that involves the Devil as a concept or a character. Common themes/characters in Satanic film include the Antichrist, demonic possession, exorcism, and witchcraft.

<i>Dog Eat Dog</i> (2016 film) 2016 American film

Dog Eat Dog is a 2016 American action thriller film directed by Paul Schrader with a screenplay by Matthew Wilder, based on Edward Bunker's 1995 novel of the same name. The film stars Nicolas Cage and Willem Dafoe.

<i>Port Authority</i> (film) 2019 film

Port Authority is a 2019 drama film written and directed by Danielle Lessovitz. It stars Fionn Whitehead, Leyna Bloom, McCaul Lombardi and Louisa Krause. Martin Scorsese serves as an executive producer under his Sikelia Productions banner. It had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard section on May 18, 2019. It was released in France on September 25, 2019, by ARP Selection, and was released in the United States on May 28, 2021, by Momentum Pictures.

References

  1. 1 2 "Orlando Bloom Finds Trouble on 'Main Street'". Entertainment Tonight. Archived from the original on 2012-04-24. Retrieved 2009-06-06.
  2. "Myriad walks up 'Main Street'". Variety . Retrieved 2011-07-23.
  3. 2011 Year in Review: Big Stars, Vanishing Movies Yahoo Movies Archived 2012-01-10 at the Wayback Machine
  4. Waggoner, Martha (April 24, 2009). "Directors, actors stay true to Foote's script". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on April 25, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-06.
  5. "Brush with fame starts with day on 'Main Street'". The Durham News. May 27, 2009. Archived from the original on June 15, 2009.
  6. "They're wrapping up on 'Main Street' though the plot is suspiciously close to Sinclair Lewis' celebrated novel of the same title". News and Observer. April 27, 2009. Archived from the original on April 30, 2009.
  7. "Bay City Native rubs elbows with Hollywood Stars". The Bay City Times. May 21, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-06.
  8. Swart, Sharon (May 21, 2009). "Tarantino gets Cannes off and running". Variety .
  9. "Main Street (2011)". Rotten Tomatoes . Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  10. DVD Review: Main Street (2011) Archived 2012-07-11 at archive.today Blogcritics.org