Smart People, a new dramedy of sorts from first-time feature film director Noam Murro, hits a little below the mark.
Dennis Quaid stars as Lawrence, a widowed father of two, completely self-absorbed with his incredible level of intelligence. When an unexpected accident causes him to lose his ability to drive, his emotionally cold home is quickly transformed with the arrival of Chuck, (Thomas Haden Church) his adopted brother. Chuck’s extremely laid-back approach to life instantly gets under the skin of Lawrence, and his overly-mature 17 year old daughter Vanessa (Ellen Page).
As time goes on, Lawrence finds himself in a love affair with Janet, (Sarah Jessica Parker) his doctor from the accident. This comes as a major disappointment to Vanessa, who goes to great lengths to push the younger woman out of her father’s life. Lawrence and Janet’s relationship comes off feeling uncomfortable, instead of romantic. And oddly enough, the sparks flying between Vanessa and her “non-blood related uncle” seem more normal.
(Page and Church as Vanessa and Chuck)
The movie has a good storyline, proving its tagline that “Sometimes the smartest people have the most to learn.” Each character has an adequate amount of transformation from start to finish.
My highlight of the movie was the well-executed exchange of Ellen Page’s incredibly quick wit and Thomas Haden Church’s relaxed, yet perfectly delivered one-liners.
Sarah Jessica Parker hands in a not-so-thrilling portrayal of a middle-aged physician. Her motives for pursuing Quaid are never quite defined, and it seems unrealistic that she would be interested in such an emotionally stunted, and seemingly unattractive man, with all too much baggage in his family life. Janet was supposedly one of his former students, but is still much younger than him, seeing as how he has a 20 year old son. Their relationship feels forced, and although Quaid delivers a great performance of a troubled widower, the love between them doesn’t feel believable.
The family ends up overcoming multiple hardships, and the characters experience a lot of growth toward the end. They realize that being “smart people” doesn’t make life perfect, and isn’t exactly the key to life’s happiness.
Despite its flaws, I did really enjoy this movie, but I would suggest renting it rather than paying the $8.50 to see it in the theater.
However, keep an eye on Ellen Page. After incredible success in her breakout hit Juno, she continues to show her comedic chops in Smart People. To see what her upcoming films will be, look here: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0680983/
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