# Wonder Boys (2000)

### reviewed by
Akiva Gottlieb

    Wonder Boys
    rated R
    112 minutes
    Paramount Pictures
    Starring Michael Douglas, Tobey Maguire, Frances McDormand, Katie Holmes,
    Rip Torn, Robert Downey Jr.
    Based on the novel by Michael Chabon
    Written by Steve Kloves
    Directed by Curtis Hanson
    A Review by Akiva Gottlieb

In the next book written about cinematic voyeurism, a chapter must be dedicated to the most sickeningly self-indulgent plot point of them all: meet your character on the worst day of his life. With `Wonder Boys', writer Steve Kloves (`Fabulous Baker Boys') and director Curtis Hanson (`L.A. Confidential') have used the infamous setup as a platform for an offbeat, entertaining film that features a wonderfully deadpan comic tone.

Our protagonist, Grady Tripp (Michael Douglas), is a drug-addled Pittsburgh writing professor with a lot on his mind. Firstly, there's his love life. His wife has just left him, and his affair with the school chancellor (Frances McDormand) has turned into an unwanted pregnancy. Now he finds himself pressured into the hardest act for a middle-aged man: commitment.

Then, there's his literary life. It's been seven years since Grady's masterpiece `The Arsonist's Daughter', and he hasn't written a novel since. This turns out to be a crucial problem since Grady's literary editor, the smarmy homosexual Terry Crabtree (Robert Downey, Jr.), is in town for the university's annual Word Fest. As we soon learn, Grady has used these past seven years to work on an untitled, 2000+ page magnum opus, which involves `horse genealogies' and `dental records' In other words, things can't get much worse for Prof. Grady Tripp.

That evening, Prof. Tripp attends the Word Fest opening reception, held at the home of Sara Gaskell, the aforementioned pregnant chancellor. While the professor snoops upstairs, he is attacked by the Gaskell's beloved blind dog, who is then shot to death by James Leer (Tobey Maguire), a bizarre student of Prof. Tripp. A few minutes later, Grady and James are fleeing the scene in a car with a dead dog and a transvestite's tuba (don't ask).

Like `American Beauty', `Wonder Boys' is a black comedy about a mid-life crisis, and the success of this kind of film often rides on the viewer's belief in the protagonist's suffering. Michael Douglas' role in the film is as difficult as Kevin Spacey's role in the superb `Beauty'. Douglas' character is so apathetic to suffering that, on paper, a few of his responses would be truly unbelievable. But Douglas brings such soul to the role that he makes Grady Tripp come alive; turning us on to his character without adding sentiment. In `Wonder Boys', Michael Douglas gives a performance that is likable and genuine, and in a perfect world, where even February films could compete for the Oscars (imagine that), he would be in the running for an acting award. After years of playing nothing but slimy rich guys, Douglas has finally come into his own.

`Wonder Boys' also features a superb supporting cast which includes Katie Holmes (`Teaching Mrs. Tingle'), Academy Award Winner Frances McDormand (`Fargo') and the incarcerated but unstoppable Robert Downey Jr. (`Less Than Zero'). However, the kudos must go to Tobey Maguire (young star of `The Cider House Rules' and `Pleasantville'), who showcases some nice chemistry with Michael Douglas.

Curtis Hanson's `Wonder Boys' is a worthy follow up to his classic corrupt cop saga `L.A. Confidential'. The two films couldn't be more different in tone and manner, yet Hanson's swift hand gives each its own distinct flavor. Cinematographer Dante Spinotti, who also worked on `L.A. Confidential' (as well as `The Insider'), sometimes uses a hand-held camera, which gives the picture a life-like quality. Bob Dylan has also recorded a new song for the film; his first new music since his Grammy winning `Time Out Of Mind' album.

`Wonder Boys' is, of course, not without its flaws. The dialogue is often bogged down by intrusive voice-over narration, and a couple awkward scenes towards the end fall flat. Also, the interesting title is never explained, and I believe it was lost in the translation from book to film.

But `Wonder Boys' real problem has nothing to do with the film itself. It is Paramount's marketing strategy, which has been noticeably weak for such a strong film. The poster and trailer are each dull as dirt, not giving a clue as to what the film is about. So `Wonder Boys', a well-written film about writers, will have to get by on the sheer power of word-of-mouth. See `Wonder Boys', enjoy it, pass it on.

B+ Akiva Gottlieb Critical66@yahoo.com http://pictureshow.8m.com

    ---------------------------------
    Do You Yahoo!?
    Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger.

The review above was posted to the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due to ASCII to HTML conversion.

Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews