DAN IN REAL LIFE

"You are a murderer of Love!"

Dan Burns (Carell) offers advice to the readers of is newspaper column on how to deal with there real life issues but the problem is that is never really takes his own advice. After losing his wife four years earlier, he has been bringing up his three daughters Jane (Pill), Cara (Robertson) and Lilly (Lawston) on his own but at his family's annual get together he meets a woman he thinks he can finally connect with and let into his life. Marie (Binoche) is perfect and the two connect instantly in the local bookstore but when Dan returns to the family home, his brother Mitch (Cook) introduces the Burn's family to his new girlfriend who just happens to be Marie.

Starting to date again after losing a loved one has been the essence of many a comedy drama of the years but can 'Dan in Real Life' evoke emotion and laughter at the same time?

Co-writer/director Peter Hedges, who most famously adapted Nick Hornby's 'About a Boy' and made a splash with 'Pieces of April', brings us a family comedy drama that is both touching and funny. The widower bringing up his three girls after the death of his wife, who sacrifices his own future happiness to be a father is a plot device used in many a comedic drama. When you add in a large family who love to interfere with his life because they want him to be happy, you might think that 'Dan in Real Life' seems a little cliched but there is a lot to enjoy here.

The main reason for the enjoyment is the cast. Leading the line is Steve Carell, who successfully juggles a TV career in the American version of 'The Office' and a film career but it is his film choices that are quickly making a real star around the world. After appearing in both commercial and critical hits like 'The 40 Year-Old Virgin', 'Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy', 'Over the Hedge' and 'Little Miss Sunshine' but with a small blip in 'Evan Almighty', Carell returns to a smaller, character driven piece that showcases his talent as an everyman that most people can connect with or feel for. As Dan Burns, a widower of four years who contemplates making a connection with a woman after a chance meeting in a bookstore only to discover that she is his brother's new girlfriend, Carell shows a tender side to his acting skills, proving again, like he did in 'Little Miss Sunshine', he can be just as good a dramatic actor as he is a comedic one.

The rest of the cast is also very good. Juliette Binoche shines as the lovable Marie, Dan's brother's new girlfriend who the family and Dan's girls adore, making it even harder for him to stop liking her. Binoche is as charming as ever, making it easy to understand why Dan falls for her and she shows that she can also work will in a more comedic role than she is used to. Dan Cook continues to make a movie career for himself but his character of the family hunk and womaniser Mitch, makes it hard for you to believe he would fall for a woman who is almost ten years older than him. Dianne Wiest and John Mahoney are perfectly cast as the heads of the Burns family but it would have been great if they had been more involved. Alison Pill, Brittany Robertson and Marlene Lawston are also very good as Dan's daughters, each with their own problems and reactions to his fathering skills.

'Dan in Real Life' is a charming, feel good comedy drama that makes you smile throughout and has some genuine laugh out loud moments. With good performances and a story that makes you care about the outcome, even though you will have an inkling of what the ending will be, this is a feel good movie that you cannot help but enjoy.

Not Available

Little Miss Sunshine

---

The Usher Home | Hush, Hush... | The Big Story | The Usher Speaks

Stuck @ Home | Coming Soon | Links | Contact the Usher

2008