An unappreciated gem.

Rating: 9/10 (4 March 2017)

OMG what did I just watch? Not what I was expecting at all. This film has blown me away.
I love this concept. It's smart, it's clever and most definitely thought provoking. It's kinda a mediocre Kaufman screenplay, but hey, a mediocre Kaufman is still better than 99% of modern day screenplays.
Will Ferrell shakes his usual (not trying to sound pretentious here) simpler comedies to do what previously Jim Carrey did in Eternal Sunshine (a Kaufman you must definitely watch) and Adam Sandler in PTA's Punch Drunk Love to give a serious role full of emotion and masterful acting. I was blown away by how good his performance was. He hit all the emotional strings, his delivery was impeccable and you can't help but love him.
I think I particularly relate to Will Ferrell's Harold. He use to be obsessed with number and statistics (I spent time memorising Pi in the 100s of decimal places) but through a girl, a realisation and dreams, all me as well, (He listens to punk rock music as well!!) he comes to terms with death to live his life the way he wants and spread a bit of good in the world, which of course is the direction I want to take. Maybe the narration bit wasn't exactly me but oh well. \_(ツ)_/¯
The performances by Hoffman, Thomson and Gyllenhaal are all also great. No faults or complaints here.
The film hits the marks on all points in direction, storytelling, acting and emotional elevation, already making it better than most comedies and even films in America's recent cinematic history. So why not 5 stars? Well as aforementioned it's a mediocre Kaufman so not quite the level of perfection to earn it full stars, but I felt the third act was a minor (very minor) letdown compared to the first two. Don't get me wrong I still love it. It's still full of the cynicism, optimism, humour and care the first two had, but for a third act it didn't have quite the impact I expected given the build up. A minor and tiny nitpick but enough to cost it full marks.
Definitely check it out, it's worth it 100%. Expect laughs, good acting and clever and thought provoking ideas and messages given through 2 hours of emotion and great imagery.