IJW: All the Real Girls (2003)

All the Real Girls

I liked the authentic performances from Zooey Deschanel and Patricia Clarkson, but the rest of the cast and a general lack of a plot drops the ball and leaves a giant void. All of the male parts were painted with such a broad brush, and plays to generic regional stereotypes as to be offensive. The male characters have generally nothing to contribute. Some scenes are painful to watch because of the predictable change in direction. At times, the interspersed central Appalachian mountain scenery was a welcome relief, but even there the direction slipped back into broad caricature mode by showing a lot of rusting pickup trucks, steam belching factories, and junk-strewn yards. If the movie had anything to say, then a few less of these art-school inspired views could go a long way to providing the necessary background details and at least make an attempt at making a coherent statement. Or they could've used the time to fill out their strawmen lineup of characters. Overall Grade: D

A better option, with some of the same cast, is to watch Lars and the Real Girl instead.