Wonderful and witty!

Rating: 9/10 (9 May 2007)

"The Truman Show" meets "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" in this slightly less perfect, but still intelligent and heartwarming film.
Unpredictable to the point of suspenseful this entertaining movie blends black comedy, romance, mystery, and literary thriller with almost seamless precision.
Will Ferrell manages to rein in his usual manic exuberance (for the most part) to portray the mundane and scheduled Harold Crick before sliding expertly into confused and powerless and finally acquiescent and uncomplaining. The on-screen chemistry between Harold and law-school-drop-out-turned-baker Ana (brilliantly played by Maggie Gyllenhaal) is fun and believable.
Queen Latifah proves once again her uncanny ability to steal scenes like a leading actress while supporting the hell out of Emma Thompson's frustrated, mentally drained Karen Eiffel.
The weak link in the cast, since there has to be one, is Dustin Hoffman. His Dr. Hilbert, who you immediately forget when he's not right in front of you, did not pull off "deep" or "esoteric" and was just generally annoying.
My favorite moment from the movie was easily when Harold arrives at "The Uprising" at closing time to bear his heart (or at least his libido) to Ana. And what does he bring her? Flours. It doesn't get much more perfect than that.
All in all it was clever, fun, and kept me guessing until the last frame which is always a plus. Sure there were lines and scenes that could have been better, leaving my husband to make the astute statement that the film would have been flawless had it been written by Charlie Kaufman, but it was a lovely little movie and it certainly made my weekend.
:)