If you could create your perfect mate, who would he or she be? Would they enjoy everything you enjoy, or would there be differences? Would you have them attend your every need, or would you give them their own free will? Ruby Sparks is a movie that looks into this concept, and explores the issues that would arise because of it. With its DVD release coming up this Tuesday, it’s a perfect time to take a look at this movie which only saw a limited run in North American theaters.
Calvin Weir-Fields (Paul Dano) is a writer who received a lot of attention for his first novel. Unfortunately since then he’s been suffering from writer’s block, and is unable to come up with anything good enough to publish. He’s also unlucky in love. One night he dreams of the perfect girl, and it inspires him to write a story about what his life would be like if she were a part of it. Much to his surprise Ruby Sparks (Zoe Kazan) leaps from his typed pages into his real life. She’s the prefect girl for him, and everything is going smoothly, until she starts doing things he doesn’t like and wants to move out. It’s then he’s forced to make a decision, rewrite how she’s acting, or let her have complete freewill to do whatever she wants.
Ruby Sparks is a quirky, original movie that keeps your hooked. At times you think you know how things will play out, then you are thrown a curve ball and you find yourself having no idea what will happen next. Zoe Kazan wrote the script, and stars as Ruby. At times her quirkiness reminds you on Zooey Deschanel, but she stands out on her own. The chemistry between her and Paul Dano is very strong, which is probably aided by the fact that the two are a real life couple. The reaction of Paul’s character when he first sees Ruby in his kitchen cooking him breakfast is classic, and will have you laughing long after the scene has ended. If the movie has a failing, it would be that it grows a little darker than it needs to around the one hour mark, and forces the movie to be a little too long.
If you are looking for a rom-com that is a little different than the usual fare, Ruby Sparks is your movie. It’s not cheesy like the normal movies in the genre, and it keeps you interested from start to finish. It’s released on DVD Tuesday, October 30th.
Tags: is ruby sparks good, movie review, movie reviews, what is ruby sparks about, who is pail dano, who is ruby sparks, who is zoe kazan, zoe kazan