Well, it's late (12:46am) and I'm tired, but I just got back from the late movie called "Stranger Than Fiction". I don't know if it's possible to "fawn" over a movie but that's what I feel like. This was the best movie I've seen in a LONG time! It was incredibly written, incredibly acted, and incredibly filmed. It had a story (beginning middle and end), comedy, tragedy, with a bit of the "fantastical" thrown in to keep it interesting. One of the things that I liked about this movie was the attention to detail. For example: One of the characters is a lifeguard (who loves books)... during one scene, the main character (Will Ferrel) approaches the lifeguard to ask a question. I noticed that he was reading a book while on the lifguard stand... The book was wrapped in saran wrap! So as not to have gotten wet from a splash in the pool. It showed how much the lifeguard loved to read, that he would 1) bring a book to "work" while he should be watching the swimmers, and 2) that he cared enough about the book to protect it from getting wet. Brilliant! Will Ferrel was perfect, Maggie Gyllenhaal was fantastic (I think she is one of the best actresses of our time), Dustin Hoffman was terrific, and the English actress Emma Thompson was great. One word of caution... if you are expecting a "goofy" Will Ferrel (like so many of his other famous rolls) you will be dissapointed. Yes, there is a comedic element to his character, but he's not his typical goofball self.
I urge you to go see this movie. It may not be around very long. Tonight was the opening night, and in our local "artsy" theatre is was playing in one of the smaller theatres. Very strange. I think it is up against some stiff box office competition and I suspect it will be overshadowed by Borat and Babel, but if you miss it, it will be a real shame. This movie is why I enjoy movies so much!
HA... one of the small details that both my friend and I picked up on... the same scene I mentioned above with the lifeguard... I noticed there was some words on the lifeguard stand, the first word was cut off, but the second word was "paragon". It struck me as an unusual word to be put on a lifeguard stand. I just had to look the meaning of the word up and it is yet another example of the attention to detail in the movie.
"Paragon: A model of excellence or perfection of a kind; a peerless example"
1 comment:
I liked this one just as much as you did ... I liked both Will Ferrell and Dustin Hoffman in this one more than I have in many years .. My favorite scene, if I had to pick just one, would be when the prof is reading to Harold the list of story possibilities ... priceless
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