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The Intern (2015 film)

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The Intern
Theatrical release poster
Directed byNancy Meyers
Written byNancy Meyers
Produced by
  • Suzanne Farwell
  • Nancy Meyers
Starring
CinematographyStephen Goldblatt
Edited byRobert Leighton
Music byTheodore Shapiro
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
Release dates
  • September 15, 2015 (2015-09-15) (Belgium premiere)
  • September 25, 2015 (2015-09-25) (United States)
Running time
121 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$35 million[2]
Box office$194.5 million[2]

The Intern is a 2015 American comedy film directed, produced and written by Nancy Meyers. The film stars Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway in the two leading roles, with supporting performances from Rene Russo, Anders Holm, Andrew Rannells, Adam DeVine, Christina Scherer, and Zack Pearlman. The film was released on September 25, 2015 by Warner Bros.[3]

Plot

Seventy-year-old widower Ben Whittaker (Robert De Niro), a retired executive from a phone directory company, applies to a senior citizen intern program after retirement has gotten too boring for him. The company in Brooklyn he applies to is About the Fit, a fast-growing e-commerce fashion startup, whose founder and CEO Jules Ostin (Anne Hathaway) had previously agreed to a community outreach program where seniors would intern at the firm. Ben impresses everyone and is one of four hired.

Ben is assigned to work with Jules, who is somewhat sceptical at first. Initially frozen out by her, Ben slowly wins over co-workers with his likability and gets into Jules's good graces. One day, Ben notices Jules's chauffeur drinking, convinces the driver to leave and drives Jules home himself, a role he retains in days to come.

Ben eventually reveals that he once worked in the very same building where About The Fit is now based. He develops a romantic relationship with the in-house massage therapist, Fiona (Rene Russo), and becomes something of a father figure to the younger workers. He is very committed to Jules, and even breaks into the house of Jules's mother to delete an embarrassingly scathing email that Jules inadvertently sent her. Ben also gets to know Jules' family. Her husband, Matt (Anders Holm), gave up his own career to be a stay-at-home dad to their daughter, Paige (JoJo Kushner), when About The Fit started to take off. However, their marriage is slowly breaking apart over Jules's long hours, mainly caused by her very hands-on management style.

Meanwhile, Jules is under pressure to give up her post of CEO to someone outside of the company as her investors feel that she is unable to cope with the workload, having grown About The Fit from a startup founded in her kitchen to a 220-employee juggernaut in only eighteen months. Believing it will give her more time at home with her family, Jules is willing to consider the offer. While driving Paige home from a party, Ben discovers that Matt is having an affair with another parent at Paige's school. While on a business trip in San Francisco to interview a potential CEO candidate, Jules reveals that she knows about Matt's cheating as well.

In an effort to buy herself the time to repair her marriage, Jules decides to hire a prospective CEO. When Jules goes to Ben's home the next day, Ben greatly encourages Jules to think about how much this will change her authority and how her creativity may be tampered with and also reminds her of her passion for her company. Matt unexpectedly drops in at the office and urges her to reconsider, saying that he is willing to make their marriage work. Jules goes out looking for Ben, wanting to tell him that she has changed her mind and finds him obviously enjoying his Tai Chi exercise group. She finally lets herself relax and joins him.

Cast

Production

Originally set up at Paramount Pictures, The Intern was planned to feature Tina Fey and Michael Caine in the lead roles. When a budget could not be settled, Meyers decided to pre-package before going out to other studios and was able to start negotiations for both actors.[4] Handed over to Warner Bros., Fey was replaced by Reese Witherspoon as the attached star, though Witherspoon left the film on January 15, 2014, due to scheduling conflicts.[4] As of February 7, Anne Hathaway was in final talks to replace Witherspoon in the lead role.[5] Stephen Goldblatt was set as director of photography.[6] On June 23, Zack Pearlman joined the cast of the film.[7]

Filming

Filming was in the Bronx in the hunts point area on Barretto street in June of 2014. Principal photography began on June 23, 2014, in Brooklyn, New York City,[6][8] where De Niro was spotted on the set of the film.[9]

Marketing

The first trailer was released on May 13, 2015, and was later attached to showings of Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Pitch Perfect 2, and Paper Towns.[10] On August 3, 2015, another trailer was released.[11]

Reception

Box office

The Intern grossed $75.8 million in North America and $118.3 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $194.1 million, against a budget of $35 million.[2]

In its opening weekend, the film was projected to earn $15–20 million. It ended up grossing $17.7 million, finishing second at the box office behind fellow newcomer Hotel Transylvania 2 ($48.5 million).[12]

Critical response

The Intern received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 60%, based on 160 reviews, with an average rating of 5.8/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "The Intern doesn't do enough with its timely premise, but benefits from the unorthodox chemistry of its talented leads."[13] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 51 out of 100, based on 36 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[14] CinemaScore announced that audiences gave the film an average grade of "A-" on an A+ to F scale.[15]

Richard Roeper gave the film an "A–", stating, "With some genuinely insightful dialogue, a number of truly funny bits of physical business, and small scenes allowing us to get know and like a half-dozen supporting players, The Intern grows us on from scene to scene, from moment to moment."

Manohla Dargis, in The New York Times, wrote that the film was typical of Nancy Meyers' other films: "frothy, playful, homogeneous, routinely maddening and generally pretty irresistible." Despite finding fault with "lazy screenwriting" and "Meyers’s conflicted ideas about powerful women," Dargis praised Meyers for "the smartest choice she makes in “The Intern”: Mr. De Niro, her loosest, most valuable player" who "owns the movie from the moment he opens his mouth." Hathaway's role was derided as "less of a character and more of a fast-walking, speed-talking collection of gender grievances."[16]

Clem Bastow, writing for The Guardian, suggested that poor reviews for the film were primarily coming from men, who form the overwhelming majority of film critics.[17]

Accolades

Year Award Category Recipients Outcome
2016 Critics' Choice Award[18] Best Actor in a Comedy Robert De Niro Nominated

References

  1. ^ "THE INTERN (12A)". British Board of Film Classification. June 24, 2015. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
  2. ^ a b c "The Intern (2015)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved February 9, 2016.
  3. ^ "See Ann Arbor's Zack Pearlman with DeNiro, Hathaway in 'The Intern' trailer". MLive.com. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  4. ^ a b Kroll, Justin (January 15, 2014). "Reese Witherspoon No Longer Attached to Nancy Meyers' 'The Intern'". variety.com. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  5. ^ "Anne Hathaway in Talks to Replace Reese Witherspoon in The Intern". hollywoodreporter.com. February 7, 2014. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  6. ^ a b McCue, Michelle (June 23, 2014). "Nancy Meyers' THE INTERN Begins Filming – Stars Anne Hathaway And Robert De Niro". wearemoviegeeks.com. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  7. ^ Kit, Borys (June 23, 2014). "'Mulaney' Actor Joins Anne Hathaway, Robert De Niro in 'The Intern'". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  8. ^ "First filming location for 'The Intern', starring Anne Hathaway & Robert De Niro, in Brooklyn!". onlocationvacations.com. June 16, 2014. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  9. ^ Christine (June 24, 2014). "Photos of Robert De Niro filming 'The Intern' in Brooklyn". onlocationvacations.com. Retrieved June 26, 2014.
  10. ^ The Intern - Official Trailer [HD]. YouTube. May 13, 2015. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  11. ^ The Intern TRAILER 2 (HD) Anne Hathaway, Robert De Niro Movie 2015. YouTube. August 3, 2015. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  12. ^ Anthony D'Alessandro (September 24, 2015). "'Hotel Transylvania 2' Set To Deliver New September Opening Record & Adam Sandler's Second Best Debut". Deadline.com. (Penske Media Corporation). Retrieved September 26, 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  13. ^ "The Intern". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 24, 2016.
  14. ^ "The Intern reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  15. ^ Anthony D'Alessandro (September 25, 2015). "'Hotel Transylvania 2' Set To Deliver New September Opening Record & Adam Sandler's Second Best Debut". Deadline.com. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  16. ^ Manohla Dargis (September 24, 2015). "Review: In 'The Intern,' She's the Boss, but He's the Star". nytimes.com. Retrieved December 15, 2015.
  17. ^ Clem Bastow (September 30, 2015). "The Intern has been panned by film critics. Why am I not surprised?". theguardian.com. Retrieved December 15, 2015.
  18. ^ "Critics' Choice Awards Nominations: 'Mad Max' Leads Film; ABC, HBO, FX Networks & 'Fargo' Top TV". Deadline.com. December 14, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
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