Movie of the Week

Movie of the Week (Indiana Statesman)

By Lowell Torres

"Stranger Than Fiction" is not what one expects from a Will Ferrell vehicle. Ferrell has become well known for his outrageous and silly characters, like Ricky Bobby in "Talladega Nights," Ron Burgundy in "Anchorman" and Frank "The Tank" in "Old School," but he takes a completely different approach in this film, which comes out on DVD tomorrow.
Ferrell plays Harold Crick, an IRS agent with a fascination for numbers. He counts the number of times he brushes each tooth, counts the time it takes to reach his bus stop by running at an exact pace and can multiply numbers in the thousands in his head. He lives a very normal, if slightly lonely, life. Then his solitude comes to a halt one morning when he begins to hear the voice of a British woman narrating his life.
At first, Harold thinks he's going crazy, except the voice is correct in all she says about him, and accurately states what he is going to do as well as what he's done. It's annoying at first, and then distracting, and eventually leads to a breakdown. Then one day, while waiting for the bus, Harold hears the narrator speak of his imminent death.
What Harold doesn't know is that acclaimed author Karen Eiffel (Emma Thompson) is writing a novel, about him. Eiffel is a neurotic chain smoker who is fascinated by death, and in each of her novels the hero dies.
She has a problem in that she doesn't know how to kill Harold Crick. Her publishing company sends her an assistant (Queen Latifah) to help finish her novel. Or as Eiffel puts it, to help her kill Harold Crick.
The cast is rounded out with Dustin Hoffman, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Tony Hale.
As said earlier, those looking for an outrageous Ferrell characterization will be disappointed. For one of the few times in his career, Ferrell plays the straight man while those around him are the oddballs.
"Stranger Than Fiction" is a black comedy that doesn't take itself too seriously. It tells the story in a way that makes you want to keep watching, and delivers laughs in a variety of ways while dealing with Harold's impending death. As a result, it's not just a funny movie; it's a good movie.