Original stories found in mainstream Hollywood nowadays are few and far between. In the industry’s smoggy climate where the familiar is rehashed in the form of remake and sequels, it’s refreshing to have an independent film like Josh Radnor’s “Happythankyoumoreplease” make it’s way to theaters.
Now don’t let the title or the ridiculously happy-go-lucky trailer deceive you, there’s a lot more bubbling under the surface of this film. All of us know Josh Radnor best for playing the lead role of Ted in the hit television series “How I Met Your Mother,” but the actor makes his directorial debut with “Happy.”
If you want to put it in a nutshell, “Happythankyoumoreplease” focuses on six people who try to mature, juggle love and be thankful for what they can get out of life while living in densely populated New York City.
One of the hardest things about filming in one of the nation’s largest cities is not really doing it at all or barely putting it in the background of said film. Radnor wanted to make sure that wasn’t the case. “It was really important for me to have New York feel like New York. A lot of movies that shoot in New York have a kind of glossy, well-lit feel to it. It doesn’t feel like New York, it feels more like a post card idea of New York… I wanted to feel the gum on the sidewalk, I wanted to hear the sirens, feel the number of stairs you have to walk to get to your apartment. I wanted it to feel like we were being granted access to these people’s lives, and I feel like when people fake New York you can sense it, so I wanted it to be authentic.”
The main struggle for Radnor wasn’t trying to get New York to be just right in his eyes, but to get the production going as fast as he could. Having to film “Happythankyoumoreplease” within a span of 23 days in between seasons of “How I Met Your Mother” is quite a daunting challenge. It’s even a bigger challenge knowing that not only will you be acting on set but directing too. Sometimes that can be a bit overwhelming, but Radnor took the whole production process like a champ. “You know, I always say it’s a little bit what you hear about childbirth. My memory is like, ‘Oh, it’s all beautiful’ but when I’m back in the moment directing again I’ll be like, ‘Oh, I remember this. This is not all fun.’ But it was like a joyful freak-out, Even when I was freaking out on set I wasn’t really freaking out. But even the hard days were better than the good days of not making a movie.”
Of course Radnor wasn’t the only one enjoying himself on set. Among those who adored the experience was actress Malin Akerman. In the film she plays Annie, Sam Wexier’s (Radnor) best friend who suffers from a rare hair-loss disease called Alopecia. Although it does greatly affect her physical appearance, it still doesn’t stop her from being the most mentally vibrant character in the bunch. “All the roles that I get to do is amazing in their own way and this is fun because it’s different. It touches upon a real disorder that nobody really knows about. It’s such a well-written character.”
“I loved her, I really did. It was amazing to put the bald cap on and shave off the eyebrows. There’s sort of a raw beauty that you probably see yourself in the mirror than everybody else does, and that’s how I feel as well. This really was the closest to how I feel as a person on a daily basis with how I looked in this film.” And that’s one of the things “Happythankyoumoreplease” succeeds in doing, making it not just a simple story but a nice character-driven piece.
One of the main themes about “Happy” is gratitude, a feeling that ended up hitting Radnor through production of this film. “As I was making it I found myself so grateful in every moment. I can’t believe that all this amazing talent has risen up to support this vision. These people are here and we’re all making the same movie.”
“Happythankyoumoreplease” is out in limited theaters right now. Check your local theater listings to see if it’s playing in your area.
