THE SPECTACULAR NOW, LAFF RED CARPET
One of the comedy-drama films that emerged from 2013’s Sundance Film Festival was The Spectacular Now starring Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley. The two young stars both won acting awards for their roles and it received rave reviews from critics. The movie hit the 2013 Los Angeles Film Festival last week before its nationwide release later this summer
The story follows the life of high school senior Sutter Keely (Teller) who is the life of the party. He has the makings of an alcoholic whose drink of choice is a Thirst Master cup of whiskey. After a night of drunken debauchery, Sutter winds up on good girl Aimee Finicky’s (Woodley) lawn. The two develop a unique friendship despite their dramatic differences.
At LAFF, Press Pass LA was able to chat with Teller about the movie “It’s rare to get a script like The Spectacular Now. Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber wrote a fantastic script where you get to do a lot of stuff in one movie,” shared Teller. “In this movie, I knew the comedy was there and the drama. It was heartfelt and honest. People aren’t making films like this. The script just stands on its own.”
The 26-year-old had nothing but praise for his co-star, but he did share one unusual quirk about Woodley. He said, “She’s so invested in food in terms of what is in it like GMOs and this and that. She eats raw garlic and stuff all of the time. Before kissing scenes she would be eating what I would describe as a dirt powder.” The two playfully battled it out when it came to food choices and their love scenes. He continued, “So I said, ‘Shay can you not just do that before we kiss.’ She said, ‘You just drank a Gatorade and that tastes processed.’ I’d eat a honey bun before our scenes and she would get all pissed off.
Their chemistry is clearly seen onscreen in The Spectacular Now and it will also be seen in Divergent which they are currently filming. Teller revealed one small tidbit about their next film. He shared, “A little different tone. I beat her up in that one.” From romance to drama, the two actors are heating up the big screen. The Spectacular Now opens nationwide Aug. 2.
