Failure to Launch (2006)

A thirty-something is still living with his parents until they hire an interventionist to help him graduate out of the house. That's when the fun begins.

Director:

Tom Dey

Writers:

Tom J. Astle, Matt Ember

Stars:

Matthew McConaughey, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Bates

5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Matthew McConaughey	...	Tripp
Sarah Jessica Parker	...	Paula
Zooey Deschanel	...	Kit
Justin Bartha	...	Ace
Bradley Cooper	...	Demo
Terry Bradshaw	...	Al
Kathy Bates	...	Sue
Tyrel Jackson Williams	...	Jeffrey
Katheryn Winnick	...	Melissa
Rob Corddry	...	Gun Salesman #1
Patton Oswalt	...	Techie Guy
Stephen Tobolowsky	...	Bud
Kate McGregor-Stewart	...	Bev
Adam Alexi-Malle	...	Mr. Axelrod
Gretchen Cleevely	...	Gretchen the Veterinarian

Storyline

At 35, Tripp has an interesting job, a hip car, a passion for sailing, and a great house - trouble is, he lives with his parents. They want him out, so they hire Paula, an "interventionist," who has a formula in these cases: chance encounter, get him to ask her out, involve him in a trauma, meet his friends and get their nod, delay sex, have him teach her something, then launch him. It's worked up to now, but this gets complicated when Tripp thinks she's getting too serious and one of his pals is attracted to Paula's deadpan, semi-alcoholic roommate, who's plagued by a mockingbird. Too many secrets may scrub the launch, and what if Paula really likes him? Who can intervene then?

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Plot Keywords:

friend | intervention | moving | secret | mockingbird | 

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Taglines:

To leave the nest, some men just need a little push.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sexual content, partial nudity and language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 March 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Soltero en casa

Filming Locations:

Annapolis, Maryland, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$24,411,322, 12 March 2006, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$88,715,192, 22 June 2006

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$128,406,887

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures,Scott Rudin Productions,Failure to Launch Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min 95 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The roles of Tripp and Paula were written for Zach Braff and Amanda Peet.

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Goofs

Near the end, when Paula and Tripp are talking as everyone eavesdrops, the action figures on the shelf behind Paula change positions between shots.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Melissa: I just feel really close to you.
Tripp: You ARE really close to me.

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Connections

Referenced in Modern Family: Brushes with Celebrity (2017)

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Soundtracks

Roady (The Nextmen Walnut Remix)
Composed by Christopher Faiumu, Dallas Tamaira, Iain Gordon, Toby Laing, Joe Lindsay, Tehimana Kerr and Warren Maxwell
Performed by Fat Freddy's Drop

User Reviews

I Launched My Lunch...

...at the screen this film was so bad.

This is, arguably, the worst romantic comedy ever made. There is no witty repartee between characters, no situational comedy, no anything. Well, I take that back; you do get Terry Bradshaw's backside, but that is so gratuitous that it's not even worth a chuckle. Simply terrible film-making. If you read this, and still see the movie, you must hate yourself -- no other explanation would suffice.

As others have commented, the only attempted source of laughs in the script is the animal humor -- a few pointless, childish "jokes" where Matthew M. gets "attacked" by a chipmunk, dolphin, etc. It's as if the script was written by a four year-old -- and a wooden four year-old at that. It's hard to imagine a movie being *worse* than this. No way is this a 5.5 star flick -- even Sarah Jessica Parker could only rate this a 2-star effort. BE WARNED!!