My wife and I found this on Netflix streaming movies and found it to be quite good, in fact a gem among all the mediocre movies being made.
Simon Pegg is Hector, a conservative, routine-driven Psychiatrist. He never answers any questions for his patients, he always asks another question. Which is usually fine but it is also a reflection of his life, never really committing to anything other than his routine.
His long-time live-in girlfriend is Rosamund Pike as Clara. It is clear that she would like to be married and hopefully have children but Hector is in a holding pattern. One day she is putting away his socks and comes across a photo in the bottom of the drawer. In it are three friends from college, one is an old lady friend. Does Hector secretly wonder if he should have ended up with her?
As Hector gets increasingly frustrated with himself, and finds himself snapping at patients, he realizes he has to take a trip to find himself, and he couches it as a trip "to find out what happiness really is." He goes alone. As he meets people, often asking them the question, he takes notes. Often drawing a humorous picture along with the notes.
He travels to China, meets a pretty girl, starts to make overtones to go see her family with her, he finds out she is a prostitute. He finds a remote monastery in the snowy mountains, they don't have the answer. He travels to Africa. He is caught up in a life-threatening situations with kidnappers. But lack of a writing pen saves his life.
He had encountered Jean Reno as notorious drug lord in the area, Diego Baresco. Diego's wife was suffering from depression and taking a number of medications. Hector suggested some modifications and ended up with Diego's personal embossed pen, because Hector always failed to find his own. When his captors later realized Diego was a "friend" of his they took out to a lonely road and let him go. It was a good, small role for Reno.
So did Hector ever find what happiness really is? He finally travels to California and looks up his old friends. As an old professor (Christopher Plummer) explains to a class, happiness isn't something you find after searching for it, happiness is in the search. Once Hector let himself be happy his world was all clear again.
A really nice movie, and Pegg is perfect in this role.
Simon Pegg is Hector, a conservative, routine-driven Psychiatrist. He never answers any questions for his patients, he always asks another question. Which is usually fine but it is also a reflection of his life, never really committing to anything other than his routine.
His long-time live-in girlfriend is Rosamund Pike as Clara. It is clear that she would like to be married and hopefully have children but Hector is in a holding pattern. One day she is putting away his socks and comes across a photo in the bottom of the drawer. In it are three friends from college, one is an old lady friend. Does Hector secretly wonder if he should have ended up with her?
As Hector gets increasingly frustrated with himself, and finds himself snapping at patients, he realizes he has to take a trip to find himself, and he couches it as a trip "to find out what happiness really is." He goes alone. As he meets people, often asking them the question, he takes notes. Often drawing a humorous picture along with the notes.
He travels to China, meets a pretty girl, starts to make overtones to go see her family with her, he finds out she is a prostitute. He finds a remote monastery in the snowy mountains, they don't have the answer. He travels to Africa. He is caught up in a life-threatening situations with kidnappers. But lack of a writing pen saves his life.
He had encountered Jean Reno as notorious drug lord in the area, Diego Baresco. Diego's wife was suffering from depression and taking a number of medications. Hector suggested some modifications and ended up with Diego's personal embossed pen, because Hector always failed to find his own. When his captors later realized Diego was a "friend" of his they took out to a lonely road and let him go. It was a good, small role for Reno.
So did Hector ever find what happiness really is? He finally travels to California and looks up his old friends. As an old professor (Christopher Plummer) explains to a class, happiness isn't something you find after searching for it, happiness is in the search. Once Hector let himself be happy his world was all clear again.
A really nice movie, and Pegg is perfect in this role.