Like Crazy (2011 film)

Like Crazy
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Drake Doremus
Produced by	Jonathan Schwartz Andrea Sperling
Written by	Drake Doremus Ben York Jones
Starring	Anton Yelchin Felicity Jones Jennifer Lawrence
Music by	Dustin O'Halloran
Cinematography	John Guleserian
Edited by	Jonathan Alberts
Production company	Super Crispy Entertainment
Distributed by	Paramount Vantage
Release date	January 22, 2011 (2011-01-22) (Sundance) October 28, 2011 (2011-10-28) (United States)
Running time	90 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$250,000
Box office	$3.7 million

Like Crazy is a 2011 American romantic drama film directed by Drake Doremus and starring Anton Yelchin, Felicity Jones and Jennifer Lawrence. Written by Doremus and Ben York Jones, the film tells the story of Anna (Felicity Jones), a British exchange student who falls in love with an American student, Jacob (Yelchin), only to be separated from him when she is denied re-entry into the United States after staying in the country longer than her student visa allows.

Doremus based the storyline of the film partly on his own long-distance relationship with a woman living in London while he lived in Los Angeles. Rather than writing a traditional screenplay, he and Ben York Jones compiled a 50-page outline of the film from which the actors improvised almost all of the dialogue. Filming took place over four weeks in Los Angeles and London with a budget of $250,000.

Like Crazy premiered on January 22, 2011 at the Sundance Film Festival, where it won the festival's Grand Jury Prize. It was released in theaters on October 28, 2011 and grossed over $3.7 million at the box office. Most reviews of the film were positive, with reviewers giving particular praise to the performances of Yelchin and Jones, although some found the plot unrealistic and contrived.

Anna Gardner (Felicity Jones), a British exchange student attending college in Los Angeles, meets and falls in love with Jacob Helm (Anton Yelchin), an American student who returns her affections. After graduation, Anna decides to spend the summer with Jacob rather than return to the United Kingdom, unaware of the consequences of staying longer than her student visa, which expired upon her graduation, allows. After returning to London for a family engagement, Anna flies back to Los Angeles, where she is detained, denied entry, and sent back to the United Kingdom by immigration officials.

The couple's love for each other grows strained by their separation and long-distance relationship. Despite her efforts at appealing the immigration decision, Anna is told she is banned from entering the United States. Meanwhile, Jacob leaves behind his successful design business and visits Anna in London for a few weeks. There, he learns that Anna's parents, Bernard (Oliver Muirhead) and Jackie (Alex Kingston), have hired an immigration lawyer to try to get the ban lifted. Bernard suggests that marrying may help their efforts. Jacob is uncomfortable with the suggestion, and the couple struggle with their feelings.