Film Review: Stranger Than Fiction

(note: This includes minor spoilers for the film. If you want to be surprised, don't read it.)

It's been quite a while since I've seen a film in an actual theater. Months, actually. Not that I haven't been watching movies: I average about three a week, but they aren't current movies and the screening room for the Film Department is a tad pathetic.

But I had to go see Stranger Than Fiction this past weekend for one key reason: Tony Hale. I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm still hung up on Arrested Development. It was TV gold; there are scenes from that series that are still funny to me when I think about them. So if anyone from the cast is going to be in a movie, I'll probably find some way to see it.

Not that there aren't any other big names in the cast: Will Ferrell, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Queen Latifah, Dustin Hoffman, and Emma Thompson all provide very valid reasons for showing up, and they're all fantastic in this movie. And, you know, if you're a Will Ferrell fan, you should definitely check it out, since he finally gets a chance to show a more serious acting style, but if you aren't--he gets hit by a bus. It's a win-win.

I'll admit, the ending is a little lacking compared to the rest of the film, and I wasn't too keen on the Will Ferrell/Maggie Gyllenhaal romance aspect (he's ten years older than she is, and neither of them are old enough for the age difference to be less disturbing), but overall the movie succeeds in presenting a wide variety of humor and a dramatic plot without being cliche. There could have been more action, I suppose, but it's more of a character-driven plot--if you're looking for explosions, you're not going to be pleased.

Go to see Will Ferrell get hit by a bus, stay for Tony Hale. Or vice versa--whichever is more appealing for you. But go see it anyway. It's totally worth it.