Away We Go (2009)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:154
Fresh:101
Rotten:53
Average Rating:6.5/10
Consensus: Built on a set of quirks and charms that are as noticeable as they are interchangeable, Away We Go is a sweet but uneven road trip.
Runtime: 1 hr 38 mins
Genre: Comedies
US Box Office: $9,358,424
Synopsis: Director Sam Mendes (AMERICAN BEAUTY) may invoke plenty of indie-comedy tropes in this comic venture, but AWAY WE GO is a tender, sweet, and surprisingly funny addition to the genre. Verona De... [More]
Starring: John Krasinski, Maya Rudolph, Jeff Daniels, Maggie Gyllenhaal
Director: Sam Mendes
Reviews for Away We Go
| Tomatometer | Critic | Review | Category |
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The film is a bit too sentimental and rather flat, despite some amusing scenes Full Review |
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Parenthood, relationships and belonging are the themes of this occasionally endearing road movie on which acclaimed director Sam Mendes puts his stamp. Full Review |
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Krasinski and Rudolph have nothing to play. They are a stand-in for the audience in the same way that Styrofoam peanuts protect the contents of your package; lifeless, breakable, malleable, and totally unrelated to what they are assigned to protect. Full Review |
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6/10 |
The good acting provides an example of what might make this kind of formula work, but it's quite an uphill battle when one can see the scripted situations acting as comic fallbacks. Full Review |
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B+ |
The result of this odd mix of elements is a film that is both genuinely funny and moving. Full Review |
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It's hard to warm to a film so determined to ridicule, even when it steadies out in the final act as they find more centered and emotionally generous folks... Full Review |
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3/5 |
Away We Go is the cinematic equivalent of Innocent smoothies: it appears to talk like ‘us’, while all the time reducing us to another consumer demographic. Full Review |
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4/5 |
While cynics may find it twee, Mendes fans should greatly enjoy this (gently) surprising change of direction. Go in with the right frame of mind and you’ll leave with a big, goofy grin on your face. Full Review |
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2/5 |
That every supporting character is depicted as insufferable or pitiable or both would be bad enough; what’s worse is that the couple discover nothing about themselves that wasn’t obvious from the opening. Full Review |
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1/5 |
This is a feelgood movie that will make you want to break up with your significant other, head for the nearest, seediest strip joint and get very, very drunk. Full Review |
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2/5 |
Away We Go is a reminder that being a successful author does not mean you can dash off a screenplay without learning the craft. Full Review |
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3/5 |
Away We Go has an easy, no-particular-place-to-go looseness that doesn't bear too close a scrutiny, but has a certain likability. Full Review |
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4/5 |
This won't go down as much of a success story for Mendes, but, unlike his more grandiose projects of late, it's not a complete dead end. Full Review |
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3/5 |
The more the film insists that we see Verona and Burt as perfect, the more smug and unreal they appear. The messy mix of twee maundering and frat-boy slapstick might work if one thing were added: a caption at the end that read: “... and then Burt woke up” Full Review |
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4/5 |
Away We Go is an oddly small, scruffy and poignant film from Mendes, a clapped out old jalopy next to his sleek Porsche pictures. Full Review |
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4/5 |
Sweet and sometimes sharp but never bitter, this is a heartwarming work of refreshing geniality. Full Review |
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4/5 |
A rewarding change of pace for Sam Mendes, Away We Go is a small, lovely film that gently sneaks up on you with unexpected depth and feeling. Let it. Full Review |
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2.5/5 |
Although Away We Go doesn't sum to the icon of loveliness that the filmmakers might have hoped for - it is too tonally fractured - the movie does suggest avenues that Sam Mendes might consider exploring in the future. Full Review |
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2/5 |
At its best, the film reminded me of another road movie about alternative lifestyles, Flirting With Disaster, but this isn’t nearly as sharp or funny. Full Review |
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4/5 |
This is the most heart-warming movie Mendes has yet made, and his best since American Beauty. Full Review |
CommentLatest News for Away We Go
June 27, 2009:
A rudderless road version of Juno! 
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June 25, 2009:
Five Favorite Films with Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida
We have Dave Eggers. He broke into the mainstream with 2000's A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, the idiosyncratic Pulitzer-nominated memoir about his journey to and... More...
June 17, 2009:
Edinburgh 2009: The Tomato Report – Mendes takes Away We Go International
Another year, another Edinburgh Film Festival, and Rotten Tomatoes is firmly set up in the Scottish city for another fine celebration of film. Once again we're partnering with... More...
June 13, 2009:
PR Newswire: Too much information bedrooms, and vibes that may encourage skipping parenthood altogether for those who haven't quite made up their minds yet.
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