Waiting... (film)

This article is about the 2005 film. For other films with similar titles, see Waiting (disambiguation).

Waiting... is a 2005 American independent comedy film written and directed by Rob McKittrick (in his directorial debut) and starring Ryan Reynolds, Anna Faris, and Justin Long. McKittrick wrote the screenplay while working as a waiter.

Waiting...
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Rob McKittrick
Written by	Rob McKittrick
Produced by	Robert O. Green Jeff Balis Jay Rifkin Adam Rosenfelt Stavros Merjos Malcolm Petal
Starring	Ryan Reynolds Anna Faris Justin Long David Koechner John Francis Daley Kaitlin Doubleday Alanna Ubach Chi McBride Luis Guzmán
Cinematography	Matthew Irving
Edited by	Andy Blumenthal David Finfer
Music by	Adam Gorgoni
Production companies	Element Films Eden Rock Media Wisenheimer Films LIFT Productions
Distributed by	Lions Gate Films
Release dates	September 29, 2005 (2005-09-29) (Red Carpet Event) October 7, 2005 (2005-10-07) (United States)
Running time	94 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3 million[1]
Box office	$18.6 million

The script was initially sold in a film deal to Artisan Entertainment, but was released by Lions Gate Entertainment (which purchased Artisan in 2003). Producers Chris Moore and Jeff Balis of Live Planet's Project Greenlight fame also took notice of the project and assisted. The film made over US$6 million, more than twice the budget of the film, in its opening weekend.^[1]

Plot

The film takes place during a single day at Shenaniganz, a franchise restaurant. Dean, who has been working there for 4 years, learns from his mother that his former schoolmate recently graduated from college and has secured a high-paying job in electrical engineering.

Dean's co-worker, Monty, takes the new employee, Mitch, through his training and introduces him to the staff. Monty also shows Mitch the "Penis Showing Game", where the male staff deliberately expose their genitalia to their unsuspecting coworkers, as well as the ways the staff deal with rude customers. In one scene, food is sent back, which the kitchen staff then gladly contaminate with saliva, dandruff, pubic hair, and other unsavoury bits.

The remaining wait staff are Serena, Monty's ex-girlfriend; Natasha, the underage hostess who shares a mutual attraction with Monty; Dean's girlfriend, Amy; Calvin, a hopeless romantic who cannot urinate in public; and Naomi, a constantly angry waitress. Their manager, Dan, offers Dean the chance to compete with Calvin for the position of Assistant Manager. An altercation with a customer who left a poor tip to Dean results in Dan demanding an answer by the end of the day.

As the day winds down, Dean is left on his own during the final hour of business. Two new guests arrive, one of whom Dean quickly realizes is Chet, his successful schoolmate. Initially annoyed, Dean is humbled by Chet when he leaves Dean $100 for his $30 meal. Chet reiterates, 'You look like you need it more than me,' which Dean had retorted to the earlier customer. Dean is called to Dan's office to decide on the promotion, but Dean turns it down and quits his job to return to college for a more promising future.

As the shift ends, the staff head to a party at Monty and Dean's house, where Monty refrains from having sex with Natasha as she is not of legal age yet, but promises they will the following week after her birthday. Mitch, who had been unable to speak all day, mainly due to Monty's interruptions, finally rants about the entire staff and quits. Before leaving, Mitch exposes his genitals in the form of "The Goat", which the head chef Raddimus had said earlier would grant him instant god-status. Monty declares his allegiance to Mitch, replacing Dean in his absence.

In a post-credits scene, Dan arrives at the home of the customer whom Dean had insulted earlier, incorrectly believing it to be the party's location. The customer angrily demands the gift certificates he was promised earlier from Dan.

Cast

• Ryan Reynolds as Monty
• Anna Faris as Serena
• Justin Long as Dean
• David Koechner as Dan
• Luis Guzmán as Raddimus
• Chi McBride as Bishop
• John Francis Daley as Mitch
• Kaitlin Doubleday as Amy
• Robert Patrick Benedict as Calvin
• Alanna Ubach as Naomi
• Vanessa Lengies as Natasha
• Max Kasch as T-Dog
• Andy Milonakis as Nick
• Dane Cook as Floyd
• Jordan Ladd as Danielle
• Emmanuelle Chriqui as Tyla
• Wendie Malick as Monty's Mom
• Skyler Stone as a cook
• JD Evermore as a redneck

Production

Waiting... was filmed in New Orleans; Jefferson Parish, Louisiana; and Kenner, Louisiana.^[2]

Release

The film premiered on September 29, 2005, grossing $6,021,106 in its opening weekend in 1,652 theaters. It opened at #7 at the U.S. box office. Its total gross was $18,637,690, with $16,124,543 in the U.S. and $2,513,147 in foreign markets.^[1]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 29% of 92 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.4/10. The website's consensus reads: "Waiting... is a gross-out comedy that's more gross than comic."^[3] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, gave the film a score of 30 out of 100, based on reviews from 26 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".^[4]

Roger Ebert gave the film a 1.5 stars out of 4 claiming that "Waiting... is melancholy for comedy".^[5]

Despite negative reviews from critics, Waiting... has garnered a small cult following.^[6][7]

Sequel

A direct-to-DVD sequel, titled Still Waiting..., was released on February 17, 2009. The second film is about another Shenaniganz location dealing with new competition from a Hooters-like sports bar called TaTa's Wing Shack run by Calvin from the first film.^[8]