I was not expecting much from the film when I first rented it; I thought it was just something to past my time with. After seeing it, I am very pleasantly surprised by how smart it is. To a certain extent, it is a "min-masterpiece".
Of course, this film will not make anyone's "Best Films of the Century" list. Yet, when you watch the film, it demonstrated the basic element of all the best films: "Show, not tell". It is apparent from the very first scene, as we see Dan, played by Steve Carell, pet the empty side of the bed and look longingly at it. Then he turns around, sighs, and goes to the home office to read letters asking for help. The camera then shows his column in a newspaper. Without a single explanation by anybody, one knows everything about Dan: he lost his wife, he misses his wife, and he is a self-help columnist for a local newspaper. So much information is shown in less than a minute. That, my friends, is film-making at its finest. Watch out for the director. He will be a good one.
Carell and Binoche is one of the smartest pairing in recent memories. Who would have thought this unlikely pairing (a funnyman and one of the most elegant leading ladies) would have such perfect and believable chemistry? I never liked Carell before, but this film shows he is quite a capable actor.
Of course, the thing that keeps it from being a "masterpiece" is that there is nothing that can be remembered about this film. It is part of pop-culture, a fad. There is no iconic scene or a life-altering message within the film. Although it touches on subjects such as love and parenting, there are no new revelations on these subjects and there are no new lessons to be learned. Instead, this is just a lighthearted fun film, as it pokes fun of the notion that newspaper self-help columnist might not be able to solve his own problems.
Thus, even if this film is very smart, from the casting to the directing, and it displays very good film-making skills, it is not a "masterpiece" because it lacks something that people will remember this film for.
7.5/10
Of course, this film will not make anyone's "Best Films of the Century" list. Yet, when you watch the film, it demonstrated the basic element of all the best films: "Show, not tell". It is apparent from the very first scene, as we see Dan, played by Steve Carell, pet the empty side of the bed and look longingly at it. Then he turns around, sighs, and goes to the home office to read letters asking for help. The camera then shows his column in a newspaper. Without a single explanation by anybody, one knows everything about Dan: he lost his wife, he misses his wife, and he is a self-help columnist for a local newspaper. So much information is shown in less than a minute. That, my friends, is film-making at its finest. Watch out for the director. He will be a good one.
Carell and Binoche is one of the smartest pairing in recent memories. Who would have thought this unlikely pairing (a funnyman and one of the most elegant leading ladies) would have such perfect and believable chemistry? I never liked Carell before, but this film shows he is quite a capable actor.
Of course, the thing that keeps it from being a "masterpiece" is that there is nothing that can be remembered about this film. It is part of pop-culture, a fad. There is no iconic scene or a life-altering message within the film. Although it touches on subjects such as love and parenting, there are no new revelations on these subjects and there are no new lessons to be learned. Instead, this is just a lighthearted fun film, as it pokes fun of the notion that newspaper self-help columnist might not be able to solve his own problems.
Thus, even if this film is very smart, from the casting to the directing, and it displays very good film-making skills, it is not a "masterpiece" because it lacks something that people will remember this film for.
7.5/10