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A whole lot of words to say nothing
Source: Agencies |
September 9, 2012, Sunday
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Print Edition
FOR a movie about writing, about the transporting nature of a compelling narrative and the importance of crafting something timeless and true, "The Words" is needlessly complicated.
It boasts an impressive cast and some glimmers of strong performances, notably from a grizzled Jeremy Irons, whose character sets the film's many stories-within-stories in motion as a young man. But ultimately, "The Words" seems more interested in melodrama than anything else.
The writing-directing team of Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal (who co-wrote the story for "Tron: Legacy" and are childhood friends of star Bradley Cooper) direct for the first time here. Certainly they must be familiar with the doubts and frustrations all writers face at some time or another, the need to have your voice heard and the fear that what you're offering to the world might just plain suck. But while they've come up with a clever nugget of a premise, they've couched it in a gimmicky package that keeps us at arm's length emotionally.
"The Words" begins with celebrated writer Clay Hammond (Dennis Quaid) reading excerpts from his latest best-selling novel (titled "The Words," conveniently enough) to an enraptured crowd. Among the audience members is the beautiful grad student Daniella (Olivia Wilde), who has come to flirt with him and force him to face his own truth.
As Clay begins to read, the film flashes to the characters in the book and their story, which is probably where the film should have started all along. Cooper plays Rory Jansen, who also happens to be a celebrated writer appearing before an enraptured crowd. Rory is receiving a prestigious award for his debut novel, the one that made him an instant literary sensation. Trouble is, he didn't actually write it.
"The Words" leaves nothing to the imagination, smothering the storylines in narration that spells out the actions we're seeing or emotions we could infer for ourselves. And the characters themselves are total clichés. In the end, the fewer words said about this film the better.
It boasts an impressive cast and some glimmers of strong performances, notably from a grizzled Jeremy Irons, whose character sets the film's many stories-within-stories in motion as a young man. But ultimately, "The Words" seems more interested in melodrama than anything else.
The writing-directing team of Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal (who co-wrote the story for "Tron: Legacy" and are childhood friends of star Bradley Cooper) direct for the first time here. Certainly they must be familiar with the doubts and frustrations all writers face at some time or another, the need to have your voice heard and the fear that what you're offering to the world might just plain suck. But while they've come up with a clever nugget of a premise, they've couched it in a gimmicky package that keeps us at arm's length emotionally.
"The Words" begins with celebrated writer Clay Hammond (Dennis Quaid) reading excerpts from his latest best-selling novel (titled "The Words," conveniently enough) to an enraptured crowd. Among the audience members is the beautiful grad student Daniella (Olivia Wilde), who has come to flirt with him and force him to face his own truth.
As Clay begins to read, the film flashes to the characters in the book and their story, which is probably where the film should have started all along. Cooper plays Rory Jansen, who also happens to be a celebrated writer appearing before an enraptured crowd. Rory is receiving a prestigious award for his debut novel, the one that made him an instant literary sensation. Trouble is, he didn't actually write it.
"The Words" leaves nothing to the imagination, smothering the storylines in narration that spells out the actions we're seeing or emotions we could infer for ourselves. And the characters themselves are total clichés. In the end, the fewer words said about this film the better.
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