Unreal Life
posted on Wednesday, February 27, 2008 in Movie Reviews
For the most part, Dan in Real Life is a sweet and often funny little film. Relying almost completely on the charm and talent of Steve Carrell, this film manages to stay pretty good for most of its runtime. The resolutions are suspect, tying up the conflicts almost too cleanly, but overall, Dan in Real Life may be worth your time. Dan Burns is a widower, and he’s raising his three daughters on his own. He goes to the yearly family gathering at his parents’ house, where his entire family spends a holiday playing games and just generally bonding. At a nearby bookstore, Dan meets a beautiful French woman who he immediately connects with. He gets excited about the prospect of falling in love again, but when he gets home, he finds out that the woman is Marie, his brother’s new girlfriend. Stuck in the house together for the week, Dan and Marie have to fight the awkwardness of their feelings.
The film is pretty funny all throughout. Dan in Real Life is at heart, a story about family, and while the Burns family is a pretty strange one, the film manages to touch on some very true moments. The dialogue is fast, friendly, and almost welcoming. The premise makes for some pretty interesting situations, and the script manages to get a lot of humor out of it. The script runs into problems, however, when it gets to resolving all the conflicts. It’s hard to explain exactly what went wrong without spoiling anything, but let’s just say that it came out contrived. It doesn’t feel like the film fully earned its ending, with strange, easy solutions to what were pretty complex problems.
On some level, it’s easy to understand why this is the case. The film wants to keep it lighthearted and fun, and having to actually deal with those problems in a realistic manner could have bogged everything down. Still, it feels like a cheat, like the script just doesn’t work hard enough to bring everybody to a satisfying conclusion. We’re deprived of what could’ve been some really great, emotional scenes, which would’ve added much heart to the proceedings. Dan in Real Life has its charms, but it may not have taken it far enough.
But honestly, the film stands on its own, mostly due to the efforts of Steve Carrell. Carrell is just one of the funniest men in movies today. His comedic timing is impeccable, and he never fails to make the most uncomfortable situations absolutely hilarious. Carrell is equally able when it comes to the dramatic moments as well. He has an everyman quality that just resonates so well. Juliette Binoche is a fine actress, too, and she makes a great object of affection. The rest of the cast fill out a pretty charming ensemble of characters.
Dan in Real Life mostly suffers from comparison. Other films in this vein have tighter scripts, or more to offer in terms of filmmaking. But it doesn’t mean that it’s a bad film. Dan in Real Life has its share of genuinely funny and heartfelt moments, and while it’s far from perfect, it’s an easy film to enjoy.
My Rating:
Do you agree with this rating? Submit your own.
Read User Reviews
I'm looking for Dan in Real Life.
PLDT Watchpad
