‘Take Me Home Tonight’ review & Q&A with stars Topher Grace and Demetri Martin

Gabrielle Bondi

14 years ago

After two years of trying to get this movie into theaters, Topher Grace and his fellow producers finally made it happen. Take Me Home Tonight is a fun 80’s movie. The story is okay, but the actors and time period are charming enough for you to enjoy it.

Take Me Home Tonight follows Matt Franklin (Topher Grace), a recent MIT grad with no direction. Much to his parents’ dismay, he works at Suncoast Video. (Remember Suncoast, anybody?) After an encounter with his high school crush Tori (Teresa Palmer), he lies saying he works for Goldman Sachs (a big investment firm) to impress her. She, then, invites him to a party she’s going to that night. The party happens to be hosted by Matt’s twin sister, Wendy ‘s (Anna Faris) boyfriend. Well, like any crazy 80’s party, drama and comedy ensue, especially with the help of Matt’s best friend, Barry (Dan Fogler).

A lot goes on in Take Me Home Tonight, but it’s enough not to be overwhelming. This is a movie truly based in the 80’s. I like how it wasn’t a spoof or making fun of it. After going to a Q&A with stars Topher Grace and Demetri Martin, I was glad to hear that their intent wasn’t to make fun of the 80’s. Yet, I can see why it took awhile for this movie to get distributed. There is a lot of cocaine use in this movie. Although it’s mostly in funny scenes, it isn’t glorified at all.

Despite how weak I thought the storyline is, the actors are the ones who make the movie fun. Topher Grace gives Matt a sweet and sarcastic charm. Dan Fogler played the obnoxious Barry with… obnoxiousness. Anna Faris is smart and a little goofy; she’s always likeable. And newcomer Teresa Palmer is bright and beautiful (and looks so much like Kristen Stewart in this movie). Michelle Trachtenberg, Demetri Martin, and Michael Ian Black also make appearances. Another good thing about the movie is that it mixes raunchiness, romance, and drama well. It appeals to both guys and girls.

In my opinion, it’s better to rent Take Me Home Tonight than to see it in theaters. You can make a fun 80’s theme party and watch it with friends. It’s definitely something I’m planning to do once it’s out on video.

Take Me Home Tonight will be in theaters March 4th.

Topher Grace & Demetri Martin Q&A

I was lucky to sit in on a Q&A with the stars of the movie, Topher Grace and Demetri Martin. They shed a lot of light on the making of the film, their careers, and etc. Check out my pictures and video of the Q&A below!

To see more pictures from the Q&A event, visit our Facebook page!

Here are several video clips from the Q&A:

They discuss the music and why it took so long to get the movie out in theaters.

Topher talks about how he gets into character, if he has anything in common with Tonight‘s character Matt, and Demetri explains how it was filming the movie.

Topher explains why it was important for the movie not to be a spoof of the 80s.

Demetri talks about his latest project, Contagion and how he got the part for it.