Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

Three magazine employees head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified advertisement seeking a companion for time travel.

Director:

Colin Trevorrow

Writer:

Derek Connolly

Stars:

Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, Jake Johnson

8 wins & 18 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Aubrey Plaza	...	Darius
Lauren Carlos	...	Young Darius
Basil Harris	...	Restaurant Manager
Mary Lynn Rajskub	...	Bridget
Jake Johnson	...	Jeff
Karan Soni	...	Arnau
David Leo Schultz	...	Coworker
Jeff Garlin	...	Mr. Britt
Mark Duplass	...	Kenneth
William Hall Jr.	...	Shannon
Alice Hung	...	Shift Manager
Hassan Cristos Messiah	...	Boyfriend in Car (as Hassan 'Cristos' Messiah)
Keli Schurman-Darby	...	Girlfriend in Car
Jenica Bergere	...	Liz
Lynn Shelton	...	Uptight Mom

Storyline

Darius is a young intern at a Seattle-based magazine and jumps at the chance to investigate the author of a classified ad seeking someone to travel back in time with. Along with Jeff, the staff writer, and Arnau, a fellow intern, the three go on a road trip to a coastal town. While Jeff just wants to chase after his high school crush and Arnau wants some kind of life experience, Darius spends her time with Kenneth, a man who believes that he has built a time machine. The closer they become and the more they understand about each other, the less clear it becomes if Kenneth is just crazy or if he actually is going to successfully travel back in time.

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Plot Keywords:

time machine | classified ad | title spoken by character | intern | time travel | 

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Taglines:

WANTED Someone to go back in time with me. This is not a joke. You'll get paid when we get back. Must bring your own weapons. Safety not guaranteed. I have only done this once before.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language including some sexual references

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 October 2012 (Australia)

Also Known As:

I asfaleia sas den einai eggyimeni

Filming Locations:

Ocean Shores, Washington, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$750,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$97,762, 10 June 2012, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$4,010,957, 18 October 2012

Company Credits

Production Co:

FilmDistrict, Big Beach Films, Duplass Brothers Productions

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The original classified ad upon which the film is based first appeared in Backwoods Home Magazine in 1997. It was written as last-minute filler by John Silveira, an employee of the magazine, who is credited in the film as "Time Travel Consultant" and also has a cameo. The ad was later featured on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992) in the "Headlines" segment, and eventually turned into an Internet meme before being developed into a screenplay.

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Goofs

When Darius is backing up the van to pick up Kenneth during the laser robbery, it is obviously a shot of the van driving forward (used a few shots later), but run backwards - exhaust goes into the tailpipe.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Darius: How far back do you want me to go?

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Crazy Credits

John Silveira is credited as a Time Travel Consultant.

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Connections

Referenced in Safety Not Guaranteed: Time Capsule Easter Egg (2012)

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Soundtracks

The World is Waiting
Written by J. Scott Howard (as Jonathan Scott Howard)
Performed by Tramps & Thieves

User Reviews

Why I keep watching Indie films, is for the few Gems like this.

Very slow, but its worth it. Great ending, but the last words of the ending could have been better. These two things helped bring the film down a couple notches. Plus it also didn't stay true to the ad in the paper, which had inspired this story-line. Add in a small plot hole near the end, and a 9 of 10 movie becomes a 7 of 10. But they can be forgiven for these small sins. You've got to give credit to the producers who made this on a 4 thousand dollar budget, and made 4 million out of it. Who am I to nit-pick that kind of success? It's these kind of shoestring budget movies, few as they are in this quality, that makes Hollywood look like an idiots playground. Even with its problems, its well worth the watch, based upon the total package of being a sci-fi love story that works. This came out in 2012, near the same time as "The Adjustment Bureau" film. Sadly, these two didn't start a trend. Like all good films, it makes you think, after the final credits roll. I myself have always said, that regrets are for people with time machines. After all, we were who we were back then. But I'm also a sucker for a good film, or even just a good love story, that tries to answer those regrets.