Smart People

| September 15, 2009 | 10 comments

 

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 The Basics: In the movie Smart People Dennis Quaid plays a widdowed college professor who is book smart but love stupid, he’s also pretty much the definition of arrogant. So is the rest of his family which includes his adoptive brother played by Thomas Hayden Church, his daughter played by Ellen Page and his love interest Sarah Jessica Parker.

The Good: At first I thought the chemistry would not work between Quaid and Parker but it did, in a very subtle and sometimes awkward way, which is more realistic than most movie love stories. Page though I think stole the movie, she was the best part to watch. She was quick witted, I loved the scene where she asked a girl at a bar what it was like to be stupid. I am not generally a fan of Church but he was pretty much the same character he usually is but this time to me he was a little easier to like.

The Bad: It reminds me of some other films, for some reason I couldn’t help but think of The Wonder Boys and The Squid and The Whale (which I never was able to finish). It has that very indie, dark and brooding feel to it but I still enjoyed this anyway, I may have just been in the mood for it. Also I wasn’t always quite sure where the plot was going, which may have also been the reason I stayed on to the end, to figure it all out.

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Smart People was posted on September 15, 2009 at 8:42 am in Reviews and tagged as . It was last modified on September 15, 2009 at 8:59 am. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your site.

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  • http://darnedtoheck.blogspot.com/ Grant

    If you liked that, then this is the movie for you.

    And your stupid comment box makes me re-enter my information every time. I’m going to start charging you.

  • http://lifeisnotamovie.net Robin

    @Grant, dammit, I’m not sure how to fix this, I had to do that once before for a theme but I don’t remember. I know you can just be logged in and that works but I’ll see what I can do. Why must all themes be fucked up in some way?

  • http://bloggochicago.com Barb

    Hmm…a “book smart but love stupid” prof who’s also arrogant…aren’t they all like that? ;) It sounds kind of predictable and I have trouble watching anything with Sarah Jessica Parker in it, even TV commercials. She looks too much like a horse, you know, with that really long face? Oh, I better shut up before Google or somebody makes me “out” my identity. lol

  • http://www.brightestblue.wordpress.com Hannah

    I like Page, Quaid and Parker but this movie looks pretentious and silly. These “dark indie” movies are becoming derivative.

  • http://lifeisnotamovie.net Robin

    @Barb, my husband doesn’t like her either, i’ve always liked her and thought she was pretty but i find unconventional beauty more interesting.

  • http://lifeisnotamovie.net Robin

    @Hannah, it kind of is, i wouldn’t have rented it but it was just on HBO or something so I watched it.

  • http://bloggochicago.com Barb

    I agree about the unconventional beauty. It’s just something about her, I guess.

  • http://amandainreallife.blogspot.com Amanda

    I usually like these kinds of movies, but I kind of hated this one. They were all just so douchey, I couldn’t connect with any of them

  • http://www.avitable.com Avitable

    I love Ellen Page.

  • http://www.secretinnerlife.com submom

    Best reason to finish a movie: “I wasn’t always quite sure where the plot was going, which may have also been the reason I stayed on to the end, to figure it all out.” No shit, m’lady, no shit. I like this one better than the Squid and the Whale also. Glad that I was not the only one finding it painful to stay with…