The Words (2012)

Elevator Pitch

A successful writer is giving a reading from his work to an important audience, which seems to be a story about a struggling author who finds a complete manuscript in an old briefcase. Unable to resist it, he retypes the story and submits it as his own, becoming succesful himself, but later, meeting the actual author of the work, who recounts the events portrayed, must learn to live with his dishonesty, and the fact that his wife may or may not love him due to his deceit.

Content

The three levels of the story unpack themselves. The successful author speaks to his audience and later has a one to one with a female fan. In the next level of the story the young aspiring author has discussions with his agent/publisher finds the manuscript and romances his girfriend/wife. Then he meets to old man who tells the story of his wartime romance and marriage to a French woman and a subsequent tragedy which stimulates the work found by the other. Got it so far? But nothing to offend in this. The “Content Advisory” guys seem to have seen a different film from me.

A View

I’ll say right away that this is a “Almost Don’t See” for me and, at the risk of creating a spoiler, the reason is that the whole dispiriting enterprise is pointless, and you can only come away from the one and three-quarter hour session feeling cheated. Some of the reviews have been fun which is the best you can say about it. Even if you are a fan of any of the stars choose anything else they have done before this.