In Good Company (Widescreen Edition)
by Paul Weitz
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: David Paymer, Dennis Quaid, Marg Helgenberger, Scarlett Johansson, Topher GraceDirector: Paul Weitz
Brand: Uni
Producer: Paul Weitz
Writer: Paul Weitz
Producer: Andrew Miano
Producer: Chris Weitz
Producer: Kerry Kohansky
Producer: Lawrence Pressman
Producer: Matt Eddy
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 5.1; English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Dubbed); Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 109 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-05-10
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Universal Studios
Movie Reviews of In Good Company (Widescreen Edition)
Movie Review: This movie "flew under the radar" - terrific all-around film
Summary: 5 Stars
Sometimes we all tend to get caught up on how movies do at the box office or at the Academy Awards. But often there are movies that aren't the big name movies that are going to deliver what they truly intend to do - entertain the audience. The movie "In Good Company" is one of those movies. This movie was a 2004 release by producer, director, and writer Paul Weitz. Slowly but surely, Paul Weitz is making a name for himself in all three of these creative areas. "In Good Company" proves to be one of the finest movies Weitz has released to date. In addition to writing a good script, Weitz as director assembles a terrific cast to carry out the script - headed by Dennis Quaid and Topher Grace. "In Good Company" is a movie that provides a nice balance of light comedy with drama.
The summary of the story is this: Dennis Quaid plays Dan Foreman. Dan is a 51 year old married man with a college-age and teenage daughter. As Dan is struggling with his girls growing up, he discovers his wife Ann (played by Marg Helgenberger) is pregnant. Dan has worked at "Sports America" magazine for 23 years and is the Head of Advertising for the magazine. As is typical with Corporate America, "Sports America" is taken over by a larger company. Following the takeover, a young hotshot with no experience in magazine advertising named Carter Duryea (played by Topher Grace) is brought in to become the new Head of Advertising. While Carter has been tasked with cutting the staff back, he offers to keep Dan on as his right-hand "wingman". Carter has his own problems too. His wife has just left him - and he has feeling the pressure of having to adjust to a job that he isn't qualified. While both Dan and Carter struggle with individual personal and professional problems, things get more complicated when Carter starts to date Dan's college-age daughter, Alex (played by Scarlett Johansson). This will throw a monkey-wrench into what is already a tense working relationship between the two.
Dennis Quaid is probably one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood. He delivers a solid performance as the 50something Dan Foreman. Part of what I think makes Quaid a great choice to play Dan is that he can mix it up when it comes to the "Comedy-Drama" type of role. Even Dan's body language is well done - this particularly seen well at the beginning of the movie when Dan finds a home pregnancy kit in the trash. Quaid delivers some funny lines - one memorable one is when he finds out Ann is pregnant he says: "You're pregnant?! Holy Crap! Does it feel like a boy?" We see Quaid in a very funny moment when Dan turns the tables on his guests at his 52nd birthday party. We also see a sensitive side to Dan. This is demonstrated in the latter stages of Ann's pregnancy as well as at the office when Carter announces he is going to fire two long-time associates of Dan's.
Topher Grace might be a new name in Hollywood to keep tabs on (word he is slated to have a role in "Spiderman 3"). Grace does an outstanding job with the character of Carter Duryea. I found the character of Carter Duryea to be a complex-one. While Carter may same immature at times - at other times the complete opposite is true. This is seen throughout Carter's personal and professional struggles. We see Carter's loneliness that comes following the breakup of his marriage. We see Carter struggling in his new role. We also see Carter taking a very mature outlook when he gets involved with Dan's daughter Alex. While at first, the character of Carter might not be likeable - throughout the movie I felt things begin to change. Toward the end of the movie, I even began to see Carter become more of a "hero".
The dynamics between Dennis Quaid and Topher Grace are what is going to make this movie really work. At the beginning of the movie, we see Dan and Carter as adversaries - each in difficult positions in their new professional roles. We also see some bonding between the two. One of the best scenes is when Dan goes to Carter asking for advice on how to deal with his teenage daughter - then Carter turns the tables and asks Dan what is the secret to a successful marriage. This scene provides a nice mix of the light comedy and drama that is a staple of this movie. The realism that is brought to these roles by Quaid and Grace are going to be the key to making the dynamics work so well between not only the characters, but the actors.
A lot of times, a good movie sometimes begins to break down in the last 20 minutes as it reaches it's conclusion. Such is not the case with "In Good Company". In fact, I think the last 20 minutes are really going to be the strength of the movie. The ending of the movie is not very predictable. The ending of the movie should be very pleasing to both audiences.
The movie also does an outstanding job at demonstrating - and poking fun at the world of corporate takeovers. If you have been around this environment, you will appreciate some of the indirect humor that comes out in this scenario. I like when the CEO "Teddy Z" (played uncredited by Malcolm McDowell) pays a visit and gives a "corporate vision". I found a lot of the "poking fun" characteristics demonstrated in that particular scene.
Overall, this is one movie that was overlooked by both audiences and to some extent the critics. In addition to good acting, directing, and writing - there is some great soundtrack music. Most of all, the movie entertains you. This is a highly recommended film.
Summary of In Good Company (Widescreen Edition)
DAN IS HEADED FOR A SHAKEUP. HE IS DEMOTED AT WORK, HIS NEW BOSS, CARTER, IS HALF HIS AGE & HIS WIFE JUST TOLD HIM SHE'SPREGNANT WITH ANOTHER CHILD. DAN & CARTER'S UNEASY FRIENDSHIP IS THROWN INTO JEOPARDY WHEN CARTER FALLS FOR & BEGINS AN AFFAIR WITH DAN'S OLDEST DAUGHTER, ALEX.Nowadays it's rare to find a movie that pays attention to human weakness as well as strength, and that sees a whole person as having both. When a sports magazine gets bought by a media conglomerate, an ad sales executive named Dan Foreman (Dennis Quaid, The Rookie) finds himself playing second-in-command to Carter Duryea, a hotshot barely half his age (Topher Grace, Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!) whose marriage has just fallen apart. One evening Carter invites himself over to Dan's house to escape his loneliness, where he meets Dan's daughter Alex (Scarlett Johansson, Lost in Translation). The two strike immediate sparks and when they run into each other later in the city, a relationship begins--which they discreetly keep from Dan. But the heart of the movie is not in its plot, but in the way that Dan responds to the news that his wife is pregnant, or how Carter tries to fortify his self-image with a new car. These aren't jokes; the actors inhabit these moments fully and turn them into psychological events. Quaid plays Dan as a simple man, but his straightforwardness feels genuine (rather than a failure of the writer's imagination). Grace and Johansson have terrific chemistry as lovers, but so do Grace and Quaid, both as rivals and as a substitute father and son. In Good Company isn't likely to win any awards, but it's honest and honorable; there's a core of truth to its characters and their problems aren't resolved too neatly. Sometimes, that's worth watching. --Bret Fetzer
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