Just so you know, I am out here every day looking for something worthy of your viewing in this abysmal time when theaters are either closed or should be. So, pretty much as a nation, we are reduced to streaming – and coming up with something that you won’t abandon in the middle – or worse yet, in the first 10 minutes – is a super viewing job. You have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find a prince.
I think a decent rom-com is always a good bet during these dark days. Although it was not well received in 2008, these are desperate times, and I am recommending “Smart People.” Also, think about the competition in 2008: “The Dark Knight,” “Slumdog Millionaire,” “Gran Torino.” Okay, it was a very thin year for movies. But do give “Smart People” a try. This is an Indy film with a great cast – albeit, a less than brilliant script. But the interaction of the characters is entertaining.
Dennis Quaid stars as professor Lawrence Wetherhold, an arrogant and obnoxious literature professor teaching in a middle Pennsylvania college. He is widowed – though we are uncertain for how long – but long enough for his kids to be concerned that he is still saving a closet full of mom’s clothes. He is totally estranged from his college student son James (Ashton Holmes); and in her desire to please her father, daughter Vanessa (Ellen Page) has turned into a freakish overachieving loner. So, Lawrence is not much of a father – but I had the impression that he probably never was a great dad and that his wife picked up the slack. Frankly, he is too much of an asshole to be a loving and nurturing parent. If he is seriously grieving for his wife, the script isn’t convincing. In fact, hundreds of students pass through his classroom, and the prof never bothers to learn their names, much less recognize them as someone who looks vaguely familiar.
Onto the scene his adopted brother Chuck (Thomas Haden Church) appears looking for a handout. The professor has been here before and can even recount to the dollar and date when he last loaned Chuck cash. Chuck is like an aging hippie with no ambition, few friends and empty pockets – but a likable guy. Quaid always refers to Chuck a his “adopted” brother – which, in itself, says something.
When Quaid suffers a seizure, he is attended by ER doc Jane Hartigan (Sarah Jessica Parker), herself a former student of the prof – who hasn’t the remotest recollection of her. But not only does Jane remember her old lit prof, she has even saved the essay she wrote for him her freshman year in college – an essay on which she received “C” and a snide remark. I will not bore you with the details of how these two happen to get together romantically – and I admit it is a stretch to imagine why any woman in her right mind would be attracted to this guy. But who can explain the affairs of the heart?
In any event, this movie is an entertaining diversion from the 24/7 news about the virus that has imprisoned all of us. So, take a moment to watch something totally frivolous and mindless. You might actually enjoy yourself.
McVitty Movie Reviews 