The Words

Films with multi-layered messages can be interesting if not certainly challenging. "The Words", as it turns out is a sort of self-redemptive study of a man who makes a terrible choice in his life, and it basically comes back and bites him in the buttocks.

Young, aspiring writer, Rory Jansen (Bradley Cooper), after many publisher rejection letters, finally achieves long sought-after literary success after publishing the next great American novel. There's only one catch-- he didn't write it. His wife, Dora (Zoe Saldana) sees the novel on his laptop, and raves to him about how brilliant it is. While she's basically stroking his ego, he starts feeling guilty and perplexed. But through the kudos he is receiving, he soon becomes 'comfortable' with his final choice to say nothing.
As the past comes back to haunt him and his literary star continues to rise, Jansen is forced to confront the steep price that must be paid for stealing another man's, an older man's work. And this old man (Jeremy Irons) confronts Jansen in a park to tell him a story and, of course, the story is the book.
This story is told in narrative by writer, Clay Hammond (Dennis Quaid) and goes back and forth between the 'real' world-- Hammond's and this story involving Jansen, Dora and others.

Others to round out the cast are Olivia Wilde as Daniella, a young, aspiring writer, J.K. Simmons as Mr. Jansen, Rory's dad, Ron Rifkin as Timothy Epstein, a publisher, Ben Barnes as Young Man, Nora Arnezeder as Celia, Young Man's wife, Michael McKean as Nelson Wylie, and John Hannah as Richard Ford.

This was brilliantly written and directed by Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal. The way they were able to work a story into another story which is again worked into another story without ending up convoluted was simply amazing. Each story definitely had a connection with one another that allowed you to see more of the layers involved. And considering the minimal feature film experience they have, these guys will get more work, and extremely quick also.

All the cast in this were very talented, but the one who shined here was Cooper. His performance was so intense and real, especially at those times when being expressive was only needed. He was able to speak volumes with his expressions-- particularly his eyes so well that you felt Cooper was going through something so similar in his own life.

This is one of those films where the selling slogan should have read, "Honesty IS the best policy". Watching this man rise to the status that he yearned for so much, to groveling for absolution at film's end was a transformation he not only needed, but one in which he truly wanted to enable him to right this wrong.

Out of 4 stars: 4                         Rated: PG-13                        96mins.