New in Town (2009)

A Miami businesswoman adjusts to her new life in a tiny Minnesota town.

Director:

Jonas Elmer

Writers:

Ken Rance (as Kenneth Rance), C. Jay Cox

Stars:

Renée Zellweger, Harry Connick Jr., Siobhan Fallon Hogan

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Renée Zellweger	...	Lucy Hill
Harry Connick Jr.	...	Ted Mitchell
Siobhan Fallon Hogan	...	Blanche Gunderson
J.K. Simmons	...	Stu Kopenhafer
Mike O'Brien	...	Lars Ulstead
Frances Conroy	...	Trudy Van Uuden
Ferron Guerreiro	...	Bobbie Mitchell
James Durham	...	Rob Deitmar
Robert Small	...	Donald Arling
Wayne Nicklas	...	Harve Gunderson
Hilary Carroll	...	Kimberley
Nancy Drake	...	Flo
Stewart J. Zully	...	Wallace Miller (as Stewart Zully)
Marilyn Boyle	...	Winnie
Dan Augusta	...	Billy Gunderson

Storyline

A high-powered consultant in love with her upscale Miami lifestyle is sent to a middle-of-nowhere town in Minnesota to oversee the restructuring of a blue collar manufacturing plant. After enduring a frosty reception from the locals, icy roads and freezing weather, she warms up to the small town's charm, and eventually finds herself being accepted by the community. When she's ordered to close down the plant and put the entire community out of work, she's forced to reconsider her goals and priorities, and finds a way to save the town.

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Plot Keywords:

woman | united states of america | usa | plant | minnesota | 

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Taglines:

She's an executive on the move. But her career is taking her a little farther than she expected.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for language and some suggestive material

Details

Official Sites:

Lionsgate [United States]

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

30 January 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Chilled in Miami

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$8,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,741,530, 1 February 2009

Gross USA:

$16,734,283

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$29,010,817

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lionsgate, Gold Circle Films, Epidemic Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The pictures on Blanche's desk are photos of Siobhan Fallon Hogan's actual family.

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Goofs

When Ted is discussing severance compensation on the phone, the boom is visible.

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Quotes

Lucy Hill: I may be a city girl, but I know how to start a fire. Where's the button?

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Crazy Credits

During the closing credits, we're shown what is supposed to be the completed version of the scrapper book that Siobhan Hogan's character gives to Renee' Zellweger's. Various stills from the movie are shown as pictures 'pasted' into the scrapbook, along with humorous tag lines on each (page).

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Connections

Referenced in Nostalgia Critic: Mamma Mia! (2015)

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Soundtracks

Race You
Written by Elizabeth Ziman
Performed by Elizabeth & The Catapult
Courtesy of The Verve Music Group
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

J.K. Simmons is the old guru of "New In Twon"

Guess what is not new in town at your local movie theatre? Another formulaic romantic comedy. This one is called "New in Town" but old in design. Not new= a female protagonist trying to prove that she can tackle any challenge. In this case, a once again mediocre Renee Zellweger plays Lucy Hill; an executive living in sunny Miami who is ordered to reside in cold Minnesota for a few months to play efficiency expert at a company plant. Not new= independent girl bickers with hometown boy and eventually fall in love. In this case, a once again mediocre Harry Connick Jr. plays Ted Mitchell; a Minnesota labor union rep who fights with Lucy and then … well, do I have to repeat myself? Not new= Female protagonist is seen by small town residents as an unruly big city tyrant and then eventually changes her ways because of unforeseen circumstances. In this case, Lucy is seen as the "mad slicer of jobs" by the plant workers until …….. well, do I have to repeat myself again? To say the least, Director Jonas Elmer fuddles and struggles to provide creativity in "New in Town" and does not give Minnesotans justice by copycatting the "Fargo" character playbook. Jonas my brother, sorry to share! Screenwriters Ken Rance and C. Jay Cox did not interject any verbose ingenuity in "New in Town"; in fact, everything sounded kind of old. Now there is something that kind of salvaged the film from the boring cold! That came in the form of another spectacular (also not new, but we like this one) acting performance by the underrated J.K. Simmons as a Plant Foreman. "New in Town" should not be deported from your movie wish list, thanks to Simmons, but then again it is far from being the best new movie in town. *** Average