for many people , procrastination is n't a problem to overcome , it 's a high art .
we 'll do just about anything to put off a task .
when the deadline for this column nears , it 's the only time during the week dishes get washed and the bed made and laundry done and
plants watered and . . .
eventually , hopefully , sometimes , there 's a breakthrough
and we actually get down to work .
amazingly it 's almost always easier than we dreaded and
after finishing , that sense of oppressive apprehension melts away .
and then , the next time , we do it all again .
english professor grady tripp ( michael douglas ) is a master .
seven years ago , his first book was a hit .
he 's been working on his second -- a short 200-page piece -- since then .
fearful that he ca n't live up to the first , he ca n't bring himself to finish it .
no writer 's block , he 's nearing 3 , 000 pages with no end in sight .
now he 's having a particularly difficult day .
the college 's annual writers conference is bringing in accomplished novelists reminding tripp that other people are finishing _ their _ books .
during the first day , his wife has left him , his married girlfriend informs him
she 's pregnant and his agent is in town with a six - foot transvestite in tow .
by the evening , our besieged writer is driving though the snow - covered streets of pittsburgh with a suicidal student beside him , a stolen jacket that marilyn monroe wore on her wedding day in the back seat and a murdered blind dog stuffed in the trunk .
this could be a pivotal point in his mid - life crisis .
and then there 's the next morning .
there 's a lot to like about this movie .
there are no huge explosions , shattering glass or computer - generated dinosaurs to distract from the very real human issues .
grady is caught up in the curse of people who accomplish great things early in their career .
in the world of " what have you done for me lately ?
" , he knows his second book has to be better than his first . instead of finding out , he drifts , comfortable in the insular cocoon of academic peter panhood .
he does n't have much of a life and neither does his star pupil james leer ( tobey maguire ) .
james may be suicidal and psychotic .
certainly everything that comes out of his mouth is a lie .
he makes up a past of working clash anguish because the truth of wealth and comfort just is n't interesting enough .
as the weekend progresses , they are both forced to fully engage life .
that 's the question they must face : comfort or real experiences ?
the film takes some interesting chances .
non - traditional relationships are presented as matter - of - fact .
extra - marital , gay , interracial , professor - student : here they are n't judged , merely choices .
the actors are all first - rate .
douglas triumphs , playing against type as he spends most of his time disheveled , unshaven and clad in a pink women 's house robe .
maguire 's disengaged alienation works perfectly here .
robert downey jr .
as grady 's agent livens up his scenes .
director curtis hanson (
" l . a . confidential " ) makes a few missteps .
the women are underused .
frances mcdormand does a good job of her limited role of sara , grady 's married lover
but we never understand much of who she is .
the chemistry between the two of them is non - existent which makes some of the ending unconvincing .
katie holmes is a student with a major crush on the professor , but her character goes nowhere .
we never even see grady 's exiting wife .
this is very much a guy 's film .
the varied relationships between the men are much more convincing than any of the others .
grady 's alternating mentoring and rejection of james is the centerpoint of the film , not him and sara .
as the boomers age , expect to see more mid - life crisis films to catch the attention of that demographic .
eventually it 'll probably become cliche , but right now
we 've got a winner .
i 'll finish this in a second .
right now i have to grab some paint .
i noticed some trim in the other room that needs a little touch - up .
( michael redman has written this column for so long that he 's made mid - life crisis a career choice . )
there 's a lot to like about this movie the actors are all first - rate works perfectly here triumphs we 've got a winner does a good job livens up his scenes