The 1972 movie that instantly became Michael Cera’s all-time favourite: “I love the note that it hits”
Michael Cera’s most beloved films say a lot about his interests as an actor.
The early 21st century saw a unique resurgence in mainstream studio comedies that was brought about by Judd Apatow and his acolytes, but Cera is an actor who always fell right outside the mainstream.
He first proved himself as a comedic talent to watch on the legendary sitcom Arrested Development, in which he played the socially awkward son of Jason Bateman’s character. While the series was sadly cancelled after its third season, it became a major cult classic that led many of its stars to find success in the years that followed.
Success for Cera came very quickly when he starred in Superbad, one of the funniest and most influential comedies of the 21st century. Not only was it a much raunchier take on the type of high school coming-of-age films that John Hughes used to make, but one that featured a geeky, socially inept, but good-natured lead performance from Cera. He was as different a character as someone like Matthew Broderick in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off as one could imagine, and that distinction made Cera’s performance feel like a breath of fresh air.
It was shortly after his breakthrough on the big screen with Superbad that he scored another role in a coming-of-age comedy with Youth in Revolt, which co-starred him with Jean Smart, Portia Doubleday, Justin Long, and Mary Kay Place. While it didn’t end up becoming a sensation like Superbad, its director, Miguel Arteta, was a massive cinephile who helped round out Cera’s cinematic education. The actor credited Arteta with introducing him to The Heartbreak Kid, a classic comedy from 1972 that was directed by Elaine May.
“It’s become my favourite movie,” Cera said, “The feeling of it, the language of it, the ride of it, Charles Grodin, the tone, Elaine, her DNA in it. I love the note that it hits. I love the way she cut it”.
The Heartbreak Kid stars Charles Grodin as a narcissistic salesman who goes on vacation with his new bride, played by Jeannie Berlin, only to find himself steadily getting annoyed by her obnoxious behaviour, and in the midst of their honeymoon, he instead forms a connection with a younger student, played by Cybill Shepeard, who he falls head-over-heels in love with, which becomes problematic when both girls’ families call him out on his toxic behavior.
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May was part of a comedy duo with the brilliant filmmaker Mike Nichols, and they both went off to start directing around the same time. The former was notorious for having an eye for detail, but her exacting style resulted in some true gems. May’s first film, A New Lead, also a favourite of Cera’s, is another hilarious case of a romance gone awry, and her third (and most ambitious) film Mikey and Nicky is a brilliant crime story. Sadly, her career somewhat collapsed after the release of Ishtar, an expensive comedy starring Dustin Hoffman and Warren Beatty that absolutely flopped.
May’s style of comedy is not easy to replicate; Peter and Bobby Farrelly made a 2007 remake of The Heartbreak Kid with Ben Stiller that just wasn’t as good as the original, but there are still comic artists out there like Cera who are honouring May’s legacy by making the type of observational, playfully uncomfortable humour that she did.
