Smart People (2008)

Director: Noam Murro

Cast: Dennis Quaid as Lawrence Wetherhold, Sarah Jessica Parker as Janet Hartigan, Thomas Haden Church as Chuck Wetherhold, Ellen Page as Vanessa Wetherhold, Ashton Holmes as James Wetherhold, Christine Lahti as Nancy, Camille Mana as Missy Chin, David Denman as William, Don Wadsworth as Hadley, Robert Haley as Roth, Patrick Sebes as Curtis, Kevin James Doyle as Rodney, Paul Huber as Ben (as Paul J. Huber), Iva Jean Saraceni as Volunteer, Richard John Walters as Parking Lot Attendant

When I saw "Smart People" the trailer, I have to say that the first
thought that came into my mind is "Sideways: Part 2". It had the same
formula and characters. But I really wasn't as into Sideways as
everyone else was, so I wasn't so excited to see this movie. But today
I just decided to go ahead and give it a chance, I'm more grown up
since I've seen Sideways, so why not just see what the film had to
offer? I have to say while the movie does not excite me, I also see it
doesn't excite too many people here on IMDb, 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.

Lawerance is a college professor who isn't the most popular guy on
campus, he's pompous, arrogant, and puts himself higher above his
students while ignoring their plea's for extra help on assignments. His
son hates him, his daughter admires him and is quite the over achiever,
and his adopted brother is a scam artist. But when Lawerance has an
accident while jumping fence, he hits his head, and meets former
student, Janet Hartigan. They start to date, his daughter, Vanessa,
goes through her life realizing she's never really had fun, and his
adopted brother, Chuck needs this family just as much as Lawerance
needs it.

Smart People, the major problem is that this was advertised as a
comedy, it has some funny moments, but they're not what you would call
laugh out loud. I'd say this is more of a drama with comedic elements,
kind of like "Dan in Real Life", so Smart People didn't have "Smart
Advertisement", but the movie is worth the watch. I would recommend it,
it's an interesting film, not thrilling, so I would recommend probably
waiting for the rental. But the cast pulls the movie together and makes
it into a good drama.

7/10