Original movie about literature and what makes life worth living

Rating: 10/10 (5 April 2012)

Stranger Than Fiction is a different sort of movie. It's a comedy/drama/romance that questions the lines of fiction and non-fiction, without using the cliché "fourth wall" tactics. It answers a question many writers have often wondered, "what if my characters where real?"
Karen Eiffel (Emma Thompson) is a struggling author who is working on a new book chronicling the life of a man called Harold Crick (Will Ferrell). Harold is a rather boring IRS agent who lives a very strict, regimented life without much recreation or friends. Eiffel believes that Harold is her own creation, but he is in fact a real person—who has begun hearing her narrating his life! Believing he is losing his mind, Harold seeks out help from a literature professor Dr. Hilbert (Dustin Hoffman) in hopes he will tell him what book he is in. Meanwhile, with the help of her witty assistant Penny (Queen Latifah) Eiffel is trying to figure out how to end her book with Harold's death . Harold tries to live as normally as he can, but Karen has other plans for him, as he suddenly finds himself falling for anarchist baker Ana (Maggie Gyllenhaal) who he was sent to audit. Dr. Hilbert discovers Eiffel is the author of Harold's story and breaks the bad news to him that she is a tragedy writer, and all of her protagonists die. Harold then tries to find the author and convince her to let him live.
This is one of those movies that manages laughs and a warm fuzzy feeling without feeling sappy. The characters are different and quite memorable. This is one of the only movies, if not THE only movie I enjoy Will Ferrell's acting. In Stranger Than Fiction he is not shouting for no reason or engaging in immature slapstick. This film has more intellectual, dry humor. The romance is sweet and flows well, and the conflict for Harold's life will keep the audience wondering and hoping. I also liked the chemistry and funny interactions between Karen and her assistant Penny. It's a good story that talks about what the real meaningful things in life are. A great film.