Best Bet: Smart People
April 7, 2008, 21:37Logan
Professor Lawrence Wetherhold (Dennis Quaid) might be imperiously brilliant, monumentally self-possessed and an intellectual giant – but when it comes to solving the conundrums of love and family, he’s as downright flummoxed as the next guy. His teenaged daughter (Ellen Page) is an acid-tongued overachiever who follows all too closely in dad’s misery-loving footsteps, and his adopted, preposterously ne’er-do-well brother (Thomas Haden Church) has perfected the art of freeloading. A widower who can’t seem to find passion in anything anymore, not even the Victorian Literature in which he’s an expert, it seems Lawrence is sleepwalking through a very stunted middle age. When his brother shows up unexpectedly for an extended stay at just about the same time as he accidentally encounters his former student Janet (Sarah Jessica Parker), the circumstances cause him to stir from his deep, deep freeze, with often comical, sometimes heartbreaking, consequences for himself and everyone around him.
It looks quirky and funny. It should be a feel good movie like Juno. Juno made us think about teenage pregnancy in a warm and funny way. I think this movie will take a look at overcoming crippling grief, building new relationships, and keeping family strong. The family element reminds me of Little Miss Sunshine which I also loved, so it looks like a gem. Cherish it, because there are 4 weeks until the official start of summer with the release of Iron Man on May 2nd. But the movies being released until then (with the exception of Forgetting Sarah Marshall) look dismal. So take heart, summer is almost here.
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