mart People's fourteen producers) has consistently impressed me with his work ever since Thirteen and completely dazzled me with Sideways. After seeing the trailer for Smart People I became even more excited as I thought that the film remarkably sparked my interest without giving away too much of the plot. After seeing the film I had very mixed feelings and was curious to read the reviews of others which led me to the blogosphere. I was quickly able to find two reviews from two different blogs that I admire very much and, to make it all better, the authors have almost wholly opposite opinions. The first post that I found was at The New Republic's site and is by Christopher Orr, online film critic for The New Republic and former writer for L.A. Weekly, Salon, The Atlantic Monthly, and The New York Sun as well as having been the editor of The Washington Post, The Atlantic Monthly, U.S. News and World Report and Mother Jones. Orr's post, "The Movie Review: 'Smart People'" takes the negative position toward the film. The post in support of the film, "Smart People Review," from TheMovieBlog.com is by John Campea, editor of The Movie Blog and former client services director of Satellite Studios. Orr and Campea, both experts in their field, have almost diametrically opposed viewpoints on this film; my responses to their posts are offered below, as well as on the author's respective blog posts."The Movie Review: 'Smart People'"
Comment:
First, I would like to thank you, Mr. Orr, for your insightful and engaging contributions to the blogosphere. At the beginning of this comment I find it pertinent to state that I saw Smart People on the day of its release and with a genuine excitement for the film, but also knowing very little about it (or more accurately having a misconception about the film from seeing its trailer compared to seeing the actual film). You made some very astute observations about the film however, after reading your review, I was left wondering what your thoughts are about the importance of the film's message (or attempted message) and how that correlates to the film's overall quality. You label the film a "seriocomic tale about coping with loss and finding a balance between ambition and decency," after which you go into detail about the characters and plot of the film with very little mention of its message (for lack of a better word). What do you feel is the significance of the message of a film? Is it possible for the film (any film) to be high-quality based solely on the strengths of the message? And, finally, do you feel that Smart People, even with its shortcomings, conveyed the message that it intended to convey? In the last paragraph of your review you write, "The premise of Smart People is that even a complete jerk can have an attractive mind, that even a pedant may sometimes have insights to share. But the movie never grants us access to Lawrence's mind." You back this up by your examples of how his intelligence is never exhibited, though often commented on. It could be said that even with no examples of Lawrence's intelligence the messages of "coping with loss and finding a balance between ambition and decency" are still met. Your claims are well reasoned but I could not help but think that the discrediting of the characters does not inherently discredit the film as a whole. I would love to hear what you have to say about this and hope to hear from you.
"Smart People Review"
Comment:
Mr. Campea, thank you for you passionate and intelligent post about Smart People, as well as former well-informed posts. I feel it necessary to state that I saw Smart People on opening night. Like you I fond of Thomas Haden Church and Ellen Page (pictured right) very much, and think that Sarah Jessica Parker and Dennis Quaid have done excellent work many times over. Also like you I was very excited to see the film since the first time that I saw the trailer (though I do not share your love of Juno). In your review you write that "The one weakness of this film is the Sara Jessica Parker character," and you go on to explain that the relationship between her character (J
anet Hartigan) and Dennis Quaid's (Lawrence Wetherhold) is forced and unnatural. However you also laud the character and performance of Quaid, as well as Ellen Page, Thomas Haden Church and Ashton Holmes. While watching the film, at many points, I felt that the characters were all a bit too one-dimensional, so much so that I found them all a bit forced and unnatural, and thought them difficult (sometimes impossible) to connect with. Your first paragraph under the heading "The Good" seems to go into detail that the themes explored in the film resonated with you so much that the film caused you to enter a state of self-reflection. This brings me to a question: you thought that the characters were all (with the possible exception of Sarah Jessica Parker's) well-developed and also you connected with the themes of the film, I thought that the characters were one-dimensional, is it possible to connect with a film's themes and not its characters? What relationship does a films characters and themes have, does appreciating one beget appreciating the other? After seeing the film and reading some reviews, it seems that Smart People destined to be one of those films that people will either love or hate. I am very curious to know any responses you have to this and hope that I will hear from you.
1 comment:
Your post on Smart People is incredibly informative and thought provoking. You insightfully commented on blogs of high quality, truly adding to while simultaneously challenging some of the well-reasoned arguments that were presented. Having been disappointed by the film myself, I agree with many of your comments, including the "one-dimensional" and "forced and unnatural" portrayal of the characters as well as the ineffective and somewhat superficial communication of the overall message of the film. While the many questions you posed raised some pertinent issues regarding the inter-reliability of filmic themes and characters, I would have liked to hear more on your opinion of the film and what you thought of the overarching themes and their representation. I personally think the portrayal of characters and themes are equally critical in evaluating a film, depending only on which one of them is the primary driving force of the narrative. Moreover, I feel that the one-dimensional characterizations in this particular film only added to the movie's portrayal of the narrow spectrum of these so called highly intelligent and ambitious individuals, before their evolution through the film. At times some of your comments were a little repetitive, however, I thoroughly enjoyed reading your post and commend your ability to touch upon the relevance and relationship between components of a film that are examined in reviews and analysis.
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