Mikko's Blog: Ann Arbor Movie Buzz
Net, Recycled
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Posted by Mikko at 10:05 AM
Ann Arbor is abuzz with news, rumors, and celebrity sightings right now. Drew Barrymore has been spotted all over Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, and recently Us Magazine ran a story about how she was supposedly partying like a rock star in Ann Arbor while shooting a movie here. Now the city has blocked off the corner of 1st and Liberty for a few days for a movie shoot. My office is on 5th and Liberty, so we're talking just four blocks down. I have had two people personally claiming to have sighted Michael Cera (of Superbad and Juno fame) on scene Monday.
Initially everyone assumed this was for the Barrymore flick, but turns out the Michael Cera movie is a whole different movie. Confused? Me too. So let's see what we do know so far.
The Drew Barrymore movie is called "Whip It!". It's a roller derby movie starring Drew herself and Ellen Page. IMDB plot synopsis: "In Bodeen, Texas, an indie-rock loving misfit finds a way of dealing with her small-town misery after she discovers a roller derby league in nearby Austin."
The Michael Cera flick is called "Youth in Revolt". It also stars Justin Long ("Hi, I'm a Mac") and my personal favorite, "The" Steve Buschemi. The IMDB lists the plot synopsis like this: "While his trailer trash parents teeter on the edge of divorce, 14-year-old Nick sets his sights on dream girl Sheeni Saunders, hoping that she'll be the one to take away his virginity." The movie is based on a novel by C. D. Payne, also titled "Youth in Revolt".
Initially, it would seem that these two productions have nothing in common, but at least two connections can be seen. Drew Barrymore and Justin "The Mac Guy" Long just broke up after dating for about a year. In fact, it has been reported that Justin was supposed to have a role in Drew's "Whip It", but dropped out when they broke up.
The other interesting connection is the Juno connection. Ellen Page, who played Juno, is in "Whip It!" and Michael Cera, who played Juno's boyfriend, is in "Youth in Revolt".
Coincidences or conspiracies? You decide!