An Invisible Sign (2010) User Reviews

life isn't numbers

[cekadah · 5/10 · 21 April 2013]

i will have to cast my vote with the crowd disappointed with this movie. i just couldn't figure out where this story was going. Alba has too many issues. The Simmons character is sort of mysterious and odd (who would leave their store unlocked and just go home). The boy friend is sort of mean. And on and on I could go ....

The message I got out of this story is that life cannot be understood or explained via a mathematical equation and words do hurt people. But who doesn't already know this? The movie is way too complex just for this simple message. And (in my opinion) the ending has nothing to do with what happens throughout the entire film. Alba is confused and alone then suddenly she give into the Messina characters advances - which she avoided all along.

I want to like this movie but i can't.

The precise moment I knew I didn't like this film....

[francishooks · 5/10 · 24 May 2011]

Jessica Alba's character and cut-price Mark Ruffallo tribute act guy are at the movies. They're both talking over the film being "kooky" and "charming".

Some guy behind them asks them to stop talking. Ruffalo-lite tells him to get another seat, throws popcorn at him and then nearly starts a fight with him.

I mean, c'mon! Do they honestly think that movie fans watching the film are gonna warm to that kind of a-holeish behaviour?! Just seemed to me the film showed utter contempt for people who actually want to watch films without jerks talking over them. Why get so bent out of shape over one particular scene? Cos it's a waste. Little things like that can wreck a film. What the hell was the director thinking?

And the point was...?

[ritera1 · 5/10 · 23 June 2012]

I have to think that the producer of this film thought, "I want to tap that demographic of weird loner women who think that they look like Jessica Alba."

What were you thinking about? What was the point?

But this was yet another very fine example of how I don't want kids.

I have a few questions:

In what part of the country do they not check references? How did Alba get a job as a teacher without any credentials? Just put down in the file: "I took her mom's word for it."

Okay, she gets the job and we see that she cannot control any of her classes except for the one where the geeky kids who all somehow love numbers (or are easily amused). Great. So, by no effort of her own, she has one good class. What happened to the other classes? We never go back to them.

I can't say enough how thoroughly annoying those "good" kids were.

Then the science teacher (who was likable and all) falls in love with Jessica Alba. Uhm. I myself am a very lonely guy but would run away from a girl so thoroughly weird and disinterested. But the demographic of unrealistic wall-flower women who just want a ready-made doting husband would love it. But in the real world this guy would need a stiff slap in the face.

And this is all amidst a sea of wanderings and aimless walks.

And finally I have to give a thumbs down again to Jessica Alba's acting abilities. Like Scarlett Johannsen, she's a looker but played hookie from one too many acting classes.

If only it were Invisible ...

[twilliams76 · 3/10 · 3 July 2011]

An Invisible Sign is one of those films you kind of wish you had never seen. There are plenty of movies worse than this one; but this one tries so very hard to be both loved and cherished that it leaves one feeling used.

First-time feature-film director, Marilyn Agrelo (she had earlier directed the documentary Mad Hot Ballroom), uses so much saccharine in trying to sweeten Sign's audience into loving and liking and feeling for and/or sorry for this odd assortment of characters that one begins to wish strychnine had been used instead. In real-life, NONE of these eccentric characters would come across as likable and so one has to force himself/herself into finishing this film.

Jessica Alba (Fantastic Four, Sin City, Never Been Kissed) plays Mona Gray, an odd-duck of a character who is kicked-out of her house by her parents years after her genius mathematician father has suffered a nervous breakdown (she is kicked-out for no real reason other than she is 20 and her mom isn't likable). Lucky Mona, though (!), as her mother has helped get her daughter a job as the math teacher at the local elementary school ... Mona having no degree isn't a problem (Mom lied saying she had one) as the school never looks into her past (I'm not kidding).

It is at school/work surrounded by kids with greater problems than her own that Mona begins to wake-up to life and find purpose and meaning beyond a search for numbers. Mona also meets a fellow teacher played by Chris Messina (Julie & Julia, Monogamy, Vicky Cristina Barcelona) who becomes interested in her odd manners and seeks out her friendship. Just as these last few sentences suggest, An Invisible Sign IS oddly disjointed and filled with scenarios and situations that don't really go together. It is as if the film were pieced together because of "cute, little moments" ... instead of giving us a cohesive and plausible story.

There is little-to-no charm here and the entire thing feels tried and odd to me. I believe Messina's character was written/created for the sole purpose of having a sane individual in the film (yes ... groan). Alba has tried drama in the past and has come across marginally successful at times; but An Invisible Sign doesn't help her resume. It is almost too bad this one wasn't invisible.

A lonely film

[themagikalman · 7/10 · 21 August 2012]

This film is a strange one but i would have to rate it higher than most. The main character is a more realistic version of what someone would actually be that had insecurity issues. I really enjoyed this film because I can relate the main character and what she feels like sometimes. There aren't many films that do focus on this aspect on life in such a real way, which many of us go through. that is why i had to give it such a high rating. As well as this Jessica Alba plays a really innocent cute character, something a little different from her usual

The film is funny, sad, inspiring, and a bit weird. If you enjoy indie films you will most probably like this. If you are lonely and have social issues you will probably like this.

419th Review: The vibe is right, but content is oh so weak

[intelearts · 3/10 · 20 May 2011]

I so wanted to love this; how many films are there about math teachers connecting with their students. It's such a great idea. However, in the execution, the indie vibe goes from off-kilter to off-track and the film is weirdly pompous in its false modesty and humbleness.

Quite frankly after some initial interest it's biggest problem is boredom - neither the script, nor the events, nor the characterization hold the attention - and so what we end up is a lot of loose ends and ideas.

Jessica Alban does a fine job at the slightly emo OCD vibe but we never really connect with the cuteness, and all in all, it was a little too off-kilter for this viewer.

If you like indie films you may enjoy this - we just couldn't connect with it - and found it all trying too hard to be different, instead of using the film to show math as a tool for wider issues.

A quirky comedy that had the potential to be really good but turned out a little below average. Missing something. I say C+

[cosmo_tiger · 26 September 2011]

"There comes a moment when you look around waiting for the person in charge to help you and then you realize your the person in charge." After her father suffers a breakdown, Mona (Alba) becomes obsessed with math. Using it has an escape she becomes distant from reality until her mother kicks her out. After taking a job teaching math to elementary school kids she learns to grow up and help others. This movie started off very funny and entertaining then really started to drag. The ending was OK, very predictable though. The middle of the movie seemed to repeat itself and drag on and on and on. For those who like off beat quirky humor this is a movie for you. I would compare the humor to "500 Days Of Summer", but not as funny. This did have some very touching moments in it, but overall this movie had the potential to be very good, but it never got what it needed. Overall, a good movie that could have been better. It was just missing something. I give it a C+.

Would I watch again? - I don't think I will.

*Also try - 500 Days Of Summer & Music Never Stopped

A very good change of pace for Jessica Alba

[JohnRayPeterson · 7/10 · 22 September 2011]

If you have not read the book "An Invisible Sign of My Own" or bother at least to read the book reviews of this 2001 fiction by Aimée Bender, you may very well be disappointed by the movie; it most certainly is not a commercial or popular storyline producers would try to outbid themselves for the movie rights. It is a charming tale of a quirky young woman, Mona Gray, played by Jessica Alba, who has not grown up yet but is pushed into the real world and must learn to swim or sink, metaphorically speaking. She lands a job as a math teacher at an elementary school, with false credentials; it is the only job she seems fit for.

The ever slow process of Mona's self-discovery begins in earnest with her new job, with the help of a new found friend, a very patient and kind science teacher Ben Smith played by Chris Messina, and an older one, Mona's own former math teacher turned hardware store owner played by J.K. Simmons, she had dismissed from her life a while back. The trauma of her father's mental illness is at the core of Mona's cocoon-life and behaviour. The interest Mona takes in one of her pupils, Lisa Venus, played so believably well by Sophie Nyweide, starts Mona's process of maturing; Lisa's single mother is dying of the rarest of cancer and Mona is the sole person who ever expressed care for her daughter.

There are a few beautiful lines, and memorable, in the movie; the movie has narration, by Alba. In one, she says "Life is much harder than math" and another I liked but must paraphrase (I did not write it down) "You know you're grown-up, an adult, when you look around and you're the one in charge". This is the first time, in my recollection; I've seen J.K. Simmons play a role that was not that of a tough codger or extremely witty guy; here he plays a role of a kind simple man you can expect in a fairytale. The direction by Marilyn Agrelo was excellent, as I see the attention paid to details.

Mostly, I was blown away by Jessica Alba's performance; one that did not require her to take her clothes off, or do some phony martial artsy high kicking or one of the roles she so often has played. Here, she shows facial expressions of innocence, bewilderment, fear, caring and love like you expect from a really good actor; she does not overplay her role and she is believable. As much as I liked her shower scene in 'Machete' I loved her acting here. I hope producers and directors take note and send worthy scripts her way. I knew she had the potential when I saw the film "Sleeping Dictionary"; perhaps motherhood (she's a real mom now) has allowed her to find character depth we now know she can deliver. This movie somehow reminds me of "I Am Sam" and "Skellig" for the mood of the movies, or the one I had to be in to watch them. So basically, as the ratings indicate, this will not be a commercial hit and many will find fault with Alba showing no skin and mock her acting; that's too bad. Other reviewers who read the book recommend the movie; that's usually good.

If you respect teachers, this one will make you very MAD. (SPOILER ALERT!)

[darlinghammond · 2/10 · 5 April 2011]

I appreciate the acting in this film, which is excellent. I find the story utterly disturbing. I also appreciate that there is a sort of a happy ending for many of the dysfunctional people, but if it's realistic, I am scared. As a teacher, I just found it shameful that this character was offered a teaching job (references not checked), then portrayed a truly incompetent educator (notice you'll never see the insanity of grades 1 and 2 after the opening scene) who is praised and then offered her job back AFTER BRINGING AN AXE TO THE SCHOOL! WHAT?!?!?! This socially awkward, communication challenged, judgment absent character is then given custody of a small child. Ummm.... Seriously? The character development was mediocre. The plot was a bit like clear broth. And it makes teachers (and lawyers and mothers) look horrible. I gave it two stars because I love the cast in other projects. I am sad that I spent money on this film. What a freaking waste.

Thought-provoking

[yossiclark-993-715051 · 7/10 · 13 June 2011]

Definitely worth watching. The best word to describe it is 'interesting'. It seems quite slow sometimes, though never boring, just more character-driven than plot-driven for a large portion of the film - although more happens towards the end.

The actors playing the film's central/crucial characters played their roles well, and most had interesting, thought-provoking roles. Sophie Nyweide in particular was excellent as Lisa. To me, the film revolved around her and Mona, played well by Jessica Alba. Their relationship was interesting, especially alongside the film's comments on becoming and being a grown up. Lisa's character alone was one of the main things that kept me hooked when I was watching it; children's roles don't often go that deep in character. That, as well as Mona's views on numbers and any of the final thoughts the film leaves you with, makes An Invisible Sign something new and refreshing.

I didn't leave with a new favourite, but I'm very glad I watched it. It's not the type of film to suit everyone, but I recommend giving it a chance.

disappointment.

[sophie_vitoria · 2/10 · 3 July 2011]

I was very disappointed after watching this movie. There are amazing actors, but I thought the movie was too slow. It had no excitement throughout the movie. And the ending had no surprise. I thought it was going to be a romantic , and inspiring movie. But it didn't have any point to it. Although they make an interesting trailer, the movie wasn't. I think the movie would've been better, if it had a little "twist" to it. Instead of showing the same things over and over again. For those who like inspiring movies, with a bit of drama, I wouldn't recommend this one. It did have excellent actors, and actresses, they did a good job doing what they were told.

Surprisingly warm and well-acted

[nancy_hse · 8/10 · 14 April 2011]

I'm really disappointed to see that this movie has such a low rating - it doesn't give the movie justice at all.

First of all, the story is unusual and well-told - I haven't read the book so I cannot compare but I suppose that the basis is very good because in general adaptations tend to be worse than original books, and this adaptation is pretty good. The film explores the idea of growing up - when does this moment come? What should happen to finally show us that we are adults ourselves, that there is no other grown-up around? This process of maturing of a person totally locked into her shell is very interesting. Secondly, I must say that I've never been Jessica Alba's fan but now I can say that she's not only pretty but she can act. Hope that she will have more films coming that actually involve acting. Thirdly, the ensemble cast gives a really good impression. There is no one who seems out of place. And finally, the film itself leaves you with such a warm and positive aftertaste that any faults that it has seem totally irrelevant.

Not a masterpiece but still a very good movie. 8/10

Very slow to start

[brassinpocket-472-122430 · 6/10 · 5 January 2020]

The movie ends well and of course, on a happy note. I found myself dreading watching by 20 minutes into it. However, my 11 year old daughter loved it from the beginning.

A Great Deception

[claudio_carvalho · 2/10 · 23 January 2015]

After a stroke of her father (John Shea), the weird Mona Gray (Jessica Alba) gives up of all the things she likes but mathematic expecting that her father will be better. When she is 20 year-old, she is expelled from home by her mother (Sonia Braga) to live her own life. Soon her mother lies to her friend Ms. Gelband (Marylouise Burke), who is principal of a school, telling that Mona Gray is graduated and she hires her to teach mathematic to the third grade. Mona Gray feels affection for the orphan Lisa Venus (Sophie Nyweide) and her odd behavior attracts the attention of the teacher Ben Smith (Chris Messina). When there is an incident at school, the life of Mona Gray changes for good.

"An Invisible Sign" is among the worst movies I have ever seen, with an awful and senseless story. The plot is imbecile, beginning with Mona Gray's mother expelling her daughter out of her home without any reason. Then Ms. Gelband hires a clumsy and unprepared teacher without checking her credentials or background. Instead of mathematic, Mona Gray actually teaches and is attracted by numbers. She brings an ax to a classroom with kids in a total irresponsible attitude. The corny and lame conclusion, with Mona Gray rehired by the school and easily getting the custody of Lisa is terrible. The worst is that, this is the type of movie that we see expecting to like it, but the awful story is unbearable independently of the cast. Last but not the least, Sonia Braga lost her beauty and is unrecognizable. The years are cruel for everybody!My vote is two.

Title (Brazil): "Matemática do Amor" ("Mathematic of Love")

Sheer waste of my time.

[davidtraversa-1 · 1/10 · 14 June 2011]

What a flimsy project. The girl is obviously mad, but we never get to know why. She takes an ax to school... you already know that that ax will eventually serve some purpose and it does, on such harebrained incident that one has to laugh (it wasn't meant for laughs) because if one doesn't one should have to take the CD from its nest and brake it to pieces.

I'm offended at having wasted my time so miserably. Whenever there are children involved in a film one knows there will be plenty of cutesy pie scenes and conducts, that alone should have warned me to stop watching this film very early on, but obviously there must be a touch of the masochist in me, since with a great deal of effort I ignored the "invisible sign" warning me to stop right there.

The incoherency in the conduct of the different boys and girls in class is blatant one time and convent like orderly another and the girl (their teacher) conduct borders on extreme idiocy. The director of the school is overacted and caricatured to a Groucho Marx school of acting.

Totally soulless and dead film, full of extremely long shots that mean nothing in particular. This one should have been a Walt Disney film, so an adult could stay yards away from it.

lovely

[Kirpianuscus · 18 May 2017]

sure, it is far to be the right word. but it is the most comfortable. for a beautiful story, for a great job from Jessica Alba, for the touching atmosphere, for the performances of Marylouise Burke and J.K. Simmons. maybe because I am teacher, Mona Gray seems to me one of the most seductive characters from the last decade of cinema. because this job remains a refuge, has deep roots in the experiences of childhood, impose a form of train of exercises to escape from yourself. if a sin of film must be defined, it is , maybe, the desire of director to be a complete work - from traumas to the love story. but it is a small, almost insignificant sin. so, a lovely/touching film.

Quirky and likable

[stani101 · 7/10 · 11 May 2012]

I thought this was a nice, enjoyable family movie. My kids liked it and I did too. Mona Gray is a 'weirdo-bizzaro' kind of person who seems to find it difficult getting on in life. In fact, her life seems to be lost in translation since her father suffered a nervous breakdown. She does have issues but getting to know other 'weird' people seems to show her a different aspect of life. The film moves along nicely and I think Jessica Alba does a good job with the Mona Gray character. Like Mona says, " there comes a time in your life when you realize you are the person in charge. You are the adult" This a film about growing up and facing up to life's responsibilities, challenging those demons that make you feel worthless. Definitely worth a watch.

Worst film I've ever seen!

[carol_weaver-609-871154 · 1/10 · 19 February 2012]

This was unbelievably billed on Sky Premiere as a lovable comedy. I found it a load of badly put together claptrap smattered with some laughs, one of which was the hairstyle bestowed on Jessica Alba. I can see how Mona would be unbalanced by her father (and the hairstyle), particularly in the opening scene where he tells the story of a family who each agreed to amputation of one part of their body so that no-one would be killed. Her behaviour throughout the film, including 'tapping out numbers' was verging on psychotic rather than nervous and shy.

Her mother came across as unbalanced too, when she told her to go because she couldn't help her dad, and allowed Mona to sleep in the street outside for three days with her possessions before having a cosy chat on the sofa together with her dad and saying that she had some savings that would get her a place. She couldn't have done that in the first place? She then lied to the headmistress of the local school saying that Mona had a degree, in order to secure a job for her. It seems that the headmistress didn't bother to check Mona's credentials (oo-er could that really happen these days?), then accused her of lying after the axe incident, when in fact it was her mother. The axe incident, where Mona ended up with an axe embedded in her leg, was the point at which my ever-patient husband finally conceded that it was a ridiculous film. Her mathematics teaching was run of the mill rather than inspired by a buff, and in fact I am sure that she was demonstrating maths too basic for the grade.

Then there was Mr Jones, former maths teacher and present neighbour whose car she bombarded every year with eggs, for a reason which wasn't properly explained at first. When a reason was finally given, to the effect that he hadn't cared when her father fell ill, it wasn't really borne out by the flashback. He knew it was Mona who had bombarded his car, and yet he let it go unpunished for years despite his annoyance and ignorance of the reason. Really? Though it might be down to the fact that he, too, was unbalanced enough to be taking refuge behind numbers, in the form of pendants which told Mona how he was feeling every day. Was there anyone normal? Only the audience, I think.

This movie could have been so much more...

[paul_haakonsen · 6/10 · 18 August 2013]

"An Invisible Sign" really had potential to be something unique, sadly, it turned out not to spread out all of its potential. It was a shame, because the movie really did have a beautiful story at heart, it was just directed and told in a manner that really didn't make use of everything the movie and the actors had to offer.

The story in "An Invisible Sign" is about Mona Gray (played by Jessica Alba) who has withdrawn herself into a world of math after her father (played by John Shea) became suddenly ill. Without work and means of supporting herself, Mona finds herself having to live on her own for the first time. Luckily her mother (played by Sonia Braga) manages to find Mona a teaching job at the local school as a math teacher. Untrained for teaching, Mona finds herself thrust into a parental role to some of the children as they have very real problems and crisis of their own.

What made the movie worthwhile watching was the acting put on by all the actors and actresses that were in the movie, because they really delivered some amazing performances. However, it was limited how much they had to work with here, and it was a shame, because this limitation really held back what could have been awesome performances.

The characters in the movie were distinctive, unique and very nicely carved out with their quirks, traits and personalities. And the characters were persons and individuals that you immediately bought into, taking a liking or a disliking to.

There was untapped potential in this movie, and the world will never get to see what a beautiful story the movie could have bloomed into in the hands of the right storyteller.

A Very Odd Film.....Sorta Bizarre...and Awkward

[uturnfilms · 3/10 · 11 January 2021]

No matter what you expect, this movie will probably throw you for a loop. Great actors and competent direction, but the script and narrative fail to deliver a cohesive whole. With 20 mins left, it kind of goes off the rails. I'll give it credit for being unique and different- it has heart- but can't recommend it. The classroom stuff and the story-lines with her father and former teacher are interesting, but there's a super cringe romantic subplot that didn't fit for me. Skip!

Eh?

[PennyReviews · 3/10 · 28 September 2014]

So this is a film about a 20-year old woman, named Mona Gray, who teaches maths in a school and likes to be alone, and rather deal with numbers than people, because that's how she can deal with her father's mental illness. The story seems all right, doesn't it? And from the beginning of the movie, you think that it will be something like Amelie, well, not as good, but still, good enough. Well, I certainly thought so, at least. And I was wrong. Mona Gray is a loner all right, but she also acts oddly in every situation. And if the story was supporting that behavior, it wouldn't be a problem, but the film seems to focus on her relationship with a student (which is fine) and the romance between her and the physics teacher (which is not fine at all). Now, I haven't read the book, which I hope is better than the movie, so I can't make any comparisons, and I don't know if this is how the story should be, but still I didn't like it. The ending was good, so I must give some credit for that, and the performance by Alba was great and the costumes were really nice. But the narrative and the story line reaped the chance from the audience to understand the character, who can't develop well. So 3 out of 10, because I didn't enjoy it and I didn't get it.

film does the book justice

[newmonter · 10/10 · 7 April 2011]

Watched this on On Demand and loved the quirkiness and the charm. Jessica Alba embodied "Mona Gray" well. I was a bit disappointed to see that America Ferrara didn't play the part until I actually saw the film. Jessica makes it work. Was also worried the movie wouldn't be as good as the book, which is one of my favorites,but the writers really did a good job. Chris Messina is always good in anything he does and he doesn't disappoint here. It was a nice surprise to see Sonia Braga on screen again. Sophie Nyweide is perfectly cast as "Lisa Venus", the sad, brave little girl who helps Mona Gray overcome her own emotional obstacles. This film is a sweet escape from a long day. Curl up on the couch and give it a whirl.

Back to work? Really?

[d-markakis1958 · 3/10 · 28 September 2014]

I am teacher. And i find it amazing (joking of course) that a teacher can bring an axe in classroom, because of which she is injured (and with high risk danger a student to be killed or injured), and at the end she succeeds to have her work at school back, with the condition not to bring again axes or other instruments at school. Isn't this totally crazy? In Greece, and many other normal countries, a teacher bringing axe would be fired and would not even think of going to justice to take his work back. Not to mention that he would be forced to go to psychologist. Well, very low expectations you should have if you decide to watch this movie. You will loose your hour, and will face crazy facts as the one i described above.

Not For Everyone

[bob-rutzel-1 · 5/10 · 2 January 2012]

Mona (Alba) is asked to leave her house when her genius math teacher father (Shea) suffers a stroke. She gets an apartment and a job as a Math teacher at a local elementary school.

Mona has OCD or led a very sheltered life while her father was in good health; or both. We really haven't been told a lot of her teenage and college years. Out in the real world, she moves, looks and talks like she is in some kind of a trance. I suppose we could say her father's stroke brought all this on her. She experiences reality when she is told by her mother (Braga) to leave the house and get her own place. The mother says it is her job is to take care of the father, not Mona's. Mona understands what is happening and just goes with the flow, not liking it but still passive in her actions. That is, until she meets Ben (Messina) the Science teacher at her school. And, even that is tentative.

This is a strange one to watch. At many points we feel like someone needs to shake Mona into reality, but she is stubborn in that she holds on to her tapping on wood when she feels nervous and what her father told her (when she was a little girl) what was needed to be happy: to give up things. This giving up of things has ruled her life.

What could have helped was better dialogue with a little less mystery all around. We just don't know what direction Mona or the movie will take. We suffered too. She needs an epiphany or a not so invisible sign.

I was looking forward to the math classes, but they were disappointing. I didn't learn anything except to worry, more than a little, when Mona brings an Ax to the classroom, with good intentions, mind you. But, you just knew that was going to figure into things later on. (5/10)

Not for everyone and if there is a sequel, I'll pass. Violence: No. Sex: No. Nudity: No. Language: No.

Very interesting character study, better than its IMDb rating suggests.

[TxMike · 30 August 2013]

I found this one on Netflix streaming movies. It is quite quirky in places, which may turn off some who enjoy conventional narratives, but in total it is a very nice little story.

Jessica Alba is the adult, 20-something Mona Gray. As a small girl she loved her dad, ran with him, did "numbers" with him, and overall became somewhat fascinated with numbers.

But as she grew up her dad developed a mental problem, he could no longer function normally, and as a 10-yr-old Mona thought if she did certain things, for example if she denied herself of things she enjoyed, her dad would get better.

All this caused Mona to grow up with development challenges, and she became very shy and unwilling to experience normal friendships, not to mention a love relationship. But one day, to help her, mom found out the local elementary math teacher had run off to Paraguay to join the revolutionaries and Mona was to be the new math teacher. Never mind that she never finished college!

So Mona jumps in there, does the best she can, has difficulty controlling the students. But she meets Science teacher, Chris Messina as Ben Smith. he is pretty much the opposite of Mona, outgoing and not overly worrying about anything. He takes a liking to Mona but finds her shell very difficult to penetrate.

J.K. Simmons is interesting as the neighbor Mr. Jones, who had taught math to Mona as a child, and who now runs the local hardware store. Her confused dad is John Shea as Dad. And Sonia Braga is her mom, still attractive at just past 60. I first saw her years ago in the 1983 movie "Gabriella" where in her early 20s played a sultry cook and lover. Interesting career arc!

Anyway it is a nice movie, and therapeutic for Mona, as she eventually finds a way out of her shell. I have enjoyed Jessica Alba since her days as "Dark Angel" on the TV series, and I like her here.