Contrary to the flock of promotions that play this film up as a dramatic romance, “Elizabethtown” is something else entirely. Constructed from memories of writer/director Cameron Crowe’s childhood and sewn together by a dominating and fluid soundtrack, the film communicates something about sorrow, humanity and one man’s journey in finding himself.

Drew (Orlando Bloom) is the narrator and protagonist of the story who finds himself in a “freefall plunge” of despair after single-handedly destroying the million-dollar company he works for. Just when he decides his life is not worth living, he discovers his father has died. He flies to Elizabethtown, Ky. to settle burial arrangements with his extended family, and in the midst of his homecoming, he meets the warm and intuitive Claire (Kirsten Dunst).

We follow Drew through the welcoming and peaceful environment of Elizabethtown and the closeness it brings him to his late father. We feel like we already know Elizabethtown and many of the characters Drew meets. As Drew struggles to find the will to carry on in the rubble of his shattered reality, he bonds with Claire, journeys through his past and explores the countryside. In a rather moving and original conclusion, Drew finds the courage to come to grips with his overwhelming failure, and in doing so, his sense of liberty.

Though the script is novel and the direction classically Crowe, the romantic edge to this film is disappointing. The feelings between Claire and Drew seem a little rushed, and the performances from these usually dead-on actors don’t satisfy. Bloom can’t seem to break out of the stiff, dramatic mask he seems to wear in most of his films and Dunst’s Southern accent is a bit shaky.

There is an element of unpredictably and precariousness throughout this movie, as some of the scenes are awkward and do not flow quite like the average film. However, the sporadic nature of the plot matches the emotional tone. We see realistic characters in trying and desperate situations, and we are taken off guard scene after scene. In a way, it’s commendable this movie is trying to communicate its message in such an honest and unpretentious format.

Though the surface of this film is a little rough, the message behind it is worth digging for. Though “Elizabethtown” takes a roundabout way of getting to its point, it finds it eventually.