Twenty years ago, a seven-year-old maude of Apatow began her career in the showbiz with an appearance in the famous comedy of his father Judd “The 40-Vieil Virgin”. Now, she made her director’s debut with “Poetic License”, a comedy at first at the Toronto International Film Festival which features Apatow’s mother, Leslie Mann.
Mann told Thewrap that she had examined the script of Raffi Donatich well before she threw someone for the film, but the more she read it, the more she thought of her mother.
“There are certain parts of the script that reminded me and our relationship as a mother and daughter. And yes, I think my mother is the funniest and the best to be an anchored comic actress, so I would obviously like to work with her, ”she said.
In “Poetic License”, Mann plays Liz, a retired therapist confronted both with an empty nest and a half-life crisis when she meets two elderly people confronted with a quarter of life, played by Andrew Barth Feldman and Cooper Hoffman. The new relationship serves as a balm for the anxieties of the trio for a while, but it changes when it becomes clear to Liz that the two younger men are in competition for its affections and destroying their friendship in the process.
Although her father is known to shape the comic tastes of millions, Apatow says that she needed time to understand her own approach to comedy, and found with a “poetic license” that she wanted her laughter to come from something earth and relatable.
“I think it’s a bit calm and strange and anchored. I was never trying to force comedy,” she said. “I just wanted it to feel as natural as possible. And we made tons of improvisation and tons of alts, and I wrote all the time on travel. ”
Mann could not hold back her enthusiasm to go to her daughter’s film, saying it was a joy to work with Feldman and Hoffman on the set and enjoy the young energy of production.
“I’m so proud. I could simply melt in tears right now, “she said. “It was so fun to be around the energy of these young people. The energy is so contagious and they are all so excited. ”
“Poetic License” is currently looking for an American distributor.
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