Steve Carell takes a welcome detour from Noah and Michael Scott to a real-life version of Charlie Brown (all-grown-up and widowed but without the self-pity). Dan’s dedication to his children, especially as a single parent and despite his loneliness, is heroic and very real. Dan’s middle daughter provides a frightening (for a man with a young daughter) but hilarious glimpse at teenage love-induced agony and frustration. All of the characters ring true. And the soundtrack by Sondre Lerche was the perfect complement. Dan In Real Life made me laugh and warmed my heart. Highly recommended.

Dan In Real Life (Netflix)

Comments

1. Brian on 2008-05-01 11:19:17 wrote: I totally agree with you on this. This is where Steve Carrell ditches the over-the-top sarcasm of the Office and portrays some real-life humor. Loved the movie. I thought this was Carrell’s “Truman Show”…being funny in normal situations. The soundtrack is probably the best I’ve heard in a long time.

2. John C on 2008-05-02 06:10:42 wrote: Yes, I agree. Favorite scene: Pancake-eating.

3. Anna on 2008-05-04 14:33:10 wrote: My husband moved this up in our Netflix queue based on your review (Move it up, Jonathan. It’s the same guy that recommended that we watch the Iranian movie about the boy and girl with the shoes). We saw Ironman earlier in the day, which we both thought was really good (sans kids - definitely a PG-13 and good we got a sitter) and then after the kids went to bed settled in to watch Dan. Two good movies in a day! Yay! Thanks for your review!