Dan In Real Life

Year: 2007

Grade: B-

Country: USA

Director: Hedges

Review

the film is billed as a comedy and the large audience certainly received it as such, but i couldn’t help watch it as a tragedy with only one possible outcome: he doesn’t get the girl. dan’s predicament (he unwittingly falls in love with his brother’s girlfriend) is the kind that doesn’t lead to a marriage, unless you’re talking about one of the jerry springer variety. it just didn’t feel right.

the film is definitely hedges – sondre lerche does the soundtrack just as stephin merritt did for pieces of april. the film is also about a large family gathering and death looms large in this story as it did in pieces of april and what’s eating gilbert grape (which he wrote).

steve carrell does a fine job. depressing film, but i’m probably the only one who thought so.

Watched in theater