The Words

This film is about a young struggling writer who makes it big with a manuscript that he did not write.

"The Words" tells the tale of a struggling writer who has to face moral choices after stealing a manuscript. Bradley Cooper carries the role well, and he portrays the internal struggle very well. It is a welcomed change that Bradley Cooper portrays a serious and emotionally tormented role. The scene of his attempt to rectify things in the greenhouse is haunting. Zoe Saldana shines as well as the supportive wife, her plethora of emotions is so natural and convincing. They make a good on screen couple. The Bradley Cooper subplot is quite predictable, but the connection between Bradley Cooper and Dennis Quaid is not immediately apparent. This extra layer gives "The Words" more depth. I think "The Words" has many fine performances, and deserves to be seen.

The Words is an engaging film, and almost feels more like a book on screen. And like a good book, it quickly reins you in and keeps entertaining until the end. The writer/director team of Brian Klugman & Lee Sternthal is miles away from their script for the forgettable Tron: Legacy. With The Words they take their time by using their catchy story within a story technique to develop their intriguing characters. The Words may not have the heft compared to other favorites for Best Original Screenplay come this Oscar season, but it is respectable feat for the writer/director duo. Bradley Cooper (The Hangover, Limitless) delivers a nice subtle performance as a struggling writer drowning in a sea of desperation. Cooper continues to hack out diverse performances that continue to show his range and win over more fans. He's proving that he is not just Hollywood's latest flavor of the week. The rest of the cast is strong, and headlined by Jeremy Irons (The Man in the Iron Mask, Being Julia) as a broken down old man surprised to see his long lost book on the best-seller list with some young punk's name attached. The Words was dumped into theaters on what is historically known as the worst weekend for movie attendance, and most likely won't garner much of an audience. The film will also have trouble living up to the competition come Oscar season, but it delivers an entertaining and appealing film on the first weekend of fall award season releases.

While subdued and a little slow-moving, THE WORDS is a good--and not too heavy-handed--modern morality tale of how one serious act of dishonesty irreversibly affects a writer's entire life and career. The fact that his act would be difficult to ever prove or prosecute only makes things worse in many ways for Rory Jansen. The various additional elements of suspense and romance help to create a unique combination.

Interesting plot-structure: No huge twists or surprises, but everything fits together with slow, subtle tension. The acting ranges from tepid to quite good. Various details are also important; it might be a good idea, for example, to freeze-frame and read the rejection letters that Rory Jansen receives toward the beginning. A lot of people apparently don't like the way THE WORDS ends, but I sure do. Along with "the old man"'s embedded tale, the conversations between best-selling author Clay Hammond and fan/aspiring author Daniella are easily the most engaging aspects of this film.

Anyone with interests in fiction writing, the publishing industry, and/or related subjects will probably find THE WORDS a compelling enough film; those without such interests, however, may find it pretty dull. Even for the latter folks, I would also recommend SHATTERED GLASS (2004), starring Hayden Christensen, which has a similar conflict, a faster pace, and generally better acting.

Two of the biggest main selling points in seeing any film are a great concept and a great cast. 'The Words' has both, have not come across a concept this ambitious and intriguing for any film in a long time and when you have a cast that includes Bradley Cooper, Dennis Quaid and Jeremy Irons one cannot help expect great things. It sounds like a treat if you are somebody who loves literature, am very much one of those people.

Watching 'The Words', it was an interesting film, well made and mostly well acted with intriguing and heartfelt moments. Part of me felt though that it could and should have been much more, worth watching definitely but very uneven. It is not a waste of potential, as there are things that are done very well and a lot of effort went into it. It is sadly unfortunate that the full potential is nowhere near close to being full lived up to, which is so frustrating and a real shame.

Beginning with the strengths, 'The Words' is a very good-looking film, the photography making for some truly beautiful images and Paris especially of the locations is strikingly captured. The music matches the film's understated tone with a subtle, melancholic edge without tugging at the heart strings too much. Some of the dialogue is truly thought-provoking, with some inspired references, especially that of the Old Man's.

Although the story-within-a-story-within-a-story structure doesn't completely come together, a lot of the inner story elements intrigue and move. The Old Man's, one of the more interesting characters of the film too, past scenes make for the most engrossing story and the one that had my attention the whole time. The acting mostly very good, the acting honours going to Jeremy Irons in a very touching and suitably enigmatic performance as The Old Man. Ben Barnes touches the heart too, while Bradley Cooper tones down the intensity that can be seen in other performances of his and the subtlety is effective. Zoe Saldana is much more than just decoration, there is not a lot to her role but she makes the most of it and does it with charm.

Sadly, 'The Words' is dragged down badly by the "real life" story, to the extent that it nearly but not completely ruins the film. It was very tedious, with more questions than answers, nothing investable and an aimless pace. The romance is full of cheesy dialogue and doesn't really go anywhere, the chemistry more unintentionally creepy than charming. Found Dennis Quaid's performance too underplayed to the point of phoning in and Olivia Wilde's performance and character were just bizarre.

Letting 'The Words' down significantly too was the ending, which was little more than an incomplete damp-squib. Ambiguity can work, but this attempt at it felt less like ambiguity, this actually felt like an ending started being written, then the writer got distracted and completely forgot about concluding it. Despite the whole literary concept, the film tends to over-explain or things are spoken when they could easily have been shown. A lot of effort went into 'The Words', but it did feel like it tried too hard.

In conclusion, interesting and has a fair share of good things, such as the production values, most of the acting and one particular story strand, but very frustrating with one story and the ending spoiling things badly. 6/10

If you never see a movie unless EVERYONE else LOVES it... then skip "The Words". However, if you are able to enjoy a movie in spite of silly reviewers questioning the ending, the plot twists, or perhaps and don't require countless Dukes of Hazard-style car chase scenes and seeing the nude bodies of the leading ladies... then go see "The Words" and enjoy it! My wife a I went with another couple last night, and we all generally liked it or loved it! We planned on dinner afterward and this gave us time to discuss it... and that was helpful because we all had taken away different interesting bits. The actors are good to terrific. Jeremy Irons is exceptional! BUT...WHAT did it all mean? WHO CARES!!! It meant, quite simply, they made a great movie that requires one to have a mind to enjoy it. ;) Enjoy "The Words" for what it is... something different, finally!