It’s not uncommon for reporters to ask actors in a comedy how much improv they got to do, how much freedom they had with the script. The answer generally varies from “a little,” “some,” “we shot what was in the script,” “we shot what was written and then had some extras takes to have a little fun.”
But the upcoming comedy High Road can claim it is fully improved thanks to the talents of stars Lizzy Caplan (Hot Tub Time Machine, Mean Girls, “Party Down”), Abby Elliott (No Strings Attached, “Saturday Night Live”), Ed Helms (The Hangover 1 & 2, Cedar Rapids, “The Office”), Rob Riggle (Going the Distance, The Other Guys, The Hangover), Horatio Sanz (Step Brothers, “Saturday Night Live”) and Zach Woods (The Other Guys, “The Office”).
Matt Walsh – one of the co-founding members of the improv theater Upright Citizens Brigade (along with Amy Poehler) - directed the movie which he co-wrote with Josh Weiner. But how, you ask, is a movie written if it’s improvised? Chances are, like Larry David’s hit comedy “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” there was an outline for where the story needed to go and the actors would improv the dialog, ultimately guiding the scenes in the direction outlined by Walsh and Weiner.
In the story, Fitz (James F. Pumphrey) and his band break up, and his former bandmates (Caplan, Woods, Matt L. Jones) begin finding success. he starts selling weed from high garage. His girlfriend, Monica (Elliot), is keeping a bit of a secret, and meanwhile, Fitz has started hanging out with his 16-year-old neighbor, Jimmy (Dylan O’Brien), much to his father’s (Riggle) chagrin. When one of Fitz’s drug deals goes bad, the two hit the road where car chases and mayhem meet them along the way.
High Road is available on VOD, DVD, Blu-Ray and Digitally March 6th.
Here is the trailer:
