World Traveler (2001)

After hitting the road a man encounters characters that make him realize the importance of family.

Director:

Bart Freundlich

Writer:

Bart Freundlich

Stars:

Billy Crudup, Julianne Moore, Francie Swift

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Billy Crudup	...	Cal
Francie Swift	...	Joanie
Nicolas Suresky	...	Leo
David Keith	...	Richard
Karen Allen	...	Delores
Cleavant Derricks	...	Carl
Richie Dye	...	Local Bar Bartender
Kaili Vernoff	...	Andrea
Margaret Devine	...	Andrea's Friend
Mary McCormack	...	Margaret
Liane Balaban	...	Meg
James Le Gros	...	Jack (as James LeGros)
John Forman	...	Dakota Customer
Bert Miller	...	Dakota Bartender
Patricia French	...	Dakota Waitress

Storyline

On the day of his son's third birthday, without discussion with his wife or even leaving a note, Manhattan architect Cal gets in the family Volvo and starts driving. Marriage is suffocating him. His traveling seems aimless: stopping to work construction, drinking heavily, picking up women, thinking about his wife and son but not calling them. He sometimes goes across the borderline into fantasy as he imagines resolutions to his travels. It turns out that his travel West is not altogether aimless: he has a destination and some questions to ask. Once they're answered, will he remain the mythic restless American male or re-cross the borderline to return home?

---

Plot Keywords:

body double | female nudity | road movie | urinating woman | midlife crisis | 

---

Taglines:

ever wander?

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some sexuality

Details

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 January 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cidadão do Mundo

Filming Locations:

Birmingham, Alabama, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$16,072, 21 April 2002, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$97,000, 9 June 2002

Company Credits

Production Co:

Alliance Atlantis Communications, Eureka Pictures, IFC Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the first bar scene, where Cal loudly complains about his song not being played on the jukebox, the song he has selected is "Hard to Handle" by the Black Crowes.

---

Goofs

When Cal and the hitchhiker girl drove towards the Minneapolis airport, the weather was cold, somber and gray, and there was a light dusting of snow on the ground. Yet once in the airport, when Cal was talking to his old schoolmate Jack, the camera view out the window of the airport showed a sunny sky and lots of greenery, with absolutely no snow anywhere.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Cal: I'm sorry.
Joanie: No, *I'm* sorry.
Cal: No, it's not your... fault, it's mine.
Joanie: I should have listened to you. You said you didn't want to have people over. I just thought it might be fun.
Cal: Yeah, but I shouldn't have said what I said. You know that I didn't mean it.

User Reviews

A fine film and a writer/director worth watching

I was disappointed to see the reviews that this film is getting here when I thought that it was a beautiful, subtle film that packed an emotional wallop.

"World Traveler" is a love letter to anyone who has ever drifted or run from circumstance be it the way the protagonist of Freundlich's film did by jumping in his car and taking off or be it via emotionally resigning from a situation or relationship.

If you are looking for a "set-up-pay-off" story line this is not it, nor is it a pretentious art film. It is an engrossing and emotionally honest film in the vein of a John Cheever short story and it is well worth the watch as is his Myth of Fingerprints.

Oh, and watch it alone.