The Answer Man - C

In limited theatrical release today. Premiered on HDNET on 7/22.

Arlen Faber (Jeff Daniels) wrote Me and God in which he claimed to have direct communication with the Almighty. His book became a cultural milestone. But with the book's 20 year anniversary coming up, Faber has become withdrawn, reclusive, belligerent, and intolerable. He gets an opportunity to engage in life with 2 chance encounters: one with Elizabeth, a single mom chiropractor (Lauren Graham) and the other with Kris Lucas, an alcoholic bookstore owner (Lou Taylor Pucci). The movie catches fire for several scenes in the middle when Faber answers questions from Lucas about the meaning of life and gives him advice. Faber's relationship with Elizabeth's son has similar appeal, especially when he describes what he loves about kids.

But while first-time writer John Hindman has some pretty good insightful dialogue and structures the film soundly (if a bit predictably), first-time director John Hindman can't keep a handle on the wildly shifting moods and scene transitions. The great cast was obviously attracted by a script written by someone who's read alot of self help books (like The Love Guru) and as someone who's never read any, some of the "answers" and insights were borderline profound, but as Faber gets ready to give his last speech, the script (thus, the film) falls incredibly flat.

Daniels carries the film well and has pretty good chemistry with Graham. But Pucci's apperance (facial hair, piercings) are too distracting - he seems to be a good enough actor to portray the character's troubles without all the props and gimmicks. Tony Hale (Buster Bluth) and Nora Dunn provide some great supporting work. All in all, a mixed bag - a good script brought down by too much slapstick, bad visual jokes, and so-so editing.