L'amour en équation

Catherine Boyd (Meg Ryan) is the niece of Albert Einstein (Walter Matthau) and engaged to pompous professor James Moreland (Stephen Fry). Catherine and James start having car trouble. Ed Walters (Tim Robbins), Bob Rosetti (Tony Shalhoub), and Frank (Frank Whaley) are working in the garage. Ed falls head over heels for Catherine. Einstein intervenes with his scientist friends Nathan Liebknecht (Joseph Maher), Kurt Gödel (Lou Jacobi), and Boris Podolsky (Gene Saks) to perfect a Grand Design. Louis Bamberger (Charles Durning) is the head of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton.

The rom-com formula is often derided but there is a reason why everyone keeps repeating it. Catherine and Ed need much more heat in their first meeting. The romance is too one-sided and sputters along. They really don't have enough time together. Even queen Meg Ryan cannot drive this rom-com at full speed. Ed spends more time with Einstein than her. The standout is Walter Matthau and his gang of elderly gentlemen. They are fun and able to deliver a few funny moments. It's more of a hybrid between a rom-com and a buddy movie. This sorta works and has some fun doing it.

Sure, I'm a big Meg fan, but this one is high on my list. She's as adorable as ever, Tim Robbins pulls of another great performance, and Walter Matthau is absolutely perfect as Einstein. The movie is thoroughly funny and even manages to be reasonably intelligent!

One of those films with a great central idea and a fantastic cast that somehow just doesn't work. Why? Don't know. Possibly the script? Possibly the lack of chemistry? I've watched it a few times- each time expecting to "get it" this time. Not terrible- but disappointingly mediocre.

IQ is a cute romantic comedy featuring two great actors that seem to click well on screen. Plot is a typical guy wrong for girl, guy gets girl format, but makes the solid point that one must love with the heart and not the the mind. Addition of Albert Einstein and his band of geniuses provides excellent comic relief. Overall, a good movie. Not great, but good

Matthau is wonderful as Albert Einstein in this love story from Fred Schepsi. Car mechanic Robbins falls for quirky Ryan, with the help of the great Einstein and his cronies. It's a fun story idea and all the performances are well paced and delivered.