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Trainwreck (film)

This article is about the 2015 film. For the 2008 film, see Andrew Lane (film producer).

Trainwreck
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJudd Apatow
Written byAmy Schumer
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyJody Lee Lipes
Edited by
  • William Kerr
  • Paul Zucker
Music byJon Brion
Production
company
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
  • March 15, 2015 (2015-03-15) (SXSW)
  • July 17, 2015 (2015-07-17) (United States)
Running time
125 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$35 million[2]
Box office$140.8 million[3]

Trainwreck is a 2015 American romantic sex comedy film directed and co-produced by Judd Apatow and written by and starring Amy Schumer along with an ensemble supporting cast that includes Bill Hader, Brie Larson, Colin Quinn, John Cena, Vanessa Bayer, Tilda Swinton, Ezra Miller, Mike Birbiglia, Norman Lloyd, and NBA player LeBron James. The film is about a hard-drinking, promiscuous, free-spirited young magazine writer named Amy Townsend (Schumer) who has her first serious relationship with a prominent orthopedic surgeon named Aaron Conners (Hader). The film received positive reviews from critics, praising the performances of Schumer, Hader, James, and the screenplay.

Principal photography began on May 19, 2014, in New York City. The film premiered at South by Southwest on March 15, 2015, and was theatrically released in the United States on July 17, 2015, by Universal Pictures. The film won several awards and was nominated for numerous others, including two Golden Globe Awards (Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy) and the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Plot

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In 1992, Gordon Townsend tells his young daughters Amy and Kim that the impending divorce with their mother was inevitable as monogamy is not realistic, repeating it like a mantra. Twenty-three years later in 2015, Amy is a heavy-drinking, over-sexed party girl who works as a columnist for a men's magazine in New York City, and is dating gym-addict Steven. Her cold British boss, Dianna, assigns her to write an article about sports doctor Aaron Conners.

While interviewing Aaron, a text from Kim insisting they move Gordon to a cheaper assisted-living facility causes Amy to hyperventilate. He calms her down, suggesting dinner. There, he praises her writing and talks about his family. After drinks, she suggests going to his place to have sex. Although it's against her rule of never sleeping over after sex, she stays the night when asked.

The next day, Aaron calls to ask if they can see each other again. Panicking, she tells him they will talk about it at the interview, then she and her friend Nikki decide it has to end. Meanwhile, Aaron's friend, LeBron James, is excited for him as Aaron has not dated for six years. Amy watches Aaron performing surgery to Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl", his favorite song. Afterwards, she tries to break it off, but he insists they like each other and should date. Amy then gets a call that her father has fallen, so Aaron drives and tends to her father.

Aaron and Amy begin dating and fall for each other. She is worried she is going to mess up, but Kim tells her she is just doing what's normal. Gordon overdoses and dies from stockpiling his medication. At his funeral, Amy and Kim have a falling out: Amy accuses Kim of not caring about Gordon as she has always been more sympathetic towards him and has developed a similar outlook on relationships and life in general over the years. Shortly after, Aaron tells Amy that he loves her; she berates him for choosing that particular day to say it for the first time.

Aaron receives a prestigious award at a luncheon and brings Amy. While he is making his speech, she gets a call from her boss Dianna, who threatens to fire her if she does not answer. So, Amy takes the call, leaving during his speech. Afterwards, Aaron is upset that she missed it, so they start arguing. Returning home, he thinks they should not go to bed angry, so Amy rants all night. Too tired to operate on Amar'e Stoudemire that morning, Aaron tells her they need to take a break. Hurt, Amy tells him they should just break up as his article got canceled. Saying "You win," he leaves.

Out drinking with her co-workers, the intern takes Amy home; their bizarre sexual encounter is interrupted by his mom, revealing he is only 16. The next day, Dianna fires her for the incident. Aaron is moping in his apartment when LeBron calls, claiming he has been injured. He rushes over to find an intervention, including LeBron, Matthew Broderick, Chris Evert, and Marv Albert. They tell him he has always been afraid of opening up and needs to fix things with Amy, but Aaron insists it is over.

Making amends with Kim, Amy catches up; and they, Kim and her family, comfort her with a group hug. Amy decides it is time to change, clearing out all the alcohol from her apartment. She takes her Aaron story to Vanity Fair, where it gets published, sending Aaron the magazine with the story. After attending a game at Madison Square Garden, he is called back to the court, where the Knicks City Dancers perform with Amy front and center, to Aaron's favorite songs, including "Uptown Girl". She tells him she wants to make their relationship work. They profess their love and kiss, to applause.

Cast

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Production

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On August 26, 2013, Universal Studios optioned an untitled script written by Amy Schumer that she would also star in.[11] On November 27, 2013, it was announced that Judd Apatow would direct the film.[12] On January 8, 2014, it was announced that the film would be released on July 24, 2015.[13] On January 30, 2014, Bill Hader joined the cast of the film.[14] On February 18, 2014, Brie Larson also joined the cast.[15] On March 28, 2014, Colin Quinn, Barkhad Abdi, Mike Birbiglia, Jon Glaser, Vanessa Bayer, John Cena, Ezra Miller, and Tilda Swinton were cast in the film, though Abdi ultimately did not appear in it.[4] On May 7, 2014, Method Man and LeBron James joined the cast of the film, with James replacing Abdi.[5] On June 30, Daniel Radcliffe was spotted filming some scenes for the film, which confirmed his casting.[16] On July 1, Marisa Tomei was also confirmed to appear, in scenes with Radcliffe.[8] In an interview with The New York Times, Schumer revealed that she and Apatow dismissed their first idea for a story (later revealed to have Schumer as a used-car saleswoman),[17] and shifted to an amplified and comedic version of Schumer's own past as its basis.[18]

Filming

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Principal photography began on May 19, 2014, in New York City.[19] On June 2, the crew began filming in the area of Manhattan and Long Island.[20] Principal photography ended on August 1, 2014.[21] Editing on the movie began with the start of filming; the movie was finalized in December 2014.[22]

Music

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Jon Brion composed the music for the film.[23]

Reception

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Box office

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Trainwreck grossed $110.2 million in North America and $30.6 million in other territories for a total gross of $140.8 million, against a budget of $35 million.[3]

In the United States and Canada, Trainwreck opened on July 17, 2015, the same day as the superhero film Ant-Man. Initial projections had the film opening to around $20 million, with The Hollywood Reporter noting that it could overperform if it was popular with females or underperform given how R-rated comedies had struggled over the summer, with both Ted 2 and Magic Mike XXL failing to meet expectations.[2] It made $1.8 million on Thursday night showings, which began at 8 p.m. in 2,363 theaters,[24] and $10.7 million on its opening day.[25] Through its opening weekend, it grossed $30.1 million in 3,158 theaters, exceeding expectations. This was Apatow's second-biggest debut as a director (just behind the $30.7 million debut of Knocked Up) and the sixth-biggest debut for a film that he was involved in as a writer, director or producer.[26][27][28] The film played 69% female with 66% over 25 years old, which is typical for an R-rated comedy. According to a poll conducted by Rentrak in its opening weekend, 28% of respondents said they went to see the film because of Schumer.[26]

Lafayette shooting

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Main article: 2015 Lafayette shooting

On July 23, 2015, a mass shooting occurred at the Grand 16 movie theater in Lafayette, Louisiana, during a screening of the movie that resulted in two dead and nine injured.

Critical response

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On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 84% based on 286 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Trainwreck drags commitment out of all but the most rom-com-phobic filmgoers with sharp humor, relatable characters, and hilarious work from Amy Schumer."[29] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 75 out of 100, based on 45 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[30] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.[31]

Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune gave the film three and a half stars out of four, saying, "Schumer and Hader are wonderful together. Gender inequity in the world of comedy deserves all the overdue attention it's getting, and more. But there are matters of craft, wit (no matter how crude the jokes) and timing that transcend chromosomes."[32] Richard Roeper of The Chicago Sun Times praised the performances of the cast, particularly Schumer, Hader, Quinn, and James.[33] He also called Schumer's performance worthy of an Academy Award nomination.[34] Benjamin Lee of The Guardian gave the film three out of five stars, stating, "Judd Apatow's latest is rough around the edges, but his focus on a female protagonist refreshes a genre in sore need of change".[35] Ian Crouch, writing for The New Yorker, singled out LeBron James' performance for praise, writing that "it seems safe to declare that he has given the greatest motion-picture acting performance by an active professional basketball player of all time (but we know Jabbar already has this in Airplane)."[36] Chris Nashawaty of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a B+, saying, "Beneath all of his bad-boy shtick, Apatow's always been a pretty conventional moralist. But Schumer gives their raunchy rom-com enough of her signature spikiness to prevent it from ever feeling predictable."[37] Jacob Hall of the New York Daily News gave the film four out of five stars, saying, "Schumer raises Apatow's game beautifully. Her biting, pitch-black wit and his penchant for character-driven comedy go together like gin and tonic."[38] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying "Sweet is not how Schumer wants Trainwreck to go down. She wants to explode rom-com clichés and replace them with something fierce and ready to rumble. Done."[39]

Sara Stewart of the New York Post gave the film four out of four stars, saying "Trainwreck is a corrective to a lot of outdated clichés. It's very funny and sweet and even a little weepy, and it has maybe the best scene ever filmed of dirty talk gone wrong."[40] Ty Burr of The Boston Globe gave the film three out of four stars, saying "Trainwreck serves as confirmation that a star is born, a seemingly average woman whose above-average superpowers include reminding us of our own. Where she goes from here should be fascinating to watch."[41] Brian Truitt of USA Today gave the film three out of four stars, saying "With films such as Funny People and This Is 40, Apatow has toyed with finding the right blend of the serious and the hilarious and finally hits it here."[42] Moira MacDonald of The Seattle Times gave the film three out of four stars, saying, "There's nothing remotely fresh about this plotline (or the way Apatow, true to form, makes the movie 20 minutes longer than it should be), but Trainwreck works as comedy more often than it doesn't—and that's rare enough."[43] Alonso Duralde of The Wrap said, "Ultimately comes down in favor of mainstream girl-gets-boy in a way that Inside Amy Schumer might find a little dubious, but it never feels like Schumer is aggressively watering down her uniquely prickly brand of comedy for a mass audience."[44]

Accolades

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Award Category Recipients Result
ACE Eddie Awards Best Edited Feature Film – Comedy or Musical William Kerr and Paul Zucker Nominated
Austin Film Critics Association The Robert R. "Bobby" McCurdy Memorial Breakthrough Artist Award Amy Schumer Nominated
Chicago Film Critics Association Most Promising Performer Amy Schumer Nominated
Critics' Choice Awards Best Comedy Trainwreck Nominated
Best Actor in a Comedy Bill Hader Nominated
Best Actress in a Comedy Amy Schumer Won
Denver Film Critics Society Best Comedy Trainwreck Nominated
Best Original Screenplay Amy Schumer Nominated
Empire Awards Best Comedy Trainwreck Nominated
Best Screenplay Amy Schumer Nominated
Golden Globe Awards Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Trainwreck Nominated
Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Amy Schumer Nominated
Hollywood Film Awards Hollywood Comedy Award Amy Schumer Won
Kansas City Film Critics Circle Best Original Screenplay Trainwreck Nominated
Las Vegas Film Critics Society Best Original Screenplay Trainwreck Nominated
Best Comedy Film Won
London Film Critics Circle Supporting Actress of the Year Tilda Swinton Nominated
MTV Movie Awards Best Breakthrough Performance Amy Schumer Nominated
Best Comedic Performance Amy Schumer Nominated
Best Kiss Amy Schumer and Bill Hader Nominated
Best Ensemble Cast Trainwreck Nominated
People's Choice Awards Favorite Comedic Movie Trainwreck Nominated
Favorite Comedic Movie Actress Amy Schumer Nominated
Phoenix Critics Circle Best Comedy Film Trainwreck Nominated
St. Louis Film Critics Association Best Comedy Film Trainwreck Won
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Best Original Screenplay Amy Schumer Nominated
Writers Guild of America Awards Best Original Screenplay Amy Schumer Nominated
Women Film Critics Circle Best Comedic Actress Amy Schumer Won

References

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  1. ^ "TRAINWRECK (15)". British Board of Film Classification. July 22, 2015. Archived from the original on July 22, 2020. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  2. ^ a b McClintock, Pamela (July 14, 2015). "Box Office Preview: 'Ant-Man,' Amy Schumer's 'Trainwreck' Pull Out of Station". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2015.
  3. ^ a b "Trainwreck (2015)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on January 27, 2016. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Judd Apatow's 'Trainwreck' Casts Up: Tilda Swinton, Barkhad Abdi and John Cena Sign On". /Film. March 18, 2014. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  5. ^ a b c "LeBron James, Method Man Join Judd Apatow's 'Trainwreck'". The Hollywood Reporter. May 7, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  6. ^ "Randall Park on ABC's New 'Fresh Off the Boat'". The Wall Street Journal. February 4, 2015. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
  7. ^ "JuddApatow: This week we start shooting". Twitter. Archived from the original on May 22, 2014. Retrieved May 22, 2014.
  8. ^ a b Ge, Linda (July 1, 2014). "Marisa Tomei and Daniel Radcliffe Join Judd Apatow's 'Trainwreck'". TheWrap. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 2, 2014.
  9. ^ a b c Douglas, Edward (April 29, 2015). "From the Set of Amy Schumer and Judd Apatow's Trainwreck". ComingSoon.net. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  10. ^ "JuddApatow: This is happening right now". Twitter. Archived from the original on January 1, 2016. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
  11. ^ Fleming, Mike (August 26, 2013). "Universal, Judd Apatow Make Movie Bet On Comedian Amy Schumer". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on June 12, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  12. ^ "Judd Apatow on Board to Direct the Amy Schumer Pic 'Train Wreck'". Variety. November 27, 2013. Archived from the original on January 10, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  13. ^ Yamato, Jen (January 8, 2014). "Judd Apatow-Amy Schumer Movie 'Trainwreck' Gets July 2015 Release Date". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on June 18, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  14. ^ "Bill Hader Joins Amy Schumer in Judd Apatow's 'Trainwreck'". Variety. January 30, 2014. Archived from the original on July 22, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  15. ^ "Brie Larson in Talks to Join Judd Apatow's 'Trainwreck'". The Hollywood Reporter. February 18, 2014. Archived from the original on July 22, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  16. ^ Shewfelt, Raechal Leone (June 30, 2014). "Daniel Radcliffe's Dog Day Afternoon". Yahoo!. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  17. ^ Lewis, Tim (August 2, 2015). "Meet comedian Amy Schumer, the sneaky feminist honesty bomb | Stage". The Guardian. Archived from the original on July 22, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  18. ^ Buckley, Cara (July 18, 2014). "From Stand-Up to Standout". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 22, 2020. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
  19. ^ "On The Set For 5/19/14: Christoph Waltz-Starrer 'Tulip Fever' Starts For The Weinstein Co". Studiosystemnews.com. Archived from the original on July 22, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  20. ^ Christine (June 2, 2014). "First look at Judd Apatow filming 'Trainwreck' in NYC". onlocationvacations.com. Archived from the original on December 18, 2019. Retrieved June 3, 2014.
  21. ^ "amyschumer: Wrapped #Trainwreck". Twitter. August 1, 2014. Retrieved August 5, 2014.
  22. ^ Sluis, Sarah (July 15, 2015). "Trainwreck Editor Loves Mistakes: 'It Feels Real'". thecredits.org. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved July 28, 2015. From the shoot in May until the team finalized the picture around December
  23. ^ "Jon Brion to Score Judd Apatow's 'Trainwreck'". filmmusicreporter.com. December 12, 2014. Archived from the original on May 16, 2020. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  24. ^ McNarry, Dave (July 17, 2015). "Box Office: Amy Schumer's 'Trainwreck' Opens Respectably on Thursday Night". Variety. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
  25. ^ McNary, Dave (July 18, 2015). "Box Office: 'Ant-Man' Large with $58 Million, 'Trainwreck' Solid with $29 Million". Variety. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  26. ^ a b Mendelson, Scott (July 19, 2015). "Box Office: Amy Schumer's 'Trainwreck' Fails To Derail, Scores Strong $30.2M Weekend". Forbes. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
  27. ^ McClintock, Pamela (July 19, 2015). "Box Office: 'Ant-Man' No. 1 With $58M; 'Trainwreck' Laughs to $30.2M". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on July 21, 2015. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
  28. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (July 20, 2015). "'Ant-Man' & 'Minions' Smaller In Actuals; 'Trainwreck' Starts To Party – Weekend Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on July 24, 2015. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  29. ^ "Trainwreck (2015)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  30. ^ "Trainwreck reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
  31. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony. "'Ant-Man' Shrinking Below Its $60M Weekend Projection – Saturday Update". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on July 22, 2015. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  32. ^ "Trainwreck review: Amy Schumer keeps the laughs rolling". Chicago Tribune. July 14, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  33. ^ Roeper, Richard. "'Trainwreck': Amy Schumer Hilarious in a Romantic Comedy to Embrace". The Chicago Sun Times. Archived from the original on December 20, 2015. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  34. ^ "Richard Roeper Reviews "Trainwreck"". YouTube. August 12, 2015. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  35. ^ "Trainwreck review". The Guardian. July 9, 2015. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  36. ^ "The Greatest Movie Performance by an Active Professional Basketball Player". The New Yorker. July 20, 2015. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  37. ^ Nashawaty, Chris. "Trainwreck: EW review". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on July 28, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  38. ^ "'Trainwreck' review: Amy Schumer aces big-screen comedy test". Daily News. New York. July 15, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  39. ^ Travers, Peter (July 15, 2015). "'Trainwreck' Movie Review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  40. ^ Stewart, Sara (July 15, 2015). "Amy Schumer's 'Trainwreck' is a hilarious 4-star ride". New York Post. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  41. ^ "Amy Schumer shines as writer-star of 'Trainwreck'". The Boston Globe. July 16, 2015. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  42. ^ "Review: Amy Schumer charms in 'Trainwreck'". USA Today. July 16, 2015. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  43. ^ Macdonald, Moira (July 16, 2015). "'Trainwreck': A win for Judd Apatow — and LeBron James". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  44. ^ Duralde, Alonso (July 15, 2015). "'Trainwreck' Review: Amy Schumer Makes Brash, Bawdy Leap to Big Screen". Thewrap.com. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
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