Stranger Than Fiction
Actor(s):
Will Ferrell, Queen Latifah, Peter Grosz, Ricky Adams, Christian Stolte
Director(s):
Marc Forster
Label: Sony Pictures
Publisher(s):
Sony Pictures
Studio: Sony Pictures
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
Binding: DVD
Brand: Sony
MPN: COLD15407D
Format(s): AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
List Price: $14.94
Our Price: $10.49
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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Editorial Reviews
Product Description
An irs auditor suddenly finds himself the subject of narration only he can hear: narration that begins to affect his entire life from his work to his love-interest to his death. Studio: Sony Pictures Home Ent Release Date: 07/22/2008 Starring: Will Ferrell Maggie Gyllenhaal Run time: 113 minutes Rating: Pg13
Amazon.com
Much was written about Will Ferrell's first "dramatic role" as Harold Crick, an IRS auditor who begins hearing a voice narrating his life. But Stranger Than Fiction is hardly a drama. However, what Ferrell does--like Jim Carrey before him in The Truman Show--is handle a toned-down character with genuineness and affection: you believe he is this guy. Crick leads a lonely life filled with numbers and routines. While at first he considers the voice a nuisance, Crick decides more action is needed when it speaks of "his demise." Enter Professor Jules Hilbert (Dustin Hoffman), who takes on the absurd notion with revelry, trying to find out what kind of book Crick's life is leading. It turns out that the voice Crick is hearing belongs to Kay Eiffel (Emma Thompson), a very real--and troubled--author who is writing a book in which Crick is a fictional character. As usual with these things, the stuffed shirt learns to live a better life--Crick even falls for one of his audits, a brash baker named Ana (Maggie Gyllenhaal). Marc Foster (Monster's Ball, Finding Neverland) has the right tone for the film, using great urban scenes (the unnamed city is Chicago) with interesting visualizations of Crick's world of numbers. He also directs Ferrell, Hoffman, and Gyllenhaal to their most charming performances (plus Linda Hunt and Tom Hulce pop up in two funny scenes). Ferrell succeeds in being a romantic lead you can root for; a scene where he eats Ana's freshly baked cookies is totally delightful without a hint of sarcasm. Screenwriter Zach Helm has two personal traits with his story: like Crick he followed his heart (he stopped rewriting scripts and only worked on his own) and like Eiffel, the final results are not a masterpiece, but good, and entertaining enough. Britt Daniel of the band Spoon worked on the dynamite soundtrack.--Doug Thomas
Extras from Stranger Than Fiction
 "Counting Brush Strokes," A featurette on the filming of Stranger Than Fictionhigh bandwidth |  Tax Man!: A clip from the film high bandwidth |  Queen Latifah on working with Emma Thompson high bandwidth |
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Beyond Stranger Than Fiction on Amazon.com
 Comic Actors Go Dramatic |  CD Soundtrack |  Emma Thompson Essentials |
Customer Reviews
Liked Ferrell here, he's not over the top
This is certainly outside of the usuall Ferrell film. He usually plays a child man with over the top acting. It can work for a slapstick comedy but this is a much more complex layered movie. Ferrell plays an IRS agent who's life is being manipulated by an author, played by Thompson. The movie is touching, funny and romatic, none of which I expected with Ferrell in the lead role. The acting all around is great and the movie is unpredictible. It is a truly a relief to see originality rather than a paints by the number comedy.
Love this movie!
Great movie. Wonderful premise, exceptionally well-written. One of the smartest romantic comedies I've ever seen. This is one of those movies that makes you feel smart if you get it, in part because all of the characters are smart (all of them are named after engineers or mathematicians). It's a calm movie, but not slow - every minute is interesting. It has one of my favorite quotes of all time:
Dustin Hoffman: "Let's start at ridiculous and move backwards."
And the perfect cast is just top-notch. Emma Thompson and Queen Latifah play off each other brilliantly, as do Will Ferrell and Maggie Gyllenhaal. And Dustin Hoffman, of course, is always a pleasure to watch.
Such a sweet, intelligent film.
Will Farrell (Harold Crick) shines, as the terribly OCD IRS agent, in this thoughtful film about grabbing life by the horns, verses succumbing to remaining an invisible spectator, one destined to---count tiles, steps, how many ounces are left in the soap dispensers, the strokes of the toothbrush, etc. The rigidity of this man's life and daily routines command empathy.
Suddenly, Harold begins to hear voices. Some feel it is a schizophrenic break, but he feels it is something more...something deeper, regarding his very destiny. Could he be living the life of a fantasy character of someone else? A full life he's never ever been able to create himself? He's terribly agitated by the voices, but more so, when he hears that he is about to be terminated. It is in this revelation, that he finally learns to become a man, face his fears, and remove the boundaries that have always surrounded him. In doing so, Maggie Gyllenhal's rebellious, tax evading character, with a fair share of tattoos, enters the picture. The unlikely relationship that evolves between them is, simply adorable. He is left to wonder, though, whether their relationship will play out as 'a comedy,' or 'a tragedy,' as someone else is writing his script, which is accelerating beyond his control.
You become a serious fan of Harold Crick and the developing relationship with the tattooed baker; this lonely guy who has never even had a homemade cookie. But, destiny plays a large part of this film. Will he be saved by the author, or become the unlikely, martyred hero? You'll have a very enjoyable time finding out. By the end of the film, you are so drawn in, you are willing to accept Harold's fate---wherever it may take him. The good, or the bad of it, this is the first taste of real life Harold Crick has ever experienced.
Emma Thompson's character, as the author with writer's block, is brilliant. She appears on the verge of madness, herself, as she plots and schemes different ways to off her chief protagonist, Harold.
This is simply a lovely film, one that we talked about at dinner the next evening, because it left a significant imprint. Do give it some time. In the beginning, it seems rather silly, but it is like a fine wine...let it breath a little, to come to life.
An Interesting Look Into The Art Of Living
With the focus firmly on character development, director Marc Forster pushes actor Will Ferrell to a solid performance that is clearly outside his comfort zone of slapstick comedy.
As IRS auditor Harold Crick, Ferrell is caught in a web of living a life that is being written by author Kay Eiffel (Emma Thompson) that will end in Crick's death. Literature professor Jules Hilbert (Dustin Hoffman) helps Crick put the jigsaw pieces together on why he is hearing in his mind a "narration" of his life as it happens.
A morality play on life, art and romance, it is an interesting look into living each day to its fullest and ultimately striving to do the right thing in every situation, even if some would believe it is just life imitating art.
Fantastic
I was pleasantly surspised by this movie! Will Ferell did a wonderful job. He was shickingly serious but still commical. I had heard about this movie from varous people and my friend happened to have it and I watched and now I'm in love with this movie. Maggie Gyllenhal does a great job in this as well. Great movie!
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