A Family Man
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2017}}
{{Infobox film
| name = A Family Man
| image = A Family Man poster.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Film poster
| director = Mark Williams
| producer = {{Plainlist|
- Gerard Butler
- Nicolas Chartier
- Craig J. Flores
- Patrick Newall
- Alan Siegel
- Mark Williams
}}
| writer = Bill Dubuque
| starring = {{Plainlist|
- Gerard Butler
- Gretchen Mol
- Alison Brie
- Anupam Kher
- Alfred Molina
- Willem Dafoe}}
| music = Mark Isham
| cinematography = Shelly Johnson
| editing = Thom Noble
| studio = Zero Gravity Management
| distributor = Vertical Entertainment
| released = {{Film date|2016|9|13|TIFF|2017|7|28|United States}}
| runtime = 108 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget =
| gross = $1.6 million{{cite web |title= A Definitely or Maybe (2016) |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1718924/ |work=Box Office Mojo |publisher=IMDbPro |accessdate=January 6, 2021}}
}}
A Family Man (previous title The Headhunter's Calling) is a 2016 American drama film directed by Mark Williams, in his directorial debut, and written by Bill Dubuque. The film tells the story of Dane Jensen, a Corporate Recruiter from Chicago, who must balance his career aspirations and his increasingly complex family life. The film stars Gerard Butler, Willem Dafoe, Anupam Kher, Alfred Molina, Alison Brie, and Gretchen Mol. Principal photography began on October 26, 2015 in Toronto. It screened at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival.{{cite web |url=https://deadline.com/2016/07/toronto-to-open-with-the-magnificent-seven-as-fest-unveils-galas-and-special-presentations-1201792733/ |title=Toronto To Open With 'The Magnificent Seven'; 'La La Land', 'Deepwater Horizon' Among Galas & Presentations |date=July 26, 2016 |accessdate=July 26, 2016 |work=Deadline}}
Plot
Dane Jensen is a successful Chicago-based corporate headhunter who works at the Blackridge Recruitment agency. His life revolves around closing deals in a survival-of-the-fittest boiler room.
As the film opens Jensen is shown to be focused on his job, but he also tries to be a family man. His boss Ed Blackridge is offering him a promotion that will lead to him controlling the company. To secure it, he must beat his ambitious rival Lynn Wilson's numbers. Jensen's focus on the job becomes a detriment to his family. His wife Elise asks for more of his time with them.
Jensen tries to spend some quality time with his oldest child Ryan, to prepare him for the adult world. Believing Ryan to be on the verge of childhood obesity, he takes him jogging in the morning. Jensen notices that his son is constantly complaining of fatigue and has bruises he can't explain.
Jensen works harder and spends more time at the office to try to get the promotion, which does not sit right with Elise. She asks him to prioritize. Ryan is later diagnosed with cancer, which shocks them all.
Jensen spends more time with his son, which causes his numbers — a prerequisite of the promotion — to drop. Meanwhile, Lynn takes the opportunity to tap into his clients and scores.
The film culminates with Ryan falling into a coma before getting better, and Jensen losing his job at Ed's firm, due to not turning a profit.
The seemingly strict Ed releases him from his non-compete agreement. Jensen starts his own company working from home and is now invested with his family.
Cast
- Gerard Butler as Dane Jensen, Elise's husband and Lauren and Ryan's father
- Gretchen Mol as Elise Jensen, Dane's wife and Lauren and Ryan's mother
- Alison Brie as Lynn Wilson,{{cite news|last1=McNary|first1=Dave|title=Alison Brie, Gretchen Mol Join Gerard Butler's 'The Headhunter's Calling'|url=https://variety.com/2015/film/news/alison-brie-gretchen-mol-gerard-butler-headhunters-calling-1201628457/|accessdate=November 3, 2015|work=variety.com|date=October 27, 2015}} Dane's rival
- Anupam Kher as Dr. Savraj Singh
- Dustin Milligan as Sumner Firestone
- Maxwell Jenkins as Ryan Jensen,{{cite news|last1=Verhoeven|first1=Beatrice|title=Gerard Butler's 'The Headhunter's Calling' Casts Maxwell Jenkins (Exclusive)|url=https://www.thewrap.com/gerard-butlers-the-headhunters-calling-casts-maxwell-jenkins-exclusive/|accessdate=September 20, 2016|publisher=The Wrap|date=November 12, 2014}} Dane and Elise's son and Lauren's brother
- Alfred Molina as Lou Wheeler
- Willem Dafoe as Ed Blackridge,{{cite news|last1=Jaafar|first1=Ali|title=Willem Dafoe And Alfred Molina Join Voltage's 'The Headhunter's Calling'|url=https://deadline.com/2015/09/willem-dafoe-alfred-molina-join-voltages-the-headhunters-calling-1201523162/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150913223215/http://deadline.com/2015/09/willem-dafoe-alfred-molina-join-voltages-the-headhunters-calling-1201523162/|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 13, 2015|access-date=November 3, 2015|work=Deadline Hollywood|date=September 12, 2015}} Dane's boss
- Julia Butters as Lauren Jensen, Dane and Elise's daughter and Ryan's sister
- Mimi Kuzyk as Bernadine
- Dwayne Murphy as Antoine, Ryan's nurse
- Kathleen Munroe as Toni
- Romaine Waite as Recruiter #2
Production
In November 2012, Bill Dubuque's first script The Headhunter's Calling was revealed.{{cite news|last1=Schenker|first1=Andrew|title=Dubuque: Corporate headhunter followed 'Calling'|url=https://variety.com/2012/film/news/dubuque-corporate-headhunter-followed-calling-1118062630/|accessdate=November 3, 2015|work=variety.com|date=November 29, 2012}} On September 2, 2015, it was announced that Gerard Butler would star in the family drama film The Headhunter's Calling, to be directed by Mark Williams, who would make his debut.{{cite news|last1=Rahman|first1=Abid|title=Gerard Butler Signs Up for 'The Headhunter's Calling'|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/gerard-butler-signs-up-headhunters-820018|accessdate=September 6, 2015|work=hollywoodreporter.com|date=September 3, 2015}} Williams and Butler would produce the film along with Alan Siegel, Voltage Pictures would handle the international sales for the film. Nicolas Chartier, Craig Flores, and Patrick Newall would also be producing the film.
Principal photography on the film began on October 26, 2015 in Toronto.{{cite news|title=On the Set for 10/30/15: Keanu Reeves Starts on John Wick Sequel, Seth Rogen and Zac Efron Wrap Up Neighbors 2|url=http://www.ssninsider.com/on-the-set-for-103015-keanu-reeves-starts-on-john-wick-sequel-seth-rogen-and-zac-efron-wrap-up-neighbors-2/|accessdate=November 3, 2015|work=ssninsider.com|date=October 30, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304053445/http://www.ssninsider.com/on-the-set-for-103015-keanu-reeves-starts-on-john-wick-sequel-seth-rogen-and-zac-efron-wrap-up-neighbors-2/|archive-date=March 4, 2016|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}} Filming began in Chicago on December 13, 2015 and it wrapped up on December 18.{{cite news|title=Gerard Butler will be in Chicago next week for "The Headhunter's Calling"|url=http://www.onlocationvacations.com/2015/12/08/gerard-butler-will-be-in-chicago-next-week-for-the-headhunters-calling/|accessdate=December 11, 2015|work=onlocationvacations.com|date=December 8, 2015|archive-date=December 22, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222082048/http://www.onlocationvacations.com/2015/12/08/gerard-butler-will-be-in-chicago-next-week-for-the-headhunters-calling/|url-status=dead}}
Release
The film was released on July 28, 2017, by Vertical Entertainment.{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-ca-mn-summer-sneaks-list-20170421-htmlstory.html|title=Every single movie coming out this summer|website=Los Angeles Times|first=Kevin|last=Crust|date=April 21, 2017|accessdate=April 25, 2017}}
Critical response
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 16% based on 25 reviews, with an average rating of 4.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "A Family Man has some worthy ideas, but they're bungled in a middle-of-the-road melodrama populated by thinly sketched -- and occasionally downright unlikeable -- characters."{{cite web |title=A Family Man |work=Rotten Tomatoes |publisher=Fandango |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/a_family_man_2017 |accessdate=October 20, 2019}} On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating to reviews, the film has a weighted average score of 21 out of 100, based on 7 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.{{cite web |title=A Family Man Reviews |work=Metacritic|publisher=CBS Interactive |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/a-family-man |accessdate=February 9, 2018}}
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
- {{IMDb title}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Family Man, A}}
Category:Films produced by Gerard Butler
Category:Films shot in Toronto
Category:Films shot in Chicago
Category:Films with screenplays by Bill Dubuque
Category:Films produced by Nicolas Chartier
Category:Vertical (film company) films
Category:2016 directorial debut films
Category:Films scored by Mark Isham