Smart People (2008)

Admirable film.

A different way of telling a story

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

A film by director Noam Murro, "Smart People" stars Dennis Quaid as Lawrence Wetherhold, a pretentious English professor. Lawrence's daughter (Ellen Page), the overachieving Vanessa, is similarly pompous."Smart People's" second half finds Vanessa and Lawrence learning to be less uptight and more sympathetic toward the wants, needs and interests of the "academically challenged". Teaching these lessons are Lawrence's brother (Thomas Church) and a local doctor (Sarah Jessica Parker). Trite but watchable, Thomas Church steals the show as an affable slacker. For a better film about similarly dysfunctional intellectuals, see Noah Baumbach's "The Squid and the Whale".6/10 – Worth one viewing.

A sideways look at at household of smart people and you come away thinking that they also have dysfunctional lives.Dennis Quaid is Doctor Wetherhold a misanthropic literature professor at a Pittsburgh University.He loves literature but has lost his passion teaching it and lost his passion in writing. Maybe because he is so up himself that no one reaches his high standard apart from his robotic, young Republican daughter who is friendless.His son who shows gift as a writer has little to do with him and Wetherhold has been living a lonely life since his wife died and would be regarded as a social misfit.When he suffers a fall Wetherhold is treated in ER by a former student (Sarah Jessica Parker) and he takes his first tentative steps to reacquaint himself with life out there.When his adopted brother (Thomas Haden Church) turns up who is a bit of a waster, he ends up chauffeuring Wetherhold around and loosens up his daughter by introducing her to drink and drugs but she has a crush on him.The film is a melodrama with some humour provided mainly by Church. Its an independent film taking a sideways look at an intellectual family who are a little in the deep end. Church plays someone who is a little bit too much like his character in Sideways and both him and Quaid have some bad facial hair. They should had grown real moustaches or beards.

So basically, they just told Ellen Page & Sarah Jessica Parker to be themselves and for Dennis Quaid to go watch a few episodes of House (if he hadn't already) and be Hugh Laurie's character for Smart People. If it hadn't been for Uncle Chuck, played by Thomas Haden Church, this movie would have pretty much totally sucked for me. But then, i'm a Cheech & Chong fan and always loved Reverend Jim on Taxi too, so forget about it. I also think Ashton Holmes did well in this and deserved more recognition than he got. I will also say that Smart People has some pleasant scenery and a sweet score, always a plus.... and it does have a decent ending. The fact that some obviously dysfunctional stuff going on in the character's lives gets at all addressed makes it bearable to watch. Worth seeing one time, but not what i'd call a keeper.

The movie looked a bit too indie for my liking, if there is such a thing. The cast did their part, the storyline wasn't that bad. It's just that there wasn't too much to offer on the whole. Hayden Church stood out in his role, and was a central character to the entire movie. Ellen Page although doing her part didn't distinguish herself any further from her prior works, and displayed her usual lackadaisical attitude to the entire film. Maybe the role required it, maybe not, in any way not impressive. Casting of Jessica Parker was interesting but the film didn't really offer her that much. Kind of a film that you will likely forget than remember. 6/10.