A little slow getting started in my opinion because the self-absorbed, cynical British writer/protagonist (Kenneth Branagh) did not initially make me think, this is someone I want to see a story about. Nor did he make me think, this is going to be a funny movie. I assumed it would be a story about something he did, rather than a story about what happened to him, and hence I wasn't much interested. His glib remarks about this and that I found only mildly amusing, and no signals were being sent about say murder, a terrorist bomb, a sexual conflict, or anything else that spoke PLOT. I was thinking, this is some indie drivel where we're supposed to be amused by this guy's sour view of life -- and that's it. (Speaking of which, at one point the protagonist's wife compares him to Andy Rooney.) Unfortunately the title contributes to this misunderstanding by suggesting a cynical comedy about how this guy overcomes the people (or animals) around him. HOWEVER ... about 30 minutes in I began to realize that what I disliked about the main character *is* the plot, the story problem, and at that point I started to get it.
Why isn't this film more popular? It's not so much a problem with the film, which is true to itself, but with audience expectations. Those of us who feed regularly at the mainstream trough don't necessarily expect such subtle (though universal) issues are going to be the point. It's like Charlie Rose when you're used to Crossfire. And of course there's no sex, or violence, or special effects -- with one exception (see title) -- anyway nothing that would catch your eye on a movie poster. Spielberg's "AI" makes a good contrast; on a similar topic, it has all the eye-popping glitz possible (if you have $100 million or so), but storywize it's simplistic and unfocused. This has a great story and nothing more -- but guess what, that's enough.
Why isn't this film more popular? It's not so much a problem with the film, which is true to itself, but with audience expectations. Those of us who feed regularly at the mainstream trough don't necessarily expect such subtle (though universal) issues are going to be the point. It's like Charlie Rose when you're used to Crossfire. And of course there's no sex, or violence, or special effects -- with one exception (see title) -- anyway nothing that would catch your eye on a movie poster. Spielberg's "AI" makes a good contrast; on a similar topic, it has all the eye-popping glitz possible (if you have $100 million or so), but storywize it's simplistic and unfocused. This has a great story and nothing more -- but guess what, that's enough.