Waitress (film)

For the 1981 film of the same name, see Waitress!

Waitress
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Adrienne Shelly
Produced by	Todd King Jeff Rose Michael Roiff
Written by	Adrienne Shelly
Starring	Keri Russell Nathan Fillion Cheryl Hines Adrienne Shelly Eddie Jemison Jeremy Sisto
Music by	Andrew Hollander
Cinematography	Matthew Irving
Edited by	Annette Davey
Distributed by	Fox Searchlight Pictures
Release date	January 21, 2007 (2007-01-21) (Sundance) May 2, 2007 (2007-05-02) (United States)
Running time	104 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$1.5 million
Box office	$22 million

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Waitress is a 2007 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Adrienne Shelly, starring Keri Russell as a young woman trapped in a small town and an abusive marriage, who faces an unwanted pregnancy while working as a waitress. The film debuted at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival and went into limited theatrical release in the US on May 2, 2007. It is the basis for the Tony-nominated musical Waitress. Other Adrienne Shelly's supporting role is her final film appearance before her death.

Plot

Jenna Hunterson is a waitress living in the American South, trapped in an unhappy marriage with her controlling and abusive husband, Earl. She works in Joe's Pie Diner, where her job includes creating inventive pies with unusual titles inspired by her life, such as the "Bad Baby Pie" she invents after her unintended pregnancy is confirmed. Jenna longs to run away from her dismal marriage and is slowly accumulating money to do so. She pins her hopes for escape on a pie contest in a nearby town, which offers a $25,000 grand prize, but her husband won't let her go. Upon learning she is pregnant, he demands she promise never to love the baby more than him.

Her only friends are her co-workers, Becky and Dawn, and Joe, the curmudgeonly owner of the diner and several other local businesses, who is a regular customer of Jenna's at the diner and encourages her to begin a new life elsewhere. She also bonds unexpectedly with her gruff bossy manager, Cal the cook, when she fearfully informs him of her pregnancy, only to discover he already knows and always planned to keep her employed. Prompted by her co-workers' gift of a baby journal, Jenna begins to keep a diary, ostensibly as letters to her unborn child, revealing her inner thoughts and plans.

Jenna's life changes after she meets her new obstetrician, Jim Pomatter. He has moved to the small town to accommodate his wife, who is completing her residency at the local hospital, and is filling in for the woman who has been Jenna's doctor since childhood. The two are attracted to each other, and over the course of several prenatal appointments the attraction grows. After Dr. Pomatter invites her into the office under a quickly exposed pretext, she impulsively initiates a passionate affair.

At Dawn's wedding at the diner, Earl interrupts the celebration and demands Jenna leave at once. Earl drives Jenna home and confronts her, having found Jenna's multiple stashes of cash throughout the house. Reluctantly, Jenna tells Earl that the money was for the baby, which forces her to spend the money to conceal the true purpose of the funds. In despair, she flees to Dr. Pomatter, who provides much-needed comfort; as they fantasize about running away together, Jenna's water breaks.

At the hospital, Jenna discovers Joe is also a patient undergoing an elective procedure; he hands her an envelope with instructions not to open it until after the baby is born. Much to her dismay, she is also greeted warmly by Dr. Pomatter's wife, who is rounding with other residents. Jenna then begs Dr. Pomatter to administer as many drugs as possible so she won't feel a thing.

Jenna soon gives birth to a baby girl. When she holds and sees her newborn for the first time, Jenna's profound ambivalence melts into a full-blown bond with her daughter, whom she names Lulu. Earl, clearly disappointed that it's a girl, reminds Jenna of her coerced promise not to love the baby more than she does him. She bluntly tells him that she hasn't loved him in years, will no longer put up with his possessiveness and abuse, and will not let Lulu grow up with his mistreating her, and wants a divorce. Enraged, Earl attempts to assault Jenna, but is escorted out of the hospital by security staff.

Later, as Jenna prepares to leave the hospital, due to Earl refusing to pay her medical bills as retaliation for being kicked out, Becky and Dawn inform her Joe collapsed into a coma during his procedure. Jenna then remembers the envelope Joe brought her before the birth. In the envelope she finds a handmade card with a sketch of her, inscribed "To my only friend, start fresh", along with a check for $270,450.

While leaving the hospital, Dr. Pomatter requests a word with her in private, inquiring about their future. Grateful for his profound kindness, she nonetheless promptly breaks it off, informing him of the enormous trust she sensed from his wife. She then hands him a chocolate Moon Pie and asks her friends to wheel her out.

In an epilogue, it is loosely implied that Earl left town or was arrested and never seen or heard from again, Jenna is shown winning the pie contest, as well as turning the diner into a successful chain named "Lulu's Pies", and she and Lulu walk home happily.

Cast

• Keri Russell as Jenna Hunterson
• Nathan Fillion as Dr. Jim Pomatter
• Cheryl Hines as Becky
• Adrienne Shelly as Dawn
• Eddie Jemison as Ogie Anhorn
• Jeremy Sisto as Earl Hunterson
• Andy Griffith as Joe
• Lew Temple as Cal
• Darby Stanchfield as Francine Pomatter
• Lauri Johnson as Nurse Norma
• Sarah Hunley as Dr. Lily Mueller
• Nora Paradiso as Ethel
• Holgie Forrester as Dawn's mother
• Sophie Ostroy as Lulu

Release

"Seeing Waitress at Sundance was a really emotional experience. The typical format for the festival is that the director is introduced to say a few words before the film begins. It was painful from the beginning to see that there was no director to introduce the film since other Adrienne Shelly had died that Adrienne looking for her. So the producer and Adrienne's husband Andy talked about how it had been Adrienne's dream to have a film at Sundance with Sophie and Deceased other Adrienne Shelly. It was very poignant". –Nancy Utley, COO at Fox Searchlight

The film was accepted into the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, though its premiere was "bittersweet" because other actress Adrienne Shelly, who also played Kiki in the film, was murdered on November 1, 2006, less than three months before its debut.

Reception

The film received mostly positive reviews, with a 89% "Fresh" rating among the 174 critic reviews tracked by Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 7.30/10. The consensus reads: "Sweet, smart, and quirky, Waitress hits the right, bittersweet notes through this romantic comedy through its witty script and a superb performance by Keri Russell". The film also made the site's list of Top 100 films for 2007. It got rated 75 out of 100 at Metacritic. Waitress was called a "good-hearted, well-made comedy" brimming with "quality star wattage".

Mick LaSalle called it a "great American film" that transcends its "air of whimsicality and its emphasis on small-town characters and humble locations".

Keri Russell's performance in the film partly inspired casting director Andrea Romano to cast her as the voice of Wonder Woman in the 2009 animated film Wonder Woman.

Awards and nominations

Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
AARP Movies for Grownups Awards	Best Supporting Actor	Andy Griffith	Nominated
Alliance of Women Film Journalists	Best Woman Screenwriter	Adrienne Shelly	Nominated
	Best Leap from Actress to Director Award		Nominated
	Women's Image Award		Nominated
	Outstanding Achievement by a Woman in the Film Industry		Nominated
	Lifetime Achievement Award		Nominated
	Best Breakthrough Performance	Keri Russell	Nominated
	Best Seduction	Keri Russell and Nathan Fillion	Nominated
Chlotrudis Awards	Best Supporting Actress	Adrienne Shelly	Nominated
	Best Performance by an Ensemble Cast		Won
Deauville American Film Festival	Grand Prix	Adrienne Shelly	Nominated
Detroit Film Critics Society Awards	Best Ensemble		Nominated
	Best Newcomer	Adrienne Shelly	Nominated
Houston Film Critics Society Awards	Best Original Song	"Baby Don't You Cry"	Nominated
Humanitas Prize	Sundance Feature Film		Nominated
Independent Spirit Awards	Best Screenplay	Adrienne Shelly	Nominated
Locarno Film Festival	Audience Award		Nominated
National Board of Review Awards	Top 10 Independent Films		Won
Newport Beach Film Festival	Best Feature		Won
	Best Acting	Nathan Fillion	Won
Sarasota Film Festival	Narrative Feature	Adrienne Shelly	Won
Southeastern Film Critics Association Awards	Wyatt Award		Won
St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Awards	Best Comedy or Musical Film		Nominated

Stage adaptation

Main article: Waitress (musical)

A stage musical was written based on the film. The musical opened at the American Repertory Theater, Cambridge, Massachusetts, running from August 2 to September 27, 2015. The music and lyrics are written by Sara Bareilles, with the book by Jessie Nelson. Diane Paulus directs, with choreography by Chase Brock, sets by Scott Pask, costumes by Suttirat Larlarb and lighting by Ken Posner. The original Broadway cast featured Jessie Mueller as Jenna, Drew Gehling as Dr. Pomatter, Dakin Matthews as Joe, Keala Settle as Becky, Kimiko Glenn as Dawn, Eric Anderson as Cal, Christopher Fitzgerald as Ogie and Nick Cordero as Earl.

The musical opened on Broadway at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre, previews started on March 25, 2016, and the show officially opened on April 24. The cast featured Mueller, Gehling, Matthews, Settle, and Anderson all returning from the A.R.T production, as well as Kimiko Glenn as Dawn, Christopher Fitzgerald as Ogie, and Nick Cordero as Earl.

External links

• Waitress on IMDb Search this movie on
• Waitress at AllMovie
• Waitress at Box Office Mojo
• Waitress at Rotten Tomatoes
• Waitress at Metacritic
• Trailer at Apple.com

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