Stranger than Fiction
CHARMING AND QUIRKY TALE
Stranger than Fiction is reminiscent of a Charlie Kaufman (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) film. It is a sweet tale of destiny with Will Ferrell, Emma Thompson, and others coming together to remind us to not be such workaholics and figure out if we are in a tragedy or a comedy. The film is a showcase for Ferrell who shows a different side that has never been seen before.
Kay Eiffel (Emma Thompson) is a world renowned novelist who hasn’t finished a book in ten years. She has a bad case of writer’s block. Her block is caused by the fact that she can’t figure out how to kill her latest hero, Harold Crick. What she doesn’t realize is that she is narrating an actual person’s life. Harold Crick (Will Ferrell) is an IRS Agent that works and never plays. He counts his strokes as he brushes his teeth. He knows how long it takes him to tie his tie in the morning. He lives his life Monday through Friday by his wristwatch. So when he starts hearing Kay’s voice, he becomes disoriented and doesn’t know what to do. When he hears Kay predict that he will be killed soon, he tries to find her to prevent that from happening.
This is an inspiring story that shows what will happen if you don’t stop and smell the roses. It has the intelligence and wit of a novel. An example of this is when Harold decides he wants to buy a guitar so he can learn how to play. Kay’s descriptions of each guitar in the story treat them as if they have personalities. Emma Thompson is fantastic. Her neuroses are expressed in every which way. For instance, she goes to an emergency room and asks an employee where she might find the people that are actually going to die and not the ones that have a chance of making it. Her physical appearance shows her frustration with her haphazard hairdo and pale face. And her body language is that if she is almost turning herself inward to shut out the world. Will Ferrell shows that he has the acting chops for drama. He never once turns into WILL FERRELL. When he is told by Professor Jules Hilbert (Dustin Hoffman) that he has to die, I wanted to cry along with him. The supporting cast is a dream that upholds their end of the bargain. Dustin Hoffman, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Queen Latifah only add to this touching film. The banter between Ferrell and Hoffman in one of their first scenes together is hilarious as the Professor tries to figure out what type of story Harold is in. And although it is inanimate, Harold’s wristwatch is an unlikely funny part of the plot.
I am all for eccentric characters and plot points. But there is a scene where Harold stays at home and does nothing. The scene ended on a note that made me feel as if it was there just to be unpredictable and not really add to the movie.
Marc Forster shows us with Stranger than Fiction that he can handle an inventive story with a top notch cast. The tale of an IRS agent and the author that is narrating his story tells us to live your life to the fullest and that we are all connected in some way or another.
Report Card:
Story-B+
Acting-A
Visuals-B
Originality/Innovation-B+
Enjoyability Grade–B+
Overall Grade-B+
|
