3/5 inauspicious but winning drama
  by Roland E. Zwick (Valencia, Ca USA)
***1/2

A low-budget comedy/drama set in and around the city of Pittsburgh, "Smart People" is so muted and laidback in its demeanor and tone that it practically borders on the innocuous. Yet, it is just that seeming banality that makes the movie work in the long run.

A pot-bellied Dennis Quaid plays a snarling, insensitive English Literature professor who`s pretty much gone to seed in both his personal and professional life, a character not too far removed from the one Michael Caine played in "Educating Rita." Lawrence Wetherhold is still so devastated by the death of his wife that he keeps all her clothes hanging in the bedroom closet as a sort of unholy shrine to the dearly departed woman. Needless to say, Lawrence hasn't made any great strides moving on with his life - until, that is, he strikes up a tentative romance with a physician and former student of his (Sarah Jessica Parker) who helps him to begin that too long delayed process of reconnecting himself to the world.

There's nothing particularly original or earth-shattering in this umpteenth tale of a burnt-out teacher finding a renewal of commitment and purpose in his profession, but writer Mark Poirier has provided enough in the way of ancillary details of character and plotting to at least keep matters interesting.

Ellen Page, for instance, plays Lawrence`s overly possessive daughter, Vanessa, a college-bound Young Republican who's more obsessed with earning a perfect score on her SATs than with establishing meaningful friendships with people her own age. Thomas Hayden Church portrays her adoptive Uncle Chuck, a black sheep wastrel who, in point of contrast, makes even Lawrence look like a paragon of togetherness and success. Yet, despite his own troubles and failings, Chuck is the one who tries to get his niece to loosen up a bit and finally start enjoying life.

Together these characters drift through life, making wry observations on their situations and relationships on their way to a happy ending.

There may be a few too many musical montage sequences for the movie's own good, but the expository scenes, as directed by Noam Murro and performed by the actors, nicely capture the unhurried rhythms and simple ironies of everyday life.

2/5 Lullaby
  by Bob Humbug
This is a really great 95 minute trailer for a movie I'd really like to watch sometime. Thomas Haden Church provides comic relief from the dire and unrelenting tension of the indie style acoustic guitar which comprises the bulk of this film. I suppose if you're a big fan of sentiments like 'Let sleeping dogs lie,' this movie might be right up your alley. I prefer cartoons.

3/5 Not what it was said to be...
  by S. Craig
I selected a new DVD for this purchase. When I got it in the mail the product was open, clearly used, and the package was even slightly damaged. I contacted the seller and she reimbursed me fully. I would have rather had the new product, but appreciated the refund.

3/5 Is this really the way smart people think of themselves?
  by John M. Martin (Aurora, Colorado United States)
Much as I admired Dennis Quaid's performance in this film, it bothers me that the director buys into the myth of "brain smart--heart stupid" so glibly--a decidedly anti-intellectual message. It's just another example of bigotry masquerading as comedy.

4/5 Smart People
  by Denise Novak (Los Angeles, CA USA)
This film took place where my son graduated college so that is why I bought it.