Movie Information
Overall Rank: 11026
Average Rating: 2.4/4
# of Ratings: 42
Theatrical Release Date: 04/11/2008
Language: English
Genre: Comedy, Romance
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Noam Murro
Actors: Dennis Quaid, Thomas Haden Church, Sarah Jessica Parker, Ellen Page, Ashton Holmes, Camille Mana
Plot: An uptight, selfish professor takes out his life's lessons and pains on his students, daughter and family until he meets an ER doctor who seems to have what he is looking for. Just when it seems he may be able to turn his life around, his adopted brother shows up to try to shake up the family even more.
Quick Movie Reviews
Rating of
1.5/4
pixienerd487 - wrote on 04/25/2009
If you're looking for a movie about dysfunctional families, skip this one and rent The Darjeeling Limited instead. At least that one has great locations and scenery.
Rating of
0.5/4
Tia Maria - wrote on 01/20/2009
This movie was terrible. It tried too hard to be something it's not, and it just missed the mark. The acting was terrible, the storyline was dull, and everything was contrived.
Rating of
2.5/4
Allison - wrote on 09/16/2008
A comedy that’s too sophisticated for its own good, lacking any kind of emotion that the audience can attach itself to. It missed its mark and yet it was moderately entertaining. Had a good cast and sufficient direction.
Full Movie Reviews
Rating of
2.5/4
Decent enough movie and worth the watch.
filmfan09 - wrote on 02/14/2009
It's a decent enough movie and worth the watch. The solid performances make the film likable and the story is interesting to watch, while it's not something that everyone can relate too, it's a good movie.
Dennis Quaid looked and acted precisely like the crusty English professor he was meant to be, Ellen Page was the smart daughter who protects her widowed father while attempting to fill her mother's shoes in running the household, at the expense of her own happiness, and Thomas Haden Church was an unexpected star as Quaid's adopted brother. Add to this mix Sara Jessica Parker as a Doctor, she & Dennis become involved with each other.
It is not a happy tale about people,but is fairly realistic in various relationships, & troubled family problems. The story line was thin and a …
Rating of
3/4
Nice Message Regarding Emotional Intelligence
Franz Patrick - wrote on 10/19/2008
Even though I’ve seen this kind of movie before, I still really liked it because it had a good balance between comedy and drama. Not only is it about family dynamics, it’s also about relationships outside the home (or lack thereof). In the middle of the film, I realized the greatness of its title. Yes, most of the characters are smart academic-wise but some of them lack emotional intelligence, which makes it harder for them to be liked by others. Dennis Quaid is great as a professor and a father who not only wants to get his book published but also become the head of the English department. Quaid is often very elegant and I think he truly shines. A lot of people claim that Ellen Page plays the same role as a blend between quirky and too smart for her own good. I disagree because her …
Rating of
2.5/4
Single Daddy Double-Feature
kcvidkid - wrote on 04/30/2008
Within a couple of days last weekend, I unintentionally saw two different movies with the similar theme of a single father trying to recreate his life several years after his wife's death. Such a coincidence probably caused my to think more harshly about the first, "Smart People", and more favorably about the second, "Dan in Real Life".
I love the idea of a movie that mocks the self-obsessed, book-smart people who don't have an ounce of common sense. But "Smart People" has only one or two moments where the issue is brought to the forefront. For example, Sarah Jessica Parker M.D. says about her relationship with Dennis Quaid, "We're smart people; we'll figure it out." Either that wasn't really supposed to be the focus of the movie, or it was so poorly constructed that it took this …
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