DotTheEyes
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After the highest-profile comedy success of his career, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Will Ferrell leaves his comfort zone in Stranger than Fiction, a dramedy by Marc Forster, director of Finding Neverland and Monster's Ball, which is far more thoughtful and poignant than what he's accustomed to. In the film, he portrays a mild-mannered IRS auditor who begins to hear the narration of an author (Emma Thompson), whom it turns out is controlling his life through her writing.
The best aspect of this film is the ensemble cast, which also includes Maggie Gyllenhaal, Dustin Hoffman, and Queen Latifah. Their performances are across-the-board terrific, especially Ferrell, who reveals a subtle, more emotional side, and Gyllenhaal, who is Academy Award-worthy as a staunch liberal who is openly antagonistic toward Ferrell's character, but ends up being the love interest of the piece.
The imaginative screenplay by first-time scribe Zach Helm boasts a delightful, if low-key sense of humor and Forster's direction is clever and stylized. This film may not appeal to Ferrell's old fans, but he should earn many new ones with this intelligent, unique hit.
After the highest-profile comedy success of his career, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Will Ferrell leaves his comfort zone in Stranger than Fiction, a dramedy by Marc Forster, director of Finding Neverland and Monster's Ball, which is far more thoughtful and poignant than what he's accustomed to. In the film, he portrays a mild-mannered IRS auditor who begins to hear the narration of an author (Emma Thompson), whom it turns out is controlling his life through her writing.
The best aspect of this film is the ensemble cast, which also includes Maggie Gyllenhaal, Dustin Hoffman, and Queen Latifah. Their performances are across-the-board terrific, especially Ferrell, who reveals a subtle, more emotional side, and Gyllenhaal, who is Academy Award-worthy as a staunch liberal who is openly antagonistic toward Ferrell's character, but ends up being the love interest of the piece.
The imaginative screenplay by first-time scribe Zach Helm boasts a delightful, if low-key sense of humor and Forster's direction is clever and stylized. This film may not appeal to Ferrell's old fans, but he should earn many new ones with this intelligent, unique hit.