Jump to content

Hector and the Search for Happiness (film): Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
m WPCleaner v1.33 - Fixed using WP:WCW (Interwiki link written as an external link - Spelling and typography)
Line 9: Line 9:
| screenplay = Peter Chelsom<br />Tinker Lindsay<br />Maria von Heland
| screenplay = Peter Chelsom<br />Tinker Lindsay<br />Maria von Heland
| based on = {{based on|''Hector and the Search for Happiness''|[[François Lelord]]}}
| based on = {{based on|''Hector and the Search for Happiness''|[[François Lelord]]}}
| starring = [[Simon Pegg]]<br />[[Rosamund Pike]]<br />[[Toni Collette]]<br />[[Stellan Skarsgård]]<br />[[Jean Reno]]<br />[[Christopher Plummer]]<br />[http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_Atsma Barry Atsma]
| starring = [[Simon Pegg]]<br />[[Rosamund Pike]]<br />[[Toni Collette]]<br />[[Stellan Skarsgård]]<br />[[Jean Reno]]<br />[[Christopher Plummer]]<br />[[:nl:Barry_Atsma|Barry Atsma]]
| music = [[Dan Mangan]]<br />[[Jesse Zubot]]
| music = [[Dan Mangan]]<br />[[Jesse Zubot]]
| cinematography = Kolja Brandt
| cinematography = Kolja Brandt
Line 28: Line 28:
Hector is a quirky psychiatrist who has become increasingly tired of his humdrum life. As he tells his girlfriend, Clara, he feels like a fraud: he hasn't really tasted life, and yet he's offering advice to patients who are just not getting any happier. He tells Clara that he needs to go on a journey to research happiness, but doesn't know exactly how long he will be gone. Nevertheless, he asks Clara to wait for him. Hector flies business class to China, seated next to a cranky business man named Edward. He finds that Clara has packed him a notebook with which to log his journey, along with an old photograph of Hector with another woman which she found in his sock drawer.
Hector is a quirky psychiatrist who has become increasingly tired of his humdrum life. As he tells his girlfriend, Clara, he feels like a fraud: he hasn't really tasted life, and yet he's offering advice to patients who are just not getting any happier. He tells Clara that he needs to go on a journey to research happiness, but doesn't know exactly how long he will be gone. Nevertheless, he asks Clara to wait for him. Hector flies business class to China, seated next to a cranky business man named Edward. He finds that Clara has packed him a notebook with which to log his journey, along with an old photograph of Hector with another woman which she found in his sock drawer.


Hector wants to order from the duty free store on the plane, but needs to fill out paperwork. Edward lets him borrow his pen, but tells him that he must return it. At the airport, Hector fumbles with his map and realizes he still has Edward’s pen. He rushes to return it, and Edward decides to treat Hector to a lavish dinner at a nice hotel. When asked about his idea of happiness, Edward explains that happiness is supposed to be about retirement and enjoying life, but because he works so hard and makes so much money, his happiness instead comes through enjoying the finest luxuries. Edward takes Hector to a very exclusive nightclub in Shanghai, where Hector meets a young woman named Ying Li and instantly falls for her.
Hector wants to order from the duty-free store on the plane, but needs to fill out paperwork. Edward lets him borrow his pen, but tells him that he must return it. At the airport, Hector fumbles with his map and realizes he still has Edward’s pen. He rushes to return it, and Edward decides to treat Hector to a lavish dinner at a nice hotel. When asked about his idea of happiness, Edward explains that happiness is supposed to be about retirement and enjoying life, but because he works so hard and makes so much money, his happiness instead comes through enjoying the finest luxuries. Edward takes Hector to a very exclusive nightclub in Shanghai, where Hector meets a young woman named Ying Li and instantly falls for her.


He takes her out to lunch, where he asks Ying Li to go with him to the mountains to meet her family. She declines, however, as she is too ashamed of how she makes her living. Their date is then promptly interrupted by her pimp, who takes Ying Li away by force. Next, Hector ventures into the mountains and visits a monastery, where he befriends their leader and is able to contact Clara on Skype, but their conversation is cut short when a strong gust of wind topples the satellite dish. The monks then invite Hector to watch them dance beneath strings of multi-colored flags which flutter in the wind. Through his time with the monks, Hector learns that they find their happiness in spite of grief.
He takes her out to lunch, where he asks Ying Li to go with him to the mountains to meet her family. She declines, however, as she is too ashamed of how she makes her living. Their date is then promptly interrupted by her pimp, who takes Ying Li away by force. Next, Hector ventures into the mountains and visits a monastery, where he befriends their leader and is able to contact Clara on Skype, but their conversation is cut short when a strong gust of wind topples the satellite dish. The monks then invite Hector to watch them dance beneath strings of multi-colored flags which flutter in the wind. Through his time with the monks, Hector learns that they find their happiness in spite of grief.
Line 48: Line 48:
* [[Rosamund Pike]] as Clara, Hector’s long-time girlfriend<ref name="Rosamund-Christopher" />
* [[Rosamund Pike]] as Clara, Hector’s long-time girlfriend<ref name="Rosamund-Christopher" />
* [[Toni Collette]] as Agnes<ref name="Toni-Jean" />
* [[Toni Collette]] as Agnes<ref name="Toni-Jean" />
* [http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_Atsma Barry Atsma] as Michael
* [[:nl:Barry_Atsma|Barry Atsma] as Michael
* [[Stellan Skarsgård]] as Edward, a rich, jaded banker whom Hector befriends on his flight to China<ref name="Stellan" />
* [[Stellan Skarsgård]] as Edward, a rich, jaded banker whom Hector befriends on his flight to China<ref name="Stellan" />
* [[Christopher Plummer]] as Professor Coreman, the leading guru for ''Happiness Studies'' at UCLA<ref name="Rosamund-Christopher" />
* [[Christopher Plummer]] as Professor Coreman, the leading guru for ''Happiness Studies'' at UCLA<ref name="Rosamund-Christopher" />

Revision as of 00:48, 11 October 2014

Hector and the Search for Happiness
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPeter Chelsom
Screenplay byPeter Chelsom
Tinker Lindsay
Maria von Heland
Produced byKlaus Dohle
Trish Dolman
Christine Haebler
Phil Hunt
Compton Ross
Judy Tossell
StarringSimon Pegg
Rosamund Pike
Toni Collette
Stellan Skarsgård
Jean Reno
Christopher Plummer
Barry Atsma
CinematographyKolja Brandt
Edited byClaus Wehlisch
Music byDan Mangan
Jesse Zubot
Production
companies
Egoli Tossell Film
Film Afrika Worldwide
Erfttal Film
German Federal Film Board
Screen Siren Pictures
Distributed byKoch Media (United Kingdom)
Relativity Media (United States)
Wild Bunch Germany (Germany)
Release dates
  • 15 August 2014 (2014-08-15) (United Kingdom)
  • 19 September 2014 (2014-09-19) (United States)
Running time
120 minutes[1]
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget£9,142,341[2]
Box office£2,001,168[3]

Hector and the Search for Happiness is a 2014 British romantic comedy film directed by Peter Chelsom and co-written with Tinker Lindsay and Maria von Heland, based on François Lelord's novel of the same name. The film stars Simon Pegg and Rosamund Pike.

Plot

Hector is a quirky psychiatrist who has become increasingly tired of his humdrum life. As he tells his girlfriend, Clara, he feels like a fraud: he hasn't really tasted life, and yet he's offering advice to patients who are just not getting any happier. He tells Clara that he needs to go on a journey to research happiness, but doesn't know exactly how long he will be gone. Nevertheless, he asks Clara to wait for him. Hector flies business class to China, seated next to a cranky business man named Edward. He finds that Clara has packed him a notebook with which to log his journey, along with an old photograph of Hector with another woman which she found in his sock drawer.

Hector wants to order from the duty-free store on the plane, but needs to fill out paperwork. Edward lets him borrow his pen, but tells him that he must return it. At the airport, Hector fumbles with his map and realizes he still has Edward’s pen. He rushes to return it, and Edward decides to treat Hector to a lavish dinner at a nice hotel. When asked about his idea of happiness, Edward explains that happiness is supposed to be about retirement and enjoying life, but because he works so hard and makes so much money, his happiness instead comes through enjoying the finest luxuries. Edward takes Hector to a very exclusive nightclub in Shanghai, where Hector meets a young woman named Ying Li and instantly falls for her.

He takes her out to lunch, where he asks Ying Li to go with him to the mountains to meet her family. She declines, however, as she is too ashamed of how she makes her living. Their date is then promptly interrupted by her pimp, who takes Ying Li away by force. Next, Hector ventures into the mountains and visits a monastery, where he befriends their leader and is able to contact Clara on Skype, but their conversation is cut short when a strong gust of wind topples the satellite dish. The monks then invite Hector to watch them dance beneath strings of multi-colored flags which flutter in the wind. Through his time with the monks, Hector learns that they find their happiness in spite of grief.

Hector departs on a terrifying plane ride to Africa, where he meets an African woman who invites him to her family's house for sweet potato stew. Hector meets his old friend Michael, a physician, and his bodyguard Marcel, who take Hector to his hotel. At the bar, he meets a quick-tempered drug lord named Diego Baresco, who doesn’t believe in happiness because his wife is unhappy due to her medication. Hector offers to look at her prescriptions. Noting some harmful interactions, he directs Diego to a colleague who may be able to help, borrowing Diego's pen in the process. When Hector leaves the bar with Michael, he realizes he still has the pen.

After spending a week helping out at Michael's clinic, Hector discovers that Marcel is more than Michael’s bodyguard. They are lovers, and they are happy. Hector meets the lady from the plane and enjoys sweet potato stew with her family. On the way back to his hotel, his vehicle is carjacked and Hector is kidnapped and locked in a rat infested cell. When the kidnappers decide to kill him, Hector claims to be friends with Diego to save himself, but cannot prove it. With a gun pointed at his head, Hector asks if he can make one final note in his book about what brings his captors happiness, but not before showing the pen engraved with Diego's name to the kidnappers. Upon his release, Hector makes his way back to the village where he celebrates with the locals. He Skypes Clara once more, who is dressed in a fancy gown and seems uninterested in talking to him.

Hector flies First Class to Los Angeles. On the plane, he attends to a woman with a brain tumor. With the pressure from the altitude causing her extreme pain, Hector convinces the pilot to fly the plane lower. When they land, Hector tells the paramedics not to take her to the hospital, but to see her sister instead. Hector then goes to the beach in Santa Monica where the photo from his sock drawer was taken and meets Agnes, one of his old girlfriends, who is now happily married with children. Hector calls Clara from Los Angeles, who immediately accuses him of trying to rekindle an old flame. The two have a heated argument which leads to their break up.

Agnes and Hector meet with Professor Coreman, who is studying the effects of happiness on the brain. During Coreman’s lecture, he points out that people shouldn’t be concerned with the pursuit of happiness, but with the happiness of pursuit. Afterwards, Agnes and Hector go to Coreman’s lab and check out a project he has been working on, which monitors brain activity in real time and how it reacts to different emotions.

Agnes is instructed to go into an isolated room and think about three things, times when she was happy, sad and scared. Through his brain scanning technology, Coreman is able to tell which order she thought about the three emotions. When Hector takes his turn, he thinks about Clara marrying someone else. He thinks about his time being kidnapped and about Ying Li, but his emotions are strangely blocked. Hector then receives a call from a remorseful Clara, who tells him she wants to be a mother. Hector apologizes for not explaining his trip and tells her what he's learned, and that the most unhappy thing he could imagine would be to lose her, while the happiest thing possible would be to become the man she would want to spend the rest of her life with. Suddenly Hector's brain scan erupts with a flurry of activity, mimicking the colored flags from the monastery and revealing that true happiness isn't just one emotion; it's all of them. Having finally achieved his own happiness, Hector rushes home and marries Clara.

Cast

Production

On 19 May 2012, Simon Pegg joined was cast in the title role, Hector.[4] On 6 September 2012, Rosamund Pike and Christopher Plummer joined the cast of the film. Pike played Clara while Plummer played Professor Coreman. On 1 November 2012, Stellan Skarsgård also joined the cast, playing Edward.[7] German actress Veronica Ferres also joined the film, playing a clairvoyant who has lost her ability to see into the future.[8] The film began production in January 2013.[6] On April 2, 2013, Toni Collette and Jean Reno joined the cast of the film, along with Jakob Davies.[5] The film was made on a £9 million ($15 million) production budget.[2]

Relativity Media acquired the US distribution rights to the film, and released the film there on 19 September 2014.[9]

Marketing

The first trailer was released on 5 February 2014.[10] Another trailer was released on 21 June.[11] An international trailer for the film was released on July 15, 2014.[12] On July 22, the final trailer for the film was released.[13]

Release

The film was released in the United Kingdom by Koch Film on 15 August 2014.[1] Relativity Media released the film in the United States on 19 September 2014.[9][14] It was screened in the Special Presentations section of the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.[15]

Reception

Hector and the Search for Happiness has been met with mostly negative reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a rating of 32%, based on 66 reviews, with an average rating of 4.6/10. The consensus states, "Simon Pegg remains as charming as ever, but Hector and the Search for Happiness drowns his appeal in schmaltz."[16] On Metacritic, the film holds a score of 28 out of 100, based on 27 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[17]

References

  1. ^ a b "HECTOR AND THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS (15)". Koch Film. British Board of Film Classification. 27 June 2014. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  2. ^ a b http://www.womeninfilm.ca/Intl_Co-prod_Speaker_Bios.html
  3. ^ http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=intl&id=hector.htm
  4. ^ a b Tartaglione, Nancy (19 May 2012). "Simon Pegg On A 'Search For Happiness'". deadline.com. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
  5. ^ a b c d Fleming Jr, Mike (2 April 2013). "Toni Collette, Jean Reno Set To Star In 'Hector And The Search For Happiness'". deadline.com. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  6. ^ a b c Siegel, Tatiana (6 September 2012). "Rosamund Pike and Christopher Plummer Cast in 'Hector and the Search for Happiness'". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  7. ^ a b Foreman, Liza (1 November 2012). "Stellan Skarsgård Joins 'Hector and the Search for Happiness'". thewrap.com. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  8. ^ IMDb Entry
  9. ^ a b Fleming Jr, Mike (22 April 2014). "Relativity Acquires U.S. On 'Hector And The Search For Happiness'". deadline.com. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  10. ^ Anderton, Ethan (5 February 2014). "Simon Pegg in 'Hector and the Search for Happiness' UK Trailer". firstshowing.net. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  11. ^ Hughes, Jason (21 June 2014). "Simon Pegg Travels the World in 'Hector and the Search for Happiness' Trailer". thewrap.com. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  12. ^ Tartaglione, Nancy (15 July 2014). "Hot Trailer: 'Hector And The Search For Happiness'". deadline.com. Retrieved 16 July 2014.
  13. ^ Anderton, Ethan (22 July 2014). "Simon Pegg in 'Hector and the Search for Happiness' Final US Trailer". firstshowing.net. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  14. ^ "Hot Trailer: 'Hector And The Search For Happiness'". Deadline. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  15. ^ "Toronto Film Festival Lineup". Variety. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  16. ^ "Hector And The Search For Happiness". 19 September 2014. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  17. ^ "Hector and the Search for Happiness Reviews - Metacritic". Retrieved 5 October 2014.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hector_and_the_Search_for_Happiness_(film)&oldid=629123785"