Writers are terribly romantic figures. Their eccentricities and, at times, maniacal brilliance make them convenient inspirations for directors, not to mention useful additions to any dinner party. Curtis Hanson, the man responsible for "L.A. Confidential," is clearly infatuated with the literary characters of Michael Chabon's book, "The Wonder Boys," as he demonstrates in the recent film adaptation of the novel. Unfortunately, the audience never develops the same affinity for the characters, as the film attempts to provide a contrived fascination.
"The Wonderboys" centers around Grady Tripp (Michael Douglas), an author and professor at a Pittsburgh University. Grady's life is chaotic, considering his young wife has left him and, to further complicate things, his girlfriend Sara (Frances McDormand) is pregnant with his baby. This is especially problematic since she's: a) Chancellor of the university and b) the wife of Grady's department chair.
More problems ensue when Grady's editor, Crabtree (Robert Downey Jr.), comes to town for the university's annual literary event, even though Grady knows Crabtree's true interest lies in looking at the follow-up manuscript to his critically acclaimed novel.
Crabtree has no luck, however, since Grady has yet to complete the 2,000-plus- page magnum opus. Grady copes by bonding with James Leer (Tobey Maguire), an eccentric student who habitually spins tall tales and, while smoking marijuana, cruises around in a 1966 maroon Ford Galaxy with a dead dog in the trunk.
Hanson focuses on the absurd - for example, the murder of a blind dog and the theft of Marilyn Monroe's jacket. The real laughs, however, come from the cast's pitch-perfect deliveries of the film's wry humor.
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The talents of Frances McDormand and Michael Douglas are regrettably wasted in Hanson's film. The actors lack chemistry as romantic interests and the Oscar-winning actress does little more than add to Grady's skyrocketing tension level. Douglas is robbed of any shining moments, as he is capable of bringing a far greater depth to the film than his character allows.
Unfortunately, the film dictates Grady's many layers by virtue of his inclination to write in a woman's bathrobe on an old-fashioned typewriter. Multi-dimensionality is created through clichéd accessories and hackneyed props. Grady and James are not writers as a result of their unique world views but because of the sartorial details they include in their writing and the ubiquitous knapsacks that never leave their sides.
Hanson is so immersed in the romantic notion of what it is to be a writer, he forgets that good filmmaking must do more than merely perpetuate cultural stereotypes.
At one point in the film, Hannah gently reminds Grady, "Writers make choices." Instead of parlaying "The Wonder Boys" into a substantive film driven by well-developed characters, Hanson makes the choice to showcase a shallow sentimentality. As a result, the film does little to inspire any sense of wonder in its audience.
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