Friday, April 19, 2013

1831 - Ruby Sparks


I was so happy to see that this was on netflix, especially since revisiting the directors first feature (Little Miss Sunshine) just the other day.  First off, I love magic-realism, and when you pair it with a love story then you've got me hook-line-and-sinker.  This is the story of a child prodigy, who wrote an amazing book in his teens and has been coasting for the last decade.  He has a dream about a fantasy girl, writes about her in great detail and then wakes one more to discover that he's manifested her.  She's exactly as he described her... and... when things in their relationship move past the honeymoon phase and start to get real - he can change her into whatever he wants her to be.
I won't give away a tidbit more because it's truly the kind of story you just want to experience all for yourself.  I was impressed to learn that the title character of Ruby, played by Zoie Kazan, was also the film's writer.  It's a beautiful, smart, tender ride.  It's for everyone whose ever been frustrated in a relationship and wished they could just push a magic button and fix the problems without having to dig deep into them - however life is messier than that - as our hero soon will learn.
This is a little gem of a film, and like I mentioned, it's on netflix, so no excuse.  Dano and Kazan are pretty magical together.  Chris Messina has a great part as the brother - and Antonio Bandaras and Annette Benning steal the show as Dano and Messina's mother and (step-father?).  If you loved films like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Stranger Than Fiction, than this is right up your alley.

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