I went to see "Dan In Real Life" last night. It was really "Dan in REEL Life." I hated almost every frame of that film. I wanted to walk out, but didn't. If I had that part of my life back I would have.
Sure I am all for the angsty, 40-something man-focused flicks. And this film is exactly as I would have written it in a wishful way: his parents (besides being alive) live in a beautiful, rustic New Englandy house right on the water and are the kinds of grandparents you would want your kids to have. And grandma makes biscuits and hearty meals and doles out loving advice.
Dan's siblings all love each other and have kids and they play football on the front lawn ala The Kennedys. He drives an old Mercedes station wagon and meets a girl in a one off bookstore that also sells fishing tackle. Oh and he writes an "life" column and may get syndicated. Arggghhhhhh!
My complaining will only come off as jealousy on all levels. But I don't care. You cannot make a movie with all these lovely trappings and then have the protagonist be an asshole and play it off like real feeling. Well, I guess you can. These types of movies irritate me more than just plain misfires or bad flicks. This is window dressing trying to be real. And I resent it. I cannot figure out why it bugs me so much, but probably because it would be the type of film I would write. DOUBLE Arrggghhhhh!!!
It was no "Parenthood." I gotta go.
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