A fantastic movie!

Rating: Null/10 (29 December 2006)

In the tradition of Jim Carrey in The Truman Show, Will Ferrell, an actor know for his comedic talents makes the jump from comedy, to drama. He does a superb job and gives his best performance ever.
Stranger than Fiction is a movie about a man named Harold Crick (Will Ferrell). Harold Crick is an IRS auditor who lives a dull, solitary and deliberately predictable life that revolves around numbers. Little does he know that the only reason that he hasn't died is because a writer named Penny Escher (Emma Thompson) has writers block. She has been trying for ten years to find a way to kill Harold Crick. Harold is the main character in a book called Taxes and Death and somehow exists in the same world as the author. When he starts hearing a voice that narrates his life and foreshadows his future death he enlists the help of a literary professor named Jules Hilbert (Dustin Hoffman) to find out who the author is. In the meantime Hilbert suggests to Harold Crick that if his life his going to end he should make it the life he always wanted.
That suggestion is basically what the whole movie is about. Living each day like it was your last and getting the most out of life. It is exactly what Harold Crick attempts to do. Will Ferrell, in sharp contrast to his usual role as a crazy, obsessed and dimwitted character is now sensitive, interesting and dynamic. If he continues to star in roles like this one I would not be surprised if he got an academy award nomination. I had a lot of fun watching this movie and seeing how Will Ferrell matured as an actor.
On only a few occasions have I left the theater feeling so entertained. This movie was funny, exciting, emotional, uplifting, interesting, intriguing, touching and inspiring. It makes you laugh and think at the same time. All the performances are brilliant and powerful. The writing is flawless. There are parts where you will be on the edge of your seat and others where you will be basking in pure entertainment.
I highly recommend this film. Of all the movies I have seen this ranks near the top in terms of entertainment and enjoyment. It will give everyone who sees it something to talk and think about.
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