"Dan in Real Life" is a comedy/drama that is light on comedy and substitutes melodrama and cheesy family moments for actual drama. It is also a depressing example of what happens when good actors are paired with bad scripts.
Written by Pierce Gardner and Peter Hedges, "Dan in Real Life" is the story of Dan Burns (played by Steve Carell from "The Office"), a widower who takes his three daughters to his parents' cabin for a yearly family gathering. While there, he falls for a woman in a bookstore who turns out to be dating his brother (comedian Dane Cook).
The rest of the film chronicles Dan's attempts to deal with the situation during the family weekend.
The film places a lot of emphasis on family. This is a mistake, as Dan's family is anything but relatable. The Burns family is more than picturesque; they're 1950's sitcom family perfect. They have morning aerobics sessions and family talent shows. In short, they are completely unrealistic.
The lack of touching family moments normally wouldn't be an issue with big names like Carell and Cook in the lineup, but, sadly, neither is ever given a chance to ply their trade.
This leaves "Dan in Real Life" grasping for other reasons to exist, forcing it to fall back on its warm and fluffy family center, which is too perfect for its own good.
Carell is great at acting awkward in normal situations, but nothing about the situation he finds himself in is normal.
The writers clearly wrote the part of Dan with Carell in mind. They just don't seem to understand how his particular brand of comedy works. This is bad news for everyone, and it results in Carell moping around the screen like a spineless loser, inspiring pity instead of laughs.
Comedian Dane Cook somehow manages to fare even worse than Carell. His character is so bland that his picture comes up when you ask Google to define the word milquetoast. His character is never really developed, and it feels as though he is only shown in passing. The role is a waste of Cook's talent, which is a shame, because the film is desperately in need of some humor.
Despite its flaws, "Dan in Real Life" does have a few positive features. Cinematographer Lawrence Sher's ("Garden State," "Club Dread") work outshines everything he captures. He is significantly more talented than the film deserves, and his work is the highlight of a lamentable number of scenes. Likewise, the soundtrack is surprisingly entrancing, much more, in fact, than any of the characters.
"Dan in Real Life" had the potential to be a hilarious comedy with a genuinely cheery pro-family message and a love story to top it off.
Despite having big-name talent, stunning cinematography and a great soundtrack, the film's potential was squandered by writers working outside of their element.
Reach the reporter at zachary.richter@asu.edu.
