Album Review: Mc Breed

Paramount Pictures
Starring: Michael Douglas, Tobey Maguire
Rated: R
Release Date: February 25th

D

By Kunal Mishra
Daily Cougar Staff

The director of the film noir L.A. Confidential, Curtis Hanson, is releasing a new dark comedy based on a novel by Michael Chabon. Steve Kloves provided the screenplay adaptation.

Wonder Boys centers around the relationship between a professor (Michael Douglas) and his gifted student James (Tobey Maguire). Professor Grady Tripp is a literature professor in Pittsburgh who is struggling to write a follow up to his critically acclaimed first novel.

He is surrounded by issues that confront him during a literary festival called Wordfest at his university. Professor Tripp has a personal dilemma with his love interest, who happens to be the wife of the chancellor, Sara Gaskell (Frances McDormand). On the other hand, his publicist, Terry Crabtree (Robert Downey Jr.), and a popular writer, Q (Rip Torn), are lingering reminders of his writing career.

Sara is pregnant with Tripp's baby. He cares for her, but his wife recently left him and he still harbors wounds from the breakup.

Crabtree is relying on the professor for his own career to be resuscitated in New York City.

Q, the keynote speaker at Wordfest, is at a successful point in his career.

After James kills Chancellor Gaskell's (Richard Thomas) dog and steals Marilyn Monroe's jacket from their house during a party, the professor gets to spend time with his standout pupil.

Through unusual circumstances the two become an influence on each other. James is also working on finishing a novel. They engage in conversations and situations that are, for the most part, drivel.

Wonder Boys is not a dark comedy that has subtle humor, but rather is an aimless and lackadaisical film that contains uninspired comedy.

I would have left halfway through the movie if I haven't needed to review it.

Michael Douglas and Robert Downey Jr. are great actors, but they wasted their talent on this film.

Douglas' acting is the only redeemable thing Wonder Boys. Downey Jr. has a role that is limited in scope and Maguire appears detached and emotionless from a role that has a unique personality.

It is pretty sad when a movie has to use a dead dog as a key element in its humor. I found myself waiting for the end.