Ruby Sparks (Full Version)

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Empire Admin -> Ruby Sparks (8/10/2012 1:18:22 PM)

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J_BUltimatum -> Ruby Fizzles (8/10/2012 1:18:22 PM)

Yet another over rated review for a below average film from Empire. When will it end? Fair enough these films aren't normally my cup of tea but the girlfriend enjoys them. But even she came out disappointed in this poor piece of film making. If it wasn't for the fact we were stuck in the middle of a full row we would've quite happily walked out. Safe to say I get to choose the films we see from now on tho :D



TheMightyBlackout -> RE: Ruby Sparks (10/10/2012 12:22:18 AM)

Ruby Sparks isn't the chucklefest the trailer might suggest, but it's all the stronger for that. It's difficult to define what's subtext when the story is entirely about subtext, and the line between fantasy and reality is so blurred that I applaud the screenplay's (and the characters') refusal to rationalise or explain away the surreal events that unfold.

Kooky, but without taking it to Deschanel-levels. I approve wholeheartedly.



hatebox -> RE: Ruby Sparks (10/10/2012 11:11:26 AM)

This looks slightly irritating.



radar670 -> RE: Ruby Sparks (12/10/2012 1:59:16 PM)

yep
cute & funny in parts
but mostly irritating



ChudMonkey -> RE: Ruby Sparks (12/10/2012 10:17:23 PM)

A stunning little indie rom-com sitting somewhere between Adaptation, (500) Days Of Summer and classic Woody Allen (and even a slight detour in Secretary style darkness). Having watched this 'Liberal Arts' and 'The Perks Of Being A Wallflower' all in the space of three days I can say that this stands out mainly due to the lead "hero" never becoming a dickish annoyance and the dialogue steering well clear of the Dawson Creek pretentious-ness that bogs down other movies in the sub-genre. My second favourite film of the year (after 'Shame')



thedrin -> RE: Ruby Sparks (13/10/2012 4:43:37 PM)

I'll need some time to fully assess it, but by the end of the year this will most certainly rank amongst my favourites of the year.



DJ Rob C: Mark II! -> RE: Ruby Sparks (14/10/2012 8:05:31 AM)

Truly enjoyed it, very witty and funny but also veered into a pretty dark place towards the end... Zoe Kazan is a talent to watch for sure, and a new crush [:D]

Might go with a 4/5 but more likely a 5 for me



tysmuse -> loved it (15/10/2012 12:39:30 AM)

playfully done & well acted.



Nefruaten -> Sweet and thought provoking (16/10/2012 6:43:30 PM)

I thought the premise was very clever and I actually wanted it to turn darker than it became. Dano is brilliant, you just believe his character and inner demons from the start. Kazan is good but there is a touch too much Zooey Deschanel in her performance. Elliott Gould was underused. The relationship between Dano and Gould was cool and I would have liked to have seen the darker sides of Dano's psyche come to the foreground as he tackles his demons with reality and fantasy. I think that the script wasn't that great as it began to rely on the old fashioned goofy hippy mother and younger lover scenario halfway through the film to inject some dimension to the story which really didn't work for me.



Buttercup87 -> Disappointing female characters (18/10/2012 1:29:16 PM)

Although billed as a comedy (the poster and trailer tell us this is another kooky comedy from the directors of Little Miss Sunshine) this film is not as easy to categorise as all that. The first half, when Ruby turns up and Calvin has to come to terms with the fact that he has magical writing skills (or a magical typewriter - it's never made clear how this has happened), is gently amusing. However it then turns pretty dark as we realise Calvin has control issues in relationships and unwisely attempts to control his creation, who becomes more and more out of control. It reminded me of one of those horrible Enid Blyton stories where the protaganist finds an enchanted umbrella or kettle which makes the unfortunate goblin or sprite's life a misery and teaches him some hard-won moral lesson and they settle down together to a life of mutual tolerance. Personally I preferred the Famous Five and so it is with this. It doesn't help that I find Ruby incredibly annoying (reminiscent of Zooey Deschanel in 500 Days of Summer) and can't quite understand why Calvin believes her to be his perfect life-partner. I guess the lesson may be that we don't always know what's good for us, but it made it difficult for me to root for their relationship and meant I was disappointed by the ending.

The problem is, perhaps, that there is obviously meant to be some sort of 'lesson' in this and it's not entirely clear what it is. Calvin seems to be a good enough sort of chap at the start, well-meaning, quiet, struggling to find his place in life. However the crescendo of the film sees him, driven to distraction by the moster he's created, horribly manipulating Ruby from his typewriter, controlling her every move to punish her for wanting a life of her own. He has become Dr Frankenstein and from that point it's difficult to accept the film's suddenly twee ending. I found it hard to want a happy ending for either of them and the ending we did get, to me, only seemed to suggest that the same mista



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