POISON SCOOTER

Stranger Than Fiction

The word I would use to describe the new "Will Ferrell" movie would be charming. Bet you can't imagine that word being used for many of his other movies, eh? But in this case, it's the best word to use. Time magazine's review referred to Stranger Than Fiction as Adaptation lite and others have compared it to The Truman Show, and although I see the comparisons, for me the movie is better than the latter but not as good as the former. It's very middle of the road and charming.

The script, although involved and extremely well thought out, doesn't confuse you and allows you to reflect on the nature of what is unfolding. A man (Ferrell) realizes that he is a character in a book and that at some point he will die since it appears he is in a tragedy. And so the "live each day like it's your last" theme takes over center stage and is very understated which I liked.

Will Ferrell is very capable like many comedic actors who have branched out before him by doing dramatic roles. Is it safe to say at this point that it is harder to be a successful comedy actor? Tom Hanks? Robin Williams? Jim Carrey? All have done exceptional work in this vein, and so I'm saying Will was okay not extraordinary. But Dustin Hoffman, well he's done his best work in a couple years with his literature theorist Jules Hilbert, and Maggie Gylennhal is effortless in her quirky role as Ferrell's love interest. One of my apprehensions going in was that Maggie and Will are an odd coupling, but I thought it was smart to not make it seem so in the film. If they don't draw attention to it, the romance seems more real and after all don't you see odd couplings all the time in real life?

This movie won't change your life, but it's an enjoyable way to spend two hours on a raining afternoon.

posted by Scooter @ 5:48 AM