You Instead
Encyclopedia
You Instead is a 2011 British "Rock 'n' roll romantic comedy" written by Thomas Leveritt and directed David Mackenzie
.The film stars Luke Treadaway
, Natalia Tena
, Gavin Mitchell
and Alastair MacKenzie
. Set at T in the Park
music festival and shot by Sigma Films, two feuding rock stars are handcuffed together at a festival where they are due to perform.
) and Morello(Natalia Tena
) who end up handcuffed whilst appearing at T in the Park
. The main character Adam (Luke Treadaway
) is the lead singer with succesful pop group The Make who are booked to perform at popular music festival in Scotland. While looking for his manager he happens upon Morello (Natalia Tena
) who is the lead singer for the all girl punk band The Dirty Pink's. The two do not get along and end up arguing, while doing so attracting the attention of a preacher who decides to teach them both a lesson in Cooperation and Compromise. He handcuff's the two together and disposes of the key, leaving the two stuck together until the handcuff's can be removed. This also means that the two must perform together, an arrangement that both are unhappy with. But over time they both see that they have more in common than first thought and Morello (Natalia Tena
) begins to wonder whether she is truly happy with her boyfriend Mark (Alistair MacKenzie).
The film also has brief appearances from: Paolo Nutini
, Biffy Clyro
, The Proclaimers
, Calvin Harris
, Paloma Faith
and Al Green
.
Festival in Kinross, Scotland
. As the movie was filmed on site at T in the Park
the cast and crew were constantly reacting to their surroundings and incorporating them into the performances. The cast and crew camped backstage at the festival instead of the campsite in a specially designed marquee which housed 80 tents. The film was edited daily after shooting was finished for the day as scenes could not be re-after the festival was finished.. Director David Mackenzie
said one of the factors of him casting the two lead parts was that Luke Treadaway
and Natalia Tena
both had musical experience, "Luke Treadaway and Natalia Tena both have musical experience – Luke’s first movie called Brothers of the Head involved him and his brother playing in some proto-punk band, and Natalia’s got her own band called Molotov Jukebox
who are very good.". Two of the songs performed in the film were written by Treadaway and Tena.
held in Balado
, Kinross-shire
, Scotland
. The festivals opening year was in 1994 and it has been held annually since. The festivals main sponsor is Tennents Brewery, The reason for the 'T' in the title, and is sponsored by DF Concerts
. The festival was originally held in Strathclyde Park
, Lanarkshire
for the the first 4 years and ran for 2 days but since then has changed to a 3 day weekend with the option of an extra thursday night camping. The festival has been the host to many famous bands over the years with acts including Foo Fighters
, Eminem
, Green Day
and The Killers. The festival director Geoff Ellis says "The film really captures the spirit of what T in the Park is about!" It allows the viewers of the film to experience the festival through the eyes of bands that travel to T in the Park instead of just attending as a regular guest, thus really allowing the full T in the park experience.
said: "After shooting the film entirely at last year's T in the Park, it was only natural that we brought it back to where it was born, one year on."
gave the film one out of five saying "A jaw-droppingly self-indulgent, shallow, smug if mercifully brief feature with a plot that looks like the outline for a pop video" and Graham Young of the Birmingham Post
gave the film zero stars out of five stating "I’ve only walked out of one movie in my reviewing life – and that’s Penalty King (2006) which I knew would never get a Midlands’ release.The mercifully brief You Instead comes a close second. It is pointless, inept and impossible to warm to"
While Total Film
gave the film three stars out of five saying "It’s not quite Before Sunrise with mud and portaloos then, but warm vibes, buzzy crowd scenes and the two leads’ enthusiasm will pull you through to the morning after." Leo Robson from The Financial Times gave the film three stars out of five saying "The film shouldn’t work, and for the most part doesn’t; but it left me smiling".
The film was nominated for a Scottish BAFTA for the Best Scottish Film of 2011 but lost out to Fast Romance directed by Carter Ferguson
The film currently holds 39% "rotten" score on Rotten Tomatoes
David Mackenzie
David "Dave" MacKenzie is a Canadian politician. He is a current member of the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Oxford, Ontario as a Conservative....
.The film stars Luke Treadaway
Luke Treadaway
Luke Antony N. Treadaway is an English actor, whose career includes roles in the films Brothers of the Head and Attack the Block.- Personal life :...
, Natalia Tena
Natalia Tena
Natalia Gastiain Tena is a British actress and musician. She sings and plays the accordion in the band Molotov Jukebox. In her acting career, Tena is best known for playing Nymphadora Tonks in the Harry Potter film series, and Ellie in the movie About a Boy.-Life and career:Tena was born in...
, Gavin Mitchell
Gavin Mitchell
Gavin Mitchell may refer to:*Gavin Mitchell , Scottish actor*Gavin Mitchell , former Australian rules footballer*Gavin Mitchell , a character from NBC sitcom Friends...
and Alastair MacKenzie
Alastair Mackenzie
Alastair Mackenzie is a Scottish actor. He was born in 1970 in Trinafour, near Perth and educated at Westbourne House School and Glenalmond College in Perthshire.Mackenzie left home at the age of 18 and moved to London...
. Set at T in the Park
T in the Park
T in the Park is a major British music festival that has been held annually since 1994. It is named after its main sponsor, the brewing company Tennents. It was originally held at Strathclyde Park, Lanarkshire but since 1997 has been held at a disused airfield in Balado, Kinross-shire...
music festival and shot by Sigma Films, two feuding rock stars are handcuffed together at a festival where they are due to perform.
Plot
The plot features around two characters Adam (Luke TreadawayLuke Treadaway
Luke Antony N. Treadaway is an English actor, whose career includes roles in the films Brothers of the Head and Attack the Block.- Personal life :...
) and Morello(Natalia Tena
Natalia Tena
Natalia Gastiain Tena is a British actress and musician. She sings and plays the accordion in the band Molotov Jukebox. In her acting career, Tena is best known for playing Nymphadora Tonks in the Harry Potter film series, and Ellie in the movie About a Boy.-Life and career:Tena was born in...
) who end up handcuffed whilst appearing at T in the Park
T in the Park
T in the Park is a major British music festival that has been held annually since 1994. It is named after its main sponsor, the brewing company Tennents. It was originally held at Strathclyde Park, Lanarkshire but since 1997 has been held at a disused airfield in Balado, Kinross-shire...
. The main character Adam (Luke Treadaway
Luke Treadaway
Luke Antony N. Treadaway is an English actor, whose career includes roles in the films Brothers of the Head and Attack the Block.- Personal life :...
) is the lead singer with succesful pop group The Make who are booked to perform at popular music festival in Scotland. While looking for his manager he happens upon Morello (Natalia Tena
Natalia Tena
Natalia Gastiain Tena is a British actress and musician. She sings and plays the accordion in the band Molotov Jukebox. In her acting career, Tena is best known for playing Nymphadora Tonks in the Harry Potter film series, and Ellie in the movie About a Boy.-Life and career:Tena was born in...
) who is the lead singer for the all girl punk band The Dirty Pink's. The two do not get along and end up arguing, while doing so attracting the attention of a preacher who decides to teach them both a lesson in Cooperation and Compromise. He handcuff's the two together and disposes of the key, leaving the two stuck together until the handcuff's can be removed. This also means that the two must perform together, an arrangement that both are unhappy with. But over time they both see that they have more in common than first thought and Morello (Natalia Tena
Natalia Tena
Natalia Gastiain Tena is a British actress and musician. She sings and plays the accordion in the band Molotov Jukebox. In her acting career, Tena is best known for playing Nymphadora Tonks in the Harry Potter film series, and Ellie in the movie About a Boy.-Life and career:Tena was born in...
) begins to wonder whether she is truly happy with her boyfriend Mark (Alistair MacKenzie).
Cast
- Luke TreadawayLuke TreadawayLuke Antony N. Treadaway is an English actor, whose career includes roles in the films Brothers of the Head and Attack the Block.- Personal life :...
as Adam - Most notably in Clash of the TitansClash of the TitansClash of the Titans is an American 1981 fantasy–adventure film involving the Greek hero Perseus. It was released on June 12, 1981 and earned a gross profit of $41 million domestically, on a $15 million budget , by which it was the 11th highest grossing film of the year. A novelization of the film...
stars as indie star Adam, one half of globally successful duo The Make. - Natalia TenaNatalia TenaNatalia Gastiain Tena is a British actress and musician. She sings and plays the accordion in the band Molotov Jukebox. In her acting career, Tena is best known for playing Nymphadora Tonks in the Harry Potter film series, and Ellie in the movie About a Boy.-Life and career:Tena was born in...
as Morello - Best known for parts in Harry PotterHarry PotterHarry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
and About a BoyAbout a BoyAbout a Boy is a 1998 novel by British writer Nick Hornby. It was adapted into a film of the same name in 2002.-Plot summary:The novel is about Will Freeman, a 36-year-old bachelor, and Marcus, an introverted, bullied 12-year-old who lives alone with his suicidal mother, Fiona...
. Plays lead singer for all girl punk band The Dirty Pink’s. - Gavin MitchellGavin MitchellGavin Mitchell may refer to:*Gavin Mitchell , Scottish actor*Gavin Mitchell , former Australian rules footballer*Gavin Mitchell , a character from NBC sitcom Friends...
as Boaby - Best known for parts in Still GameStill GameStill Game is a Scottish sitcom, produced by The Comedy Unit with the BBC. It was created by Ford Kiernan and Greg Hemphill, who play the lead characters - two Glaswegian pensioners, named Jack Jarvis and Victor McDade respectively....
, Rab C. NesbittRab C. NesbittRab C. Nesbitt is a Scottish sitcom which began in 1988. Produced by BBC Scotland, it stars Gregor Fisher as an alcoholic Glaswegian who believed unemployment was the life for him...
and Monarch of the glen. The character was originally called Stan but was changed after the crowds calling him Boaby during filming. He plays the Band's American Manager. - Sophie Wu as Kim - Has had parts in shows such as CasualtyCasualtyCasualty may refer to:*Casualty , a person who is killed or injured in a war or disaster*Disaster, an event resulting in death, injury, or destruction...
and Hotel BabylonHotel BabylonHotel Babylon was a BBC television drama series based on the book of the same name by Imogen Edwards-Jones, that aired from 19 January 2006 to 14 August 2009, produced by independent production company Carnival Films for BBC One...
. Also a part in Kick-AssKick-AssKick-Ass is a creator-owned comic book series written by Mark Millar and illustrated by John Romita, Jr. It is published by Marvel Comics under the company's Icon imprint....
. - Mathew BayntonMathew BayntonMathew Baynton is an English actor and writer. He stars in the UK television series Horrible Histories as a singer, actor and writer. He also played Deano in Gavin & Stacey. Mat is also in the band Special Benny and also has a separate solo career under the name of Dog Ears...
as Tyko - Has had parts in shows such as Peep ShowPeep showA peep show or peepshow is an exhibition of pictures, objects or people viewed through a small hole or magnifying glass. Though historically a peep show was a form of entertainment provided by wandering showmen, nowadays it more commonly refers a presentation of a sex show or pornographic film...
and The Armstrong and Miller ShowThe Armstrong and Miller ShowThe Armstrong and Miller Show is a British sketch comedy television show produced by Hat Trick Productions for BBC One. It features the double act Armstrong and Miller and a number of notable scriptwriters including Andy Hamilton and The League of Gentlemen's Jeremy Dyson.The series followed four...
. Tyko is the keyboard player for the band The Make. - Alastair MacKenzieAlastair MackenzieAlastair Mackenzie is a Scottish actor. He was born in 1970 in Trinafour, near Perth and educated at Westbourne House School and Glenalmond College in Perthshire.Mackenzie left home at the age of 18 and moved to London...
as Mark - Most notable for parts in Monarch of the Glen and Perfect Sense. Alistair is also the brother of the director David. - Ruta GedmintasRuta GedmintasRuta Gedmintas is an English actress known for her work on British television, primarily in Spooks: Code 9, The Tudors and Lip Service.-Biography:...
as Lake - Has had parts in shows such as SpooksSpooksSpooks is a British television drama series that originally aired on BBC One from 13 May 2002 – 23 October 2011, consisting of 10 series. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, as the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a...
and Waking the DeadWaking the DeadWaking the Dead may refer to:* Waking the Dead , an album by US rock band, L.A. Guns* Waking the Dead , a US film, produced in 2000, and starring Jennifer Connelly and Billy Crudup based on the Scott Spencer novel...
. Lake is the girfriend of Adam when they arrive at the festival. - Kari CorbettKari CorbettKari Corbett is an actor, artist and film-maker who lives and works between the USA and Europe.As an actor, Corbett is best known for her roles as Nurse Marian McKaig in ITV's The Royal, Zoe in Monarch Of The Glen, Kirsty Henderson in River City and Sarah in the BAFTA award winning Jeopardy...
as Kirsty - Has had parts in shows such as The RoyalThe RoyalThe Royal is a British medical drama series produced by ITV. The show comprises one hour episodes which were normally first aired on ITV in the Sunday early evening slot....
and HollyoaksHollyoaksHollyoaks is a long-running British television soap opera, first broadcast on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was originally devised by Phil Redmond, who has also devised shows including Brookside and Grange Hill...
.
The film also has brief appearances from: Paolo Nutini
Paolo Nutini
Paolo Giovanni Nutini is a Scottish singer, songwriter and musician from Paisley. His father is of Italian descent, from Barga, Tuscany, although both his parents are Scottish, his family having been in Scotland for three generations....
, Biffy Clyro
Biffy Clyro
Biffy Clyro are a Scottish rock band from Kilmarnock, comprising Simon Neil , James Johnston and Ben Johnston...
, The Proclaimers
The Proclaimers
The Proclaimers are a Scottish band composed of identical twin brothers, Charlie and Craig Reid . They are probably best known for the songs "Letter from America", "I'm On My Way" and "I'm Gonna Be ". The band tours extensively throughout Europe and other continents...
, Calvin Harris
Calvin Harris
Calvin Harris is a Scottish singer-songwriter, record producer and DJ. His gold-selling debut album, I Created Disco, was released in 2007 and contained the top ten singles "Acceptable in the 80s" and "The Girls"...
, Paloma Faith
Paloma Faith
Paloma Faith is a British singer-songwriter and actress. In 2009, she released her debut single "Stone Cold Sober", then her debut album, Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?, which was certified Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry. Her debut album stayed within the top 40 album...
and Al Green
Al Green
Albert Greene , better known as Al Green, is an American gospel and soul music singer. He reached the peak of his popularity in the 1970s, with hit singles such as "You Oughta Be With Me", "I'm Still In Love With You", "Love and Happiness", and "Let's Stay Together"...
.
Production
You Instead was filmed in 5 days at the 2010 T in the ParkT in the Park
T in the Park is a major British music festival that has been held annually since 1994. It is named after its main sponsor, the brewing company Tennents. It was originally held at Strathclyde Park, Lanarkshire but since 1997 has been held at a disused airfield in Balado, Kinross-shire...
Festival in Kinross, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. As the movie was filmed on site at T in the Park
T in the Park
T in the Park is a major British music festival that has been held annually since 1994. It is named after its main sponsor, the brewing company Tennents. It was originally held at Strathclyde Park, Lanarkshire but since 1997 has been held at a disused airfield in Balado, Kinross-shire...
the cast and crew were constantly reacting to their surroundings and incorporating them into the performances. The cast and crew camped backstage at the festival instead of the campsite in a specially designed marquee which housed 80 tents. The film was edited daily after shooting was finished for the day as scenes could not be re-after the festival was finished.. Director David Mackenzie
David Mackenzie
David "Dave" MacKenzie is a Canadian politician. He is a current member of the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Oxford, Ontario as a Conservative....
said one of the factors of him casting the two lead parts was that Luke Treadaway
Luke Treadaway
Luke Antony N. Treadaway is an English actor, whose career includes roles in the films Brothers of the Head and Attack the Block.- Personal life :...
and Natalia Tena
Natalia Tena
Natalia Gastiain Tena is a British actress and musician. She sings and plays the accordion in the band Molotov Jukebox. In her acting career, Tena is best known for playing Nymphadora Tonks in the Harry Potter film series, and Ellie in the movie About a Boy.-Life and career:Tena was born in...
both had musical experience, "Luke Treadaway and Natalia Tena both have musical experience – Luke’s first movie called Brothers of the Head involved him and his brother playing in some proto-punk band, and Natalia’s got her own band called Molotov Jukebox
Molotov Jukebox
-Forming the Band:It all started with Natalia Tena and Sam Apley meeting in another band. They clicked and decided to make their own kind of music. Whilst being totally sleep deprived and festival fuelled after a week of dancing and having it off at The Secret Garden Party, as Nat describes it,...
who are very good.". Two of the songs performed in the film were written by Treadaway and Tena.
Festival Setting
T in the Park is a major music festivalMusic festival
A music festival is a festival oriented towards music that is sometimes presented with a theme such as musical genre, nationality or locality of musicians, or holiday. They are commonly held outdoors, and are often inclusive of other attractions such as food and merchandise vending machines,...
held in Balado
Balado
Balado is a park and former airfield within the Perth and Kinross council area of Scotland. It is now the venue of the annual T in the Park music festival.Poultry sheds of Balado Poultry Farm now occupy the old concrete runways of the airfield...
, Kinross-shire
Kinross-shire
Kinross-shire or the County of Kinross is a registration county, electoral ward and historic county in the Perth and Kinross council area in the east central Lowlands of Scotland...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. The festivals opening year was in 1994 and it has been held annually since. The festivals main sponsor is Tennents Brewery, The reason for the 'T' in the title, and is sponsored by DF Concerts
DF Concerts
DF Concerts is a Scottish promoter responsible for major events such as T in the Park, The Edge Festival and Connect, as well as the Scottish tour-dates of many international acts at venues around the country....
. The festival was originally held in Strathclyde Park
Strathclyde Park
Strathclyde Country Park is a country park located in Lanarkshire, Scotland.The park covers some 4 km², centred on the artificial Strathclyde Loch. It is located next to the River Clyde between Hamilton and Motherwell. Strathclyde Park forms what used to be known as the Low parks of the now...
, Lanarkshire
Lanarkshire
Lanarkshire or the County of Lanark ) is a Lieutenancy area, registration county and former local government county in the central Lowlands of Scotland...
for the the first 4 years and ran for 2 days but since then has changed to a 3 day weekend with the option of an extra thursday night camping. The festival has been the host to many famous bands over the years with acts including Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters is an American alternative rock band originally formed in 1994 by Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of his previous band. The band got its name from the UFOs and various aerial phenomena that were reported by Allied aircraft pilots in World War...
, Eminem
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition...
, Green Day
Green Day
Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
and The Killers. The festival director Geoff Ellis says "The film really captures the spirit of what T in the Park is about!" It allows the viewers of the film to experience the festival through the eyes of bands that travel to T in the Park instead of just attending as a regular guest, thus really allowing the full T in the park experience.
Release
You Instead premiered at the Glasgow Film Festival in March 2011. and went on limited release in September 2011. The film was also shown to Thursday night campers at the festival the following year, 2011. The festival is known to show films to campers to occupy their time on Thursday as there is no live music performed until the Friday of the festival. You Instead Director David MackenzieDavid Mackenzie
David "Dave" MacKenzie is a Canadian politician. He is a current member of the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Oxford, Ontario as a Conservative....
said: "After shooting the film entirely at last year's T in the Park, it was only natural that we brought it back to where it was born, one year on."
Reception
You Instead was released to poor to mixed reaction from critics. Peter Bradsaw of The GuardianThe Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
gave the film one out of five saying "A jaw-droppingly self-indulgent, shallow, smug if mercifully brief feature with a plot that looks like the outline for a pop video" and Graham Young of the Birmingham Post
Birmingham Post
The Birmingham Post newspaper was originally published under the name Daily Post in Birmingham, England, in 1857 by John Frederick Feeney. It was the largest selling broadsheet in the West Midlands, though it faced little if any competition in this category. It changed to tabloid size in 2008...
gave the film zero stars out of five stating "I’ve only walked out of one movie in my reviewing life – and that’s Penalty King (2006) which I knew would never get a Midlands’ release.The mercifully brief You Instead comes a close second. It is pointless, inept and impossible to warm to"
While Total Film
Total Film
Total Film is a British film magazine published 13 times a year by Future Publishing. The magazine was launched in 1997 and offers film, DVD and Blu-ray news, reviews and features...
gave the film three stars out of five saying "It’s not quite Before Sunrise with mud and portaloos then, but warm vibes, buzzy crowd scenes and the two leads’ enthusiasm will pull you through to the morning after." Leo Robson from The Financial Times gave the film three stars out of five saying "The film shouldn’t work, and for the most part doesn’t; but it left me smiling".
The film was nominated for a Scottish BAFTA for the Best Scottish Film of 2011 but lost out to Fast Romance directed by Carter Ferguson
Carter Ferguson
Carter Ferguson is a Scottish based fight director and actor, with over 500 professional credits including 140 episodes of the Scottish soap opera River City in which he appeared as Harry Black. Carter has directed a 3 part web series made for £1000 set in the world Of 28 Days Later. Called "The...
The film currently holds 39% "rotten" score on Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...