Dan in Real Life
Encyclopedia
Dan in Real Life is a 2007 American comedy-drama
Comedy-drama
Comedy-drama is a genre of theatre, film and television programs which combines humorous and serious content.-Theatre:Traditional western theatre, beginning with the ancient Greeks, was divided into comedy and tragedy...

 film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...

 directed by Peter Hedges
Peter Hedges
Peter Hedges is an American novelist, screenwriter, and film director.Hedges grew up in West Des Moines, Iowa, and attended Valley High School, where he was involved in the theater department, including the improv group and the mime troupe, "The Bakers Dozen". He later went to the North Carolina...

, starring Steve Carell
Steve Carell
Steven John "Steve" Carell is an American comedian, actor, voice artist, producer, writer, and director. Although Carell is notable for his role on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he found greater fame in the late 2000s for playing Michael Scott on The Office...

 and Juliette Binoche
Juliette Binoche
Juliette Binoche is a French actress, artist and dancer. She has appeared in more than 40 feature films, been recipient of numerous international accolades, is a published author and has appeared on stage across the world. Coming from an artistic background, she began taking acting lessons during...

.

Plot

Dan Burns (Steve Carell
Steve Carell
Steven John "Steve" Carell is an American comedian, actor, voice artist, producer, writer, and director. Although Carell is notable for his role on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he found greater fame in the late 2000s for playing Michael Scott on The Office...

) is a newspaper advice columnist, a widower, and a controlling father to his children Jane, Cara and Lilly in the New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

 suburbs. His column is in contention to be syndicated nationally. The family takes a trip to the Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...

 home of his parents (Dianne Wiest
Dianne Wiest
Dianne Wiest is an American actress. She has had a successful career on stage, television, and film, and has won two Academy Awards, two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. Wiest has also been nominated for a BAFTA Award.-Early life:...

 and John Mahoney
John Mahoney
John Mahoney is a British born American actor, known for playing Martin "Marty" Crane, the retired police officer, father of Kelsey Grammer's Dr...

) to visit his family—including his New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

-based brother, Mitch (Dane Cook
Dane Cook
Dane Jeffrey Cook is an American stand-up comedian and film actor. He has released five comedy albums: Harmful If Swallowed; Retaliation; Vicious Circle; Rough Around The Edges: Live From Madison Square Garden; and Isolated Incident. In 2006, Retaliation became the highest charting comedy album...

), a personal trainer—for an annual family get together. Cara does not want to go, as she does not want to leave her boyfriend Marty (Felipe Dieppa) whom she claims to have fallen in love with in just three days. But Dan insists that it is not possible to fall in love in three days and makes her go. The morning after his arrival, Dan's mother encourages him to go into town for a bit to give his daughters some space. Dan visits a bookstore and a customer named Marie (Juliette Binoche
Juliette Binoche
Juliette Binoche is a French actress, artist and dancer. She has appeared in more than 40 feature films, been recipient of numerous international accolades, is a published author and has appeared on stage across the world. Coming from an artistic background, she began taking acting lessons during...

) mistakes him for an employee. Dan and Marie have an obvious connection and continue to talk over breakfast. Marie agrees to meet with Dan again before leaving but tells Dan that she has a boyfriend. Dan returns to his parents' house and happily announces he has met someone new, only to find that Marie is there, her boyfriend being Dan's brother, Mitch.

Dan and Marie spend the majority of their time trying to deny their attraction to each other. Dan even agrees to a date with Ruthie Draper, a childhood friend of Dan and Mitch's who comes to visit and is now a surgeon. Cara's boyfriend shows up despite the long journey but is sent home by Dan. Cara chases the car and cries and calls out, "You are a murderer of love!" to Dan when Marty is out of sight. During a family talent show, Dan plays guitar while Mitch sings Pete Townshend
Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for the rock group The Who, as well as for his own solo career...

's "Let My Love Open the Door
Let My Love Open the Door
"Let My Love Open the Door" is a song written and performed by Pete Townshend from his 1980 album Empty Glass. It reached the top ten in America in that same year, reaching number nine....

." But Mitch forgets the words, and Dan steps in, serenading Marie in front of his brother. Marie is unable to continue to deny her feelings for Dan, and she breaks up with Mitch, which makes him distraught. Before leaving town, she calls Dan, and they meet at a bowling alley. After spending some time bowling, Marie and Dan end up kissing. At this point, Dan's family shows up at the bowling alley. Surprised and infuriated at Dan for his betrayal, Mitch punches Dan in the face and Marie runs out.

A short time later, Dan finally meets with a father and daughter who run the newspaper media company. His family sits in on the meeting. Lost at what he has experienced, the meeting turns awkward but unresolved. Dan talks to his daughters and admits he is in love with Marie, even though he has only known her three days. Encouraged by his parents and the three girls, he goes after Marie. The film ends with Dan and his three daughters in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 where they find Marie at her gym and the two make eye contact, to a voiceover in which Dan narrates his first column to his readers, indicating that he indeed was chosen by the newspaper media company to have his column nationally syndicated.

The ending scene in the film shows Dan and Marie descending the steps of his parents' home and dancing following their wedding. Mitch is seen happily dancing with Ruthie Draper, and Cara is happily dancing with her boyfriend Marty.

Cast

  • Steve Carell
    Steve Carell
    Steven John "Steve" Carell is an American comedian, actor, voice artist, producer, writer, and director. Although Carell is notable for his role on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he found greater fame in the late 2000s for playing Michael Scott on The Office...

     as Dan Burns
  • Alison Pill
    Alison Pill
    Alison Courtney Pill is a Canadian actress best known from her roles in Milk, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and Midnight in Paris.-Life and career:...

     as Jane Burns, eldest daughter of Dan
  • Brittany Robertson
    Brittany Robertson
    Brittany Leanna "Britt" Robertson is an American actress. She is mostly known for playing the roles of Cara Burns in Dan In Real Life, Samantha in Swingtown, Trixie Stone in The Tenth Circle, Lux Cassidy in Life Unexpected, and Marnie Cooper in Scream 4...

     as Cara Burns, second daughter of Dan
  • Marlene Lawston
    Marlene Lawston
    Marlene Lawston is an American child actress.-Career:Lawston's acting debut was in the 2005 movie Flightplan, where she played Julia, the six-year-old daughter of Kyle Pratt who was kidnapped onboard a plane. In 2006 she played Julie Grant in the Law & Order episode "Thinking Makes It So"...

     as Lilly Burns, youngest daughter of Dan
  • Juliette Binoche
    Juliette Binoche
    Juliette Binoche is a French actress, artist and dancer. She has appeared in more than 40 feature films, been recipient of numerous international accolades, is a published author and has appeared on stage across the world. Coming from an artistic background, she began taking acting lessons during...

     as Marie-Anne Diamond
  • Dane Cook
    Dane Cook
    Dane Jeffrey Cook is an American stand-up comedian and film actor. He has released five comedy albums: Harmful If Swallowed; Retaliation; Vicious Circle; Rough Around The Edges: Live From Madison Square Garden; and Isolated Incident. In 2006, Retaliation became the highest charting comedy album...

     as Mitch Burns
  • John Mahoney
    John Mahoney
    John Mahoney is a British born American actor, known for playing Martin "Marty" Crane, the retired police officer, father of Kelsey Grammer's Dr...

     as Poppy Burns
  • Dianne Wiest
    Dianne Wiest
    Dianne Wiest is an American actress. She has had a successful career on stage, television, and film, and has won two Academy Awards, two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. Wiest has also been nominated for a BAFTA Award.-Early life:...

     as Nana Burns
  • Norbert Leo Butz
    Norbert Leo Butz
    Norbert Leo Butz is an American actor best known for his work in Broadway theatre.-Personal life:Butz was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of Elaine and Norbert Butz...

     as Clay Burns
  • Jessica Hecht
    Jessica Hecht
    Jessica Hecht is an American actress, known for numerous Broadway appearances and TV roles.-Background:Hecht was born in Princeton, New Jersey, the daughter of Lenore, a psychotherapist, and Richard Hecht, a physicist. Jessica moved with her parents and her sister to Bloomfield, CT, at the age of...

     as Amy Burns
  • Amy Ryan
    Amy Ryan
    Amy Ryan is an American actress. She has been nominated for an Academy Award and Golden Globe for her performance in Gone Baby Gone and is also known for her roles in the HBO series The Wire, playing Port Authority Officer Beadie Russell; In Treatment, playing psychiatrist Adele Brousse; and The...

     as Eileen Burns
  • Margot Janson as Olivia
  • Jessica Lussier as Jessica Burns
  • Seth Deantoni as the cousin
  • Emily Blunt
    Emily Blunt
    Emily Olivia Leah Blunt is an English actress best known for her roles in The Devil Wears Prada , The Young Victoria , and The Adjustment Bureau . She has been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, two London Film Critics' Circle Awards, and one BAFTA Award...

     as Dr. Ruthie Draper
  • Felipe Dieppa as Marty (Cara's boyfriend)
  • Matthew Morrison
    Matthew Morrison
    Matthew James "Matt" Morrison is an American actor, director, musician, and singer-songwriter. He is best known for starring in multiple Broadway and Off-Broadway productions, including his portrayal of Link Larkin in Hairspray on Broadway, and most notably for his Emmy and Golden Globe nominated...

     as Policeman
  • Stephen Mellor as Bookstore Clerk
  • C.J. Adams as Little Boy

Box office performance

The film opened October 26, 2007 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 and grossed $11.8 million in 1,921 theaters its opening weekend, ranking #2 at the box office. As of February 2, 2011, it has grossed $68,377,859.

It was released on DVD and Blu-ray on March 11, 2008.

Critical reception

The film received generally positive reaction from film critics. As of May 1, 2008 on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...

, the film received positive reviews from 64% of its critics based on 154 reviews, and received a "fresh" rating. On Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...

, the film had an average score of 65 out of 100, based on 34 reviews, indicating generally favorable reviews.

Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...

magazine's Richard Schickel
Richard Schickel
Richard Warren Schickel is an American author, journalist, and documentary filmmaker. He is a film critic for Time magazine, having also written for Life magazine and the Los Angeles Times Book Review....

 named the film one of the Top 10 Movies of 2007, ranking it at #10, calling it a “sweet, yet tangy dessert” and Steve Carell’s performance “wonderful”.

Production

The opening scene was in New Jersey and then Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...

 in the cities of Newport
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...

, East Greenwich
East Greenwich, Rhode Island
East Greenwich is a town in and the county seat of Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 13,146 at the 2010 census. East Greenwich is the wealthiest municipality within the state of Rhode Island....

, West Greenwich
West Greenwich, Rhode Island
West Greenwich is a town in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 6,135 at the 2010 census. West Greenwich was named for Greenwich, Kent, England...

, Jamestown
Jamestown, Rhode Island
Jamestown is a town located in Newport County, Rhode Island, in the United States. The population was 5,405 at the 2010 census. Jamestown is situated almost entirely on Conanicut Island, the second largest island in Narragansett Bay.-History:...

, Westerly, and Providence
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...

 in November and December 2006. The opening scene was filmed at Seven Stars Bakery in Providence. However, the facade of the building and the interior are altered. When Dan is pulled over by the Rhode Island State Police
Rhode Island State Police
The Rhode Island State Police is an agency of the state of Rhode Island responsible for statewide law enforcement and regulation, especially in areas underserved by local police agencies and on the state's limited-access highways...

, he is on Ocean Ave. in Newport
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...

. In scenes filmed in Jamestown
Jamestown, Rhode Island
Jamestown is a town located in Newport County, Rhode Island, in the United States. The population was 5,405 at the 2010 census. Jamestown is situated almost entirely on Conanicut Island, the second largest island in Narragansett Bay.-History:...

, two bridges are clearly visible: the Jamestown Bridge
Jamestown Bridge
The Jamestown Bridge, usually referred to as the Old Jamestown Bridge to avoid confusion with its replacement, the new Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge, was a cantilever truss bridge that connected Conanicut Island to mainland North Kingstown, Rhode Island, spanning the West passage of Narragansett Bay...

 and its replacement, the Jamestown-Verrazzano Bridge. Demolition of the Jamestown Bridge was initiated on April 18, 2006. The film also cast local residents of Aquidneck Island as Dan's nieces and nephews.
The date scene was filmed in two different places in Westerly. The inside shots were filmed at Alley Katz Bowling center, while the exterior shots were filmed at Misquamicut Beach. What is now the Windjammer was dressed to look like the outside of the bowling center. The sunset scene with the entire family on the beach was filmed at Napatree Point
Napatree Point
Napatree Point, often referred to simply as "Napatree", is a long sandy spit created by a geologic process called longshore drift. Up until the Hurricane of 1938, Napatree was sickle-shaped and included a 1.5-mile long northern extension called Sandy Point...

 in Westerly.

Soundtrack

Norwegian singer-songwriter Sondre Lerche
Sondre Lerche
-Career:Sondre Lerche was born in Bergen, Norway. Growing up, Lerche was heavily influenced by the '80s pop that emanated from his older siblings' rooms. Compelled by a defining fascination for bands such as The Beatles, A-ha, the Beach Boys, and Prefab Sprout, Lerche began formal guitar...

 composed the majority of the music in the film, and has a cameo appearance in a scene at the end.

Full soundtrack listing:
  1. "Family Theme Waltz" - Sondre Lerche
  2. "To Be Surprised" - Sondre Lerche
  3. "I'll Be OK" - Sondre Lerche
  4. "Dan and Marie Picking Hum" - Sondre Lerche
  5. "My Hands Are Shaking" - Sondre Lerche
  6. "Dan in Real Life" - Sondre Lerche
  7. "Hell No" - Sondre Lerche and Regina Spektor
    Regina Spektor
    Regina Ilyinichna Spektor is a Russian American singer-songwriter and pianist. Her music is associated with the anti-folk scene centered in New York City's East Village.-Early life:...

  8. "Family Theme" - Sondre Lerche
  9. "Fever" - A Fine Frenzy
    A Fine Frenzy
    Alison Sudol , known professionally as A Fine Frenzy , is a US alternative singer and songwriter and pianist. Her debut album, One Cell in the Sea, was released on July 17, 2007, and peaked at number 91 on the Billboard 200 chart...

  10. "Airport Taxi Reception" - Sondre Lerche and The Faces Down Quartet
  11. "Dan and Marie Melody" - Sondre Lerche
  12. "Human Hands" - Sondre Lerche and The Faces Down Quartet
  13. "I'll Be OK" (Instrumental Reprise) - Sondre Lerche
  14. "Let My Love Open The Door
    Let My Love Open the Door
    "Let My Love Open the Door" is a song written and performed by Pete Townshend from his 1980 album Empty Glass. It reached the top ten in America in that same year, reaching number nine....

    " - Pete Townshend
    Pete Townshend
    Peter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for the rock group The Who, as well as for his own solo career...

  15. "Dan and Marie Finale Theme" - Sondre Lerche
  16. "Modern Nature" - Sondre Lerche and Lillian Samdal
  17. "Ruthie Pigface Draper" (bonus track) - Dane Cook and Norbert Leo Butz, taken from a scene in the movie


"Mr. Blue Sky
Mr. Blue Sky
"Mr. Blue Sky" is a song by English rock group Electric Light Orchestra, featured on the band's seventh studio album Out of the Blue . Written and produced by frontman Jeff Lynne, the song forms the fourth and final track of the "Concerto for a Rainy Day" suite, on side three of the original double...

" by the Electric Light Orchestra
Electric Light Orchestra
Electric Light Orchestra were a British rock group from Birmingham who released eleven studio albums between 1971 and 1986 and another album in 2001. ELO were formed to accommodate Roy Wood and Jeff Lynne's desire to create modern rock and pop songs with classical overtones...

 is featured in the TV and radio advertisements for the movie, as well as "Let My Love Open the Door
Let My Love Open the Door
"Let My Love Open the Door" is a song written and performed by Pete Townshend from his 1980 album Empty Glass. It reached the top ten in America in that same year, reaching number nine....

" by Pete Townshend
Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for the rock group The Who, as well as for his own solo career...

 and "Henrietta" by The Fratellis
The Fratellis
The Fratellis were an indie rock band from Glasgow, Scotland. The band consisted of lead vocalist and guitarist Jon Fratelli , bass guitarist Barry Fratelli , and drummer and backing vocalist Mince Fratelli .The band released 2 albums during their career, Costello Music in 2006 and Here We Stand in...

. The club mix of Inaya Day
Inaya Day
Inaya Day is an American singer, best known for her vocal work on house music tracks such as "Horny" by Mousse T, and her cover version of "Nasty Girl" by Prince protege Vanity 6.-Early career:...

's "Nasty Girl" is also featured in one scene in the movie but is not on the soundtrack. "Human Hands" written by Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...

 (original version appears on his album Imperial Bedroom
Imperial Bedroom
Imperial Bedroom is a 1982 album by Elvis Costello and the Attractions. It was the second Costello album, along with Almost Blue, not produced by Nick Lowe, the production duties handled by Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick...

).

External links

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