Review of Smart People (2008) by Hadi R — 07 Feb 2009

A few minutes into our viewing of Smart People, I said to Jenny, "Oh man, this is going to be one of those movies about real people growing and stuff, isn't it?" And it was.

Smart People.

Smart People.

Smart People is about a misanthropic English professor who never got over his wife's death. His daughter, a robotic Alex P. Keaton played by Ellen Page, has adopted the same life view as her father. Atone point, he says, "I don't think you're happy." She replies, "Well, you're not happy. And you're my role model." As is often the case in stories like this, a shocking life change is needed to jar them loose. Enter the professor's brother, equisitely played with a creepy loser-dude mustache by Thomas Haden Church and the lonely E.R. doctor played by Sarah Jessica Parker. The intermix of these four leads to personal growth and so on.

* I love Thomas Haden Church more for every movie I see him in. He's excellent in this film.

* This movie has a lot in common with Wonder Boys, except that its professor is plagued by misanthropy instead of pot-headedness.

* Ellen Page's character in this movie is the exact opposite of Juno.

* Like Wonder Boys, the professor is having trouble with his book.

Ultimately, I liked this movie because the way the characters evolve rings true. While there is a sense that they have shifted, they don't have the vast change that happens in romantic comedies; it's excellent, and I enjoyed this movie in the same way I enjoyed Station Agent.