Written by Zach Helm
Directed by Marc Forster
“The thing to determine conclusively is whether you are in a comedy or a tragedy. Have you met anyone who simply might loathe the very core of you?”
“I’m an IRS agent. Everyone hates me.”
“Well, that sounds like a comedy!”
Here are five reasons why Stranger Than Fiction is the most surprising, poetic, beautiful, underrated film that I’ve seen in quite some time…
(1) This is a script of profound philosophical depth, but at no time does it threaten to become pretentious. A meditation on what it means to be a character, on controlling your own destiny vs. the destiny of others…wrapped in layers of witty metaphors…accompanied by a Greek chorus/narrator charting a parallel path…a movie that can be summed up by single line, spoken by Dustin Hoffman’s character: “Let’s start with ridiculous and work our way backwards.”
(2) Will Ferrell – is this really the same man who has made a career out of playing dumbasses? The closest I have ever come to actually tolerating him as an actor was in Elf – delightful fluff, but fluff nevertheless. But here? He engages the audience with an astonishing, stripped-down-to-the-bone performance. It’s utilitarianism as art, and he takes it far beyond any expectations I possibly had. It’s a pity he’s diving right back into dumbass land with his next film, because THIS is what he should be doing.
(3) Dustin Hoffman. Bow down and worship at the altar of Dustin Hoffman. One of the greatest actors in Hollywood history, he effortlessly takes the character of Dr. Jules Hilbert – a character that could have been a series of cliches – and turns into the personification of sardonic, softly-spoken quirkiness. He walks through the movie like an other-worldly pixie, offering up pointed observations, in the midst of the most ridiculously prosaic situations…whether it be while wrestling with his ancient coffee maker, or wandering through the male showers of the university pool, oblivious to everything but his own thoughts.
(4) Emma Thompson as the neurotic, obsessive-compulsive author with writer’s block – a twitchy, intense performance worthy of her talents. An author obsessed with the authenticity of experience…but who never stops to consider what her characters actually FEEL. Who never stops to wonder about her characters as people…
(5) The glorious ending: an ending left open to many interpretations. An ending many will find unappetizing and anti-climactic (and is even discussed within the film itself)…yet it’s an ending that says more about what we want from real life than a dozen exciting/depressing/clever novels. An ending that speaks volumes about the randomness of life versus a pre-ordained destiny.
To be honest, my words are inadequate to describe the deep joy and satisfaction I felt while watching Stranger Than Fiction. This is a film to delight the head and the heart. A film where characters aren’t obsessed with the ridiculous premise…but merely accept it and worry about the more important, moral considerations of their situation. This is a film that celebrates everything we love about exploring a world on the printed page…yet manages to translate the experience beautifully into a visual experience.
Watch this film…now!
10
