Friday, May 09, 2008

Smart People (2008)

Smart People is worth seeing, but not a must-see. I've heard the Sarah Jessica Parker bashing, saying she ruined the movie, but I think the writing of her character is at fault. The movie didn't explain why she felt compelled to lie to make Quaid leave her bed after sex --- the best we have is the gay male best friend supplying her whole backstory in a sound bite. The key arc of the movie is the bitter professor's coming back to life, but the woman who catalyzes this awakening is not a well-developed character. That's a flaw in the writing.

The characters are mostly unpleasant, and we're not really rooting for them. The exception is the main character. When he has undergone a barely perceptible thaw ("a twinkling of humanity"), we smile. Surprisingly touching.

(Metacritic rating: 57)

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