SCREEN

But Stranger Than Fiction is not as willfully weird or obtuse as any of Kaufman's films, and it ends up much warmer and conventional by the time the credits roll. Harold and baker Ana have a relationship that follows the standard romantic comedy arc very closely, and when Harold finally confronts author Karen Eiffel, and she has to figure out how to resolve his story, the lessons that both he and she learn are familiar and well-worn. There's something to be said for presenting the same ideas in new ways, and that approach is the film's greatest strength. Director Marc Forster and screenwriter Zach Helm concoct such an odd scenario that even old storytelling clichés seem new, at least for a little while.

Forster has a strong eye for detail and a keen visual sense, and there are some wonderfully composed shots and sharp, telling bits of set design. Ferrell indeed pulls a Jim Carrey, coming off convincingly both in his serious and comedic moments, and Hoffman is hilarious as the professor who takes it all at face value. But the script, so ingenious and rich with comedic potential at first, paints itself into a corner that it's almost impossible to wiggle out of, and the ending feels like a cheat, with too much unearned sentiment. Charlie Kaufman would not approve.