Suburban Girl

2007 film directed by Marc Klein

Suburban Girl is a 2007 American romantic comedy film directed by Marc Klein and produced by Gigi Pritzker and Deborah Del Prete. It stars Sarah Michelle Gellar and Alec Baldwin, with Maggie Grace, James Naughton, and Chris Carmack in supporting roles. It is adapted from the short stories "My Old Man" and "The Worst Thing a Suburban Girl Could Imagine" from Melissa Bank's 1999 best selling book The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing. The film had its premiere at New York's Tribeca Film Festival on April 27, 2007. It was released on DVD and Blu ray in the United States on January 15, 2008.

Brett Eisenberg is an ambitious yet unconfident New York City assistant book editor living in the literary hotbed of Manhattan's Upper East Side. Struggling to become a full fledged editor, she is shocked when she learns that her mentor and boss is fired and replaced by the glamorous Faye Falkner. At a book signing, Brett meets the notorious and much older publishing playboy Archie Knox. After spending time with him she realises how unhappy she is with her immature boyfriend Jed and breaks off their relationship in order to pursue one with Archie. Archie is an alcoholic, although he is almost three years sober, suffers from diabetes, and has an estranged daughter. The age gap between Brett and him is made clear through their different lifestyles, such as his lack of understanding how to use a Blackberry and Brett taking him to a candy shop. Although this does not affect their relationship in the beginning — Brett appreciates the advice and confidence he gives her to stand up to Faye — she soon begins to resent his patronizing attitude. Brett and Archie fight about him treating her like his daughter, and him not telling her that he used to date Faye. He eventually begins drinking again and sleeps with another woman in order to break off their relationship. Brett is incredibly close to her father, explaining her situation to him and asking for his advice. While visiting her family home she is shocked to discover that he has cancer and that her family didn't tell her but told her brother Ethan, because her father felt she could not handle the news. Feeling depressed and unwell, Brett makes an awful impression on a celebrity client until Archie appears and rescues the situation. They decide to give their relationship another try and Brett introduces him to her family, who are uneasy with the age difference; her father especially after learning that Archie is an alcoholic when he is admitted to hospital. Brett's father tells her that she shouldn't have to spend her life taking care of Archie. After her father dies, Brett realizes she must finally deal with her problems without his support. Archie proposes using the Blackberry that Brett bought him but she turns him down, telling him that they see each other as teacher and student and not as equals. She says she needs time to be happy and grow up on her own. Brett, finally confident in herself, wears a pair of leather pants she was previously too scared to wear. She begins to edit her work in a decisive way by using a pen instead of a pencil, as she used to do throughout the film.

The film was produced by Odd Lot Entertainment in association with Catch 23 Productions. Deborah Del Prete, Gigi Pritzker and Daryl Taja served as producers. It was the directorial debut of Marc Klein, who had written the screenplay for Serendipity (2001). By November 2005, both Gellar and Baldwin had been cast in the leading roles. It was filmed in various locations around New York City as well as Toronto, Canada, starting in May 2006. During pre production and filming, the filmmakers behind Suburban Girl used the title of the book, The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing, for the project. However, director Francis Ford Coppola had the rights to the title and short story of that name, while his company American Zoetrope was to develop a film which was adapted from the book. The film's title was officially changed to Suburban Girl for its release.

The film received generally mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 50%, based on 8 reviews, with an average rating of 6.1/10. Variety described it as "a blend of Sex and the City and The Devil Wears Prada", and a "pseudo sophisticated romantic comedy". Film website moviepicturefilm. com stated, "Gellar and Baldwin both give wonderful performances and make their chemistry incredibly real and ultimately, quite heartbreaking. Containing a ton of laughs and killer fashion that could give The Devil Wears Prada a run for its money, this movie has something uncommon in most romantic comedies, tons of style and a huge heart."