Sundance. Smart People.

"Smart People takes two frequent cinematic stand-bys, the dead spouse movie and the fractured family film, and manages to execute both of them with no small amount of skill," counters James Rocchi at Cinematical. "Unlike PS I Love You or Dan in Real Life, the loss of Lawrence's wife is neither operatically omnipresent or glossed over; it's just always there, always sad, always real. And unlike Little Miss Sunshine or many other 'dysfunctional family' films, Smart People isn't slathered with wacky, zany characters. Everyone onscreen is human, and the film's full of small, deft character touches that feel unforced." And he talks talks with Dennis Quaid, Sarah Jessica Parker and Thomas Haden Church.

"Here's another indie that feels like it's been workshopped into inertness, featuring a cast of famous faces who seem to be quietly congratulating themselves for appearing in a movie that 'really says something,' even though it's only speaking to a rarified circle of Hollywood types who confuse clichés with meaning," writes the AV Club's Noel Murray.

IndieWIRE interviews Murro.

Online listening tip. For Cinematical, James Rocchi talks with Quaid, Parker and Church.

Posted by dwhudson at February 2, 2008 1:28 PM