Special Delivery (2008 film)
Encyclopedia
Special Delivery is a feature film distributed by Marvista Entertainment. The film first aired on September 1, 2008 in the United Kingdom on Sky Movies
and on December 21, 2008 in the United States. The lead characters in the film are played by Brenda Song
and Lisa Edelstein
. Robert Gant
also stars. The film aired on the Diva TV
network in the summer of 2010 and was available for the international marketplace in the fall of 2009. The film was released on DVD internationally on February 13, 2009.
MarVista's president, Michael D. Jacobs, and the company's CEO, Fernando Szew, served as executive producers. Marc Lorber, MarVista's senior VP of production, and Sue Reiner, the company's head of television, served as co-executive producers alongside Island Film Group's Ricardo S. Galindez and Roy J. Tjioe. Michael Scott directed the movie from a script written by Matt Dearborn
, whose credits include Beyond the Break
, Beverly Hills, 90210
and the Disney Channel
series Even Stevens
. The film was shot in four weeks, according to Song.
The entire film was shot at 16 locations in Oahu
, including Kahala
, Waikiki
, Chinatown
, North Shore
, Turtle Bay Resort
. Honolulu Airport, a nightclub, hospital, and several street scenes.
government and his daughter may not be the only thing he is trying to smuggle into America. With danger around every corner, it's up to Max to deliver Alice safe and sound to her mother's home. The only problem is the longer Alice and Maxine spend together, the more Maxine starts to wonder what's worse, the bad guys after Alice or Alice's bad attitude towards life.
in the UK and the Lifetime Movie Network
in the United States in December 2008. The film was available for the international marketplace in the fall. The UK premiere averaged over 4 million, the highest ever for a movie on Sky Movies
. The film aired on Sky Movies
's comedy channel on July 8, 2009 and previously aired on BBC One
in March 2009. The film additionally had a limited theatrical release in several Europe
an countries and was featured in many film festivals.
called the film a very "likeable comedy". The film received a positive review from the site, Comic films.
The reviewer said: "the movie is well filmed and it succeeds in hooking audience attention from within the first few seconds. Clues and information are offered effectively. However the reviewer said certain details of the resolution of the twisting and turning story seem to be rushed, unexplained or lacking. Nonetheless the reviewer said "this is a pleasant night's viewing and strong performances coupled with good direction by Michael Scott create a movie of much higher quality than many other television movies of a similar genre." The reviewer also praised the lead performers in the film, Brenda Song
and Lisa Edelstein
saying Edelstein brings her usual sintilating skill to the role, immediately causing the character to be both engaging and believably natural. The reviewer also said, Song who sings some of the soundtrack, not only adds to the amusing aspects of the movie, she also succeeds in allowing her bratty character to become both likeable and understandable. They also gave the supporting cast a positive review.
The Australian publication, "Urban CineFilm" said: "Engaging from the start, Special Delivery introduces us to Max (Lisa Edelstein) as the resourceful courier, who was once a high flying lawyer ... and married ... and a mother ... We start picking up the pieces that make up the bigger picture of Max and our interest is piqued. When she takes on the job of escorting a spoilt 14 year old (Brenda Song) from Macau to Hawaii, the generation gap conflict provides plenty of sparks, but a sense of danger is also introduced, making it an edgy trip. Brenda Song is terrific as the spoilt brat on a journey that will sober her up and Edelstein is feisty and likeable (and reminiscent of Jennifer Connelly) as the no-nonsense Max - with demons to keep at bay. The screenplay has a sense of fun, which director Michael Scott translates well onto the screen, so the action and tension is spiced with hip humour, based on character as well as situation. Max does her job, delivering Alice to her mother - in more ways than she anticipated.
Other than one logic-defying scene, the film offers great escapist entertainment and interesting characters for whom we come to care. The locations are great, too."
DVD. The film's tagline, which is also featured in the poster is "Danger. Expected."
on August 11, 2008. The soundtrack featured tracks from the Velvet Underground, Cheap Trick
, David Bowie
and a minor track by Brenda Song. The hit single, "4ever" by Australian girl band, The Veronicas
was featured in the film's promotional commercials.
Sky Movies
Sky Movies is the collective name for the premium subscription television movie channels operated by Sky Television, and later British Sky Broadcasting. It has around 5 million subscribers, via satellite, cable and IPTV in the UK and Ireland...
and on December 21, 2008 in the United States. The lead characters in the film are played by Brenda Song
Brenda Song
Brenda Song is an American actress, film producer, and model. Song started in show business as a child fashion model. Her early television work included roles in the shows Fudge and 100 Deeds for Eddie McDowd...
and Lisa Edelstein
Lisa Edelstein
Lisa Edelstein is an American actress and playwright. She is best known for her role as Dr. Lisa Cuddy on the television drama House.-Early life and education:...
. Robert Gant
Robert Gant
Robert Gant is an American actor. He is sometimes credited as Robert J. Gant.-Early life:...
also stars. The film aired on the Diva TV
Diva TV
Diva TV is a British TV channel owned by NBC Universal, which launched on Sky in the UK and Ireland on channel 269 at midday on the October 1, 2007.The channel airs shows such as The Oprah Winfrey Show, and The Real Housewives of Orange County....
network in the summer of 2010 and was available for the international marketplace in the fall of 2009. The film was released on DVD internationally on February 13, 2009.
Production
Most of the film was shot in Oahu, Hawaii. The production company, Special Delivery LLC, is based at Hawaii Media Inc. in Halawa Valley. The film was the first by the Island Film Group and some of the crew were locals. Producer Francis Conway describes Special Delivery as a "Midnight Run-style action-comedy". The film was distributed by MarVista Entertainment. The filming locations included the John A. Burns School of Medicine in Oahu, Hawaii. Some students and locals got extra parts in the film.MarVista's president, Michael D. Jacobs, and the company's CEO, Fernando Szew, served as executive producers. Marc Lorber, MarVista's senior VP of production, and Sue Reiner, the company's head of television, served as co-executive producers alongside Island Film Group's Ricardo S. Galindez and Roy J. Tjioe. Michael Scott directed the movie from a script written by Matt Dearborn
Matt Dearborn
Matthew "Matt" Dearborn is an American television producer, writer and director.-Career:Dearborn has written over 100 produced episodes of television, including, Beverly Hills, 90210, Eerie, Indiana, Parker Lewis Can't Lose, The Secret World of Alex Mack, Sliders, Phil of the Future and Even...
, whose credits include Beyond the Break
Beyond the Break
Beyond the Break is an American drama series set in Hawaii, that debuted on The N in June 2006.-Synopsis:The series focuses on four women in the sport of professional surfing. Birdie Scott , Lacey Farmer , Dawn Preston , and Kai Kealoha must overcome their differences in order to capture surf...
, Beverly Hills, 90210
Beverly Hills, 90210
Beverly Hills, 90210 is an American drama series that originally aired from October 4, 1990 to May 17, 2000 on Fox and was produced by Spelling Television in the United States, and subsequently on various networks around the world. It is the first series in the Beverly Hills, 90210 franchise...
and the Disney Channel
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
series Even Stevens
Even Stevens
Even Stevens is an American comedy television series that aired on Disney Channel with a total of three seasons and 65 episodes from June 17, 2000, to June 2, 2003...
. The film was shot in four weeks, according to Song.
Premise
Song has stated,"It also stars Lisa Edelstein from House and Robert Grant, who's on Queer as Folk. It's a great film - she's a courier, a special courier, and she has a job with a businessman in China, (and) he has something that he wants her to deliver, and it's me, "Song explains." She has to deliver me to my mom in Hawaii. There's a whole lot of twists and turns. I can’t say too much about it, but let's say that my dad, he hasn’t been completely honest, and there's some people after us.
"It's fun; it's a movie about forgiveness,whether it's forgiving yourself or a friend or a parent, and it kind of shows two versions of that, which means her story and mine."
The entire film was shot at 16 locations in Oahu
Oahu
Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
, including Kahala
Kahala
Kāhala, Honolulu, Hawaii is a neighborhood located alongside Kaimuki and Waialae, featuring many beachfront properties. This small neighborhood has some of the most expensive real estate in the city of Honolulu and the state of Hawaii....
, Waikiki
Waikiki
Waikiki is a neighborhood of Honolulu, in the City and County of Honolulu, on the south shore of the island of Oahu, in Hawaii. Waikiki Beach is the shoreline fronting Waikīkī....
, Chinatown
Chinatown
A Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
, North Shore
North Shore (Oahu)
The North Shore, in the context of geography of the Island of Oahu, refers to the north-facing coastal area of Oahu between Kaena Point and Kahuku Point...
, Turtle Bay Resort
Turtle Bay Resort
The Turtle Bay Resort is the major hotel on the North Shore of Oahu island in Hawaii.-Description:The resort is about a 50 minute drive from Honolulu, between Kahuku, Hawaii to the east and Kawela Bay, Hawaii to the west....
. Honolulu Airport, a nightclub, hospital, and several street scenes.
Plot
The film centers on Alice Cantwell and Maxine Carter. Maxine is the best-connected bond courier working in the Pacific Rim. Maxine is constantly on the move and is always traveling and likes to keep it that way ever since she watched her young child, Penny, die in a terrible car accident. Maxine's current delivery is Alice, the troubled and emotionally struggling daughter of one of China's richest businessmen. After a bitter and twisted custody battle, Alice is headed to Hawaii to live with her mother. But almost as soon as they land on US soil, Maxine senses things are not right. She soon figures out that Alice's father is in trouble with the ChinesePeople's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
government and his daughter may not be the only thing he is trying to smuggle into America. With danger around every corner, it's up to Max to deliver Alice safe and sound to her mother's home. The only problem is the longer Alice and Maxine spend together, the more Maxine starts to wonder what's worse, the bad guys after Alice or Alice's bad attitude towards life.
Cast
- Brenda SongBrenda SongBrenda Song is an American actress, film producer, and model. Song started in show business as a child fashion model. Her early television work included roles in the shows Fudge and 100 Deeds for Eddie McDowd...
- Alice Marie Cantwell - Lisa EdelsteinLisa EdelsteinLisa Edelstein is an American actress and playwright. She is best known for her role as Dr. Lisa Cuddy on the television drama House.-Early life and education:...
- Maxine Carter - Robert GantRobert GantRobert Gant is an American actor. He is sometimes credited as Robert J. Gant.-Early life:...
- Nate - Julie OwJulie OwJulie Ow is a Hawaiian television actress who has appeared in television shows such as The Master, Hotel, L.A. Law, Tour of Duty, the revival series of Mission: Impossible, Hunter, Living Single, Temporarily Yours, Melrose Place, Babylon 5, Cybill, Hawaii and two episodes of Lost.-External links:...
- Naomi - Michael Cowell - Bill Devane
- Stan Egi - Danny Wong
- Dann Seki - Dawson
- Ned Van Zandt - Alan Cantwell
- Milan Tresnak - Rudd Weathers
- Blade Rogers - Dex
- Alana Brennan - Fran
- Bonnie Berger - Flight Attendant
- Brock Little - Darius
- Rob Duval - Keith
- Travis Rose - Bouncer
- Paul T. Mitri - Ivan
- Kristian Peterson - Valet Guy
- Jennifer MacWilliams - Dr. Clare
- Walter KlenhardWalter KlenhardWalter Klenhard is an American film director, writer, and actor. He has written, produced, or directed over twenty full-length films as well as writing and producing for episodic television....
- Randy - Matt Goldstein - Passenger Asleep On Plane
Release
The film's full-length trailer was released on November 17, 2008. The film has aired on Sky MoviesSky Movies
Sky Movies is the collective name for the premium subscription television movie channels operated by Sky Television, and later British Sky Broadcasting. It has around 5 million subscribers, via satellite, cable and IPTV in the UK and Ireland...
in the UK and the Lifetime Movie Network
Lifetime Movie Network
Lifetime Movie Network is a cable channel that is part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, LLC, a subsidiary of A&E Television Networks, LLC. A&E Television Networks is a joint venture of the Disney-ABC Television Group, Hearst Corporation and NBCUniversal. LMN offers women-oriented movies...
in the United States in December 2008. The film was available for the international marketplace in the fall. The UK premiere averaged over 4 million, the highest ever for a movie on Sky Movies
Sky Movies
Sky Movies is the collective name for the premium subscription television movie channels operated by Sky Television, and later British Sky Broadcasting. It has around 5 million subscribers, via satellite, cable and IPTV in the UK and Ireland...
. The film aired on Sky Movies
Sky Movies
Sky Movies is the collective name for the premium subscription television movie channels operated by Sky Television, and later British Sky Broadcasting. It has around 5 million subscribers, via satellite, cable and IPTV in the UK and Ireland...
's comedy channel on July 8, 2009 and previously aired on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
in March 2009. The film additionally had a limited theatrical release in several Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an countries and was featured in many film festivals.
Critical reception
The film generally received mixed reviews. Sky Movies have given the film a low rating and a moderately negative review. The film's rating in the United Kingdom on Sky Movies was 12A, which means that the film is suitable for children aged 12 years old and older. The film was aired at night because of the rating. In July 2009, the film's rating changed to PG, which means that general viewing may be unsuitable for young children. The Daily RecordDaily Record (Scotland)
The Daily Record is a Scottish tabloid newspaper based in Glasgow. It had been the best-selling daily paper in Scotland for many years with a paid circulation in August 2011 of 307,794 . It is now outsold by its arch-rival the Scottish Sun which in September 2010 had a circulation of 339,586 in...
called the film a very "likeable comedy". The film received a positive review from the site, Comic films.
The reviewer said: "the movie is well filmed and it succeeds in hooking audience attention from within the first few seconds. Clues and information are offered effectively. However the reviewer said certain details of the resolution of the twisting and turning story seem to be rushed, unexplained or lacking. Nonetheless the reviewer said "this is a pleasant night's viewing and strong performances coupled with good direction by Michael Scott create a movie of much higher quality than many other television movies of a similar genre." The reviewer also praised the lead performers in the film, Brenda Song
Brenda Song
Brenda Song is an American actress, film producer, and model. Song started in show business as a child fashion model. Her early television work included roles in the shows Fudge and 100 Deeds for Eddie McDowd...
and Lisa Edelstein
Lisa Edelstein
Lisa Edelstein is an American actress and playwright. She is best known for her role as Dr. Lisa Cuddy on the television drama House.-Early life and education:...
saying Edelstein brings her usual sintilating skill to the role, immediately causing the character to be both engaging and believably natural. The reviewer also said, Song who sings some of the soundtrack, not only adds to the amusing aspects of the movie, she also succeeds in allowing her bratty character to become both likeable and understandable. They also gave the supporting cast a positive review.
The Australian publication, "Urban CineFilm" said: "Engaging from the start, Special Delivery introduces us to Max (Lisa Edelstein) as the resourceful courier, who was once a high flying lawyer ... and married ... and a mother ... We start picking up the pieces that make up the bigger picture of Max and our interest is piqued. When she takes on the job of escorting a spoilt 14 year old (Brenda Song) from Macau to Hawaii, the generation gap conflict provides plenty of sparks, but a sense of danger is also introduced, making it an edgy trip. Brenda Song is terrific as the spoilt brat on a journey that will sober her up and Edelstein is feisty and likeable (and reminiscent of Jennifer Connelly) as the no-nonsense Max - with demons to keep at bay. The screenplay has a sense of fun, which director Michael Scott translates well onto the screen, so the action and tension is spiced with hip humour, based on character as well as situation. Max does her job, delivering Alice to her mother - in more ways than she anticipated.
Other than one logic-defying scene, the film offers great escapist entertainment and interesting characters for whom we come to care. The locations are great, too."
Marketing
The film's full-length trailer was released in the internet on November 25, 2008. It was featured in the Living ProofLiving Proof (film)
Living Proof is a 2008 Lifetime Television movie, directed by Dan Ireland, starring Harry Connick, Jr.The film is based on the true life story of Dr. Dennis Slamon and the book HER-2: The Making of Herceptin, a Revolutionary Treatment for Breast Cancer by Robert Bazell. Vivienne Radkoff wrote the...
DVD. The film's tagline, which is also featured in the poster is "Danger. Expected."
Soundtrack
The soundtrack of Special Delivery was released exclusively under the Universal Music GroupUniversal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
on August 11, 2008. The soundtrack featured tracks from the Velvet Underground, Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973. The band consists of members Robin Zander , Rick Nielsen , Tom Petersson , and Bun E...
, David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
and a minor track by Brenda Song. The hit single, "4ever" by Australian girl band, The Veronicas
The Veronicas
The Veronicas are an Australian electrorock, pop-punk and rock band. Twin sisters Jessica and Lisa Origliasso formed the band in 1999 in Brisbane. They have their own line of clothing which was released in 2007....
was featured in the film's promotional commercials.
DVD
| Film | Region 1 | Discs | Extras | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special Delivery | February 13, 2009 | 1 | Several bonus features such as an interview with Song and Edelstein, a sneak peek of Lifetime's Living Proof, an interview with the leading stars of the film. In addition, film's promotional poster is featured in the DVD and the trailers of Living Proof and Custody. | The USA, Canada, Australia, United Kingdom and New Zealand |