Ruby Sparks

Thanks to the central duo (over)sweet and nicely uningratiating, but in view of the theme “mind what you wish for, it might come true" in indie romantic style, it’s almost surprising just how predictable and unplayful it is in the end. And, once upon a time, Richard Matteson proved that the same can be made playful and ingenious in a Twilight Zone episode A World of his Own. (23.06.2013)

SPOILER! First of all, a very well-written (applause Zoe!) unconventional love story. I really liked the basic idea - we can all dream up an ideal partner who will always behave as we wish and suits us, but reality can ruthlessly wave goodbye to this fleeting ideal state. Paul Dano is a chameleon who can handle all types of characters, Zoe Kazan is ideally suited for such a genre, and once again applause for writing such a script. I consider the absolute highlight of the film when Ruby, against her will, does everything Calvin types into the typewriter. Beautifully crafted and acted scene. (16.06.2019)

At the beginning, this movie was interesting. Some parts were really interesting. But as time went on, the excitement sort of wore off. Both when it comes to the main roles and the story as such. I didn’t really notice at the start that the story is a bit fantasy and that the plot is pretty much a pseudo romantic one. But gradually, I began to see it differently. The ending was even a bit unnecessary. Anyways, the premise and the fact that thanks to the movie I got to know Zoe Kazan are reason enough to give it three-star rating. (13.01.2014)

The creators of Little Miss Sunshine, my favourite American indie comedy, deliver another good American indie comedy. Ruby Sparks is an original (to some extent, a similar idea was used a little in Forster’s Stranger than Fiction), fun and smooth film. It’s a shame that the duo of directors didn’t have the balls to finish it about 10 minutes before the ending. That would have made me ecstatic, the outcome would have been strong, though not as a rom-com. So, only satisfaction. (16.11.2012)

A cursory look seems to tell us that someone under the influence of Stranger than Fiction wrote a light and straightforward high-concept romance. Only the intensification of the interaction between the relationship storylines and creative control enriches the film with an unexpectedly dark and very entertaining level. It doesn’t matter how real and lively a character Ruby is (not much). It’s suddenly absolutely enough that, in her appearance and behaviour, she represents a dream come true for a good many geeks. She does not fulfil the role of a hero’s full-blooded partner – her presence only initiates a stress test of Calvin’s character. Is he able to accept the fact that his dream has made itself at home in the reality that he inhabits? Can he live without subordinating Ruby to his authorial control and reminding her who the master is? ___ As a product of the patriarchal society, the film at times exhibits the most honest genre self-reflection that there are men who insist that women should behave in accordance with melodramatic conventions, i.e. hysterically. During these demonstrations of male dominance, all of the film’s levity evaporates and it's only a small step away from being a psychological horror movie, which is actually what lies beneath the outward charm of most Hollywood romantic comedies. However, the trauma from this look behind the curtain is not further developed, for example by reversing the roles of the author and the work, and the film ends on a rather banal note. SPOILER – Ruby’s redemption and Calvin’s “descent” into her reality (by rewriting their shared story, he becomes a character in the same narrative and already understands her and probably even women in general). The repeated display of an attractive façade comes across as hypocritical, like a voluntary acceptance of the falsity that the film itself warned us about. END SPOILER ___ The screenplay with a clever idea would need a firmer grasp on the part of the director (the narrative sometimes stagnates, e.g. in the family intermezzo with Banderas’s funny but superfluous cameo) and the mending of certain holes in the logic (why does Ruby get upset about her “rewrite” only after she finds out about it? Didn’t she suddenly become aware of her nature/abilities earlier in the film?) ___ Ruby Sparks is a sweet story with a moral lesson (we must find and keep the ideal in ourselves, not in others) that reveals the rules of run-of-the-mill romances, but it doesn’t do much with them, which is a shame, because in my opinion,  a first-rate narratological delicacy has been created here in the second plane. However, the first plane is still very good, mainly thanks to the redheaded Zoe Kazan. 75% (28.01.2013)