Review of Ruby Sparks (2012) by Greg T — 20 Oct 2012

Sold, somewhat bizarrely, as a romantic comedy, RUBY SPARKS is a strange, almost whimsical flight of fantasy that takes its ostensibly amusing conceit-what if you could write your perfect woman?-and then layers it with ever more disturbing developments as it becomes clear that there's no such thing as a perfect fit, all the time.

Paul Dano manages to make his rather creepy character broadly likeable for much of the film, & writer/actress Zoe Kazan is genuinely likeable, and convincing, as the magic girl who turns out to be not as magical as might havr been hoped.

The romance is in short supply though, and as Dano tweaks his fantasy girl more & more to try & reach perfection, the film veers into darker & darker territory until it reaches a scene that, in it's depiction of sadistic dominance & domestic abuse, is one of the most disturbing I've seen this year.

Whether it pulls itself back from this is a matter for some debate, but RUBY SPARKS is a consistently interesting and thoughtful film, charming & all the more worrying for it. But if you want something sweet natured of this ill, try the wonderful LARS & THE REAL GIRL instead.