La Philo de Phil

Despite it's dismal rating of 5.4 at the time of this writing, I watched the movie because I have been a fan of Greg Kinnear for a long time. About 20-25 minutes in, I almost shut it off....glad I didn't. What I thought would be a dark comedy turned out to be a kind of "feel-good" comedy with some important life truths...The grass isn't always greener, count your blessings, etc. Somewhat predictable at times, I was also caught pleasantly by surprise a few times, especially at the end. Phil also seems to be Greg Kinnear's directorial debut. Nice job Greg, I look forward to your future endeavors whether acting and/or directing.

The set-up is great - a despondent dentist who feels lost because of his broken marriage, he feels like a failed parent, and his dental practice offers no satisfaction - begins to stalk a patient who he sees as the "man with the perfect life". This action becomes a big mistake.

But the path Director/Actor: Greg Kinner takes to tell this story is so full of holes and ridiculous situations the story never reaches it's comic goal and quickly descends into a goofball story trying to make a valuable statement on life.

The Greek persona never becomes remotely convincing.

Tries so hard to be both a comedy in the style of Green Card while also attempting some deep and meaningful examination of human existence. It fails at both, but Kinnear is likeable and his performance almost saves it.

Watch this movie totally cuz of Greg. It's not his top performance but it's nicely done. In terms of acting a mid life crisis man he did it good. Treasure the chance seeing these actors acted is the key point.

Actually, it's not the actors per se, but the script and the film itself. After paying for it, I wound up turning it off less than midway. It's one of those films that is not believable, not funny, stupid and ludicrous. Oh, and did I say predictable? It reminded me of certain British films and TV shows in which the so-called humor has cruelty implicit in it, and for me, is impossible to watch. Watch at your own risk!