Ruby Sparks (2012) Directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris. Starring: Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan and Annette Bening. IMDB says: “A novelist struggling with writer’s block finds romance in a most unusual way: by creating a female character he thinks will love him, then willing her into existence.”“
Ruby Sparks is an interesting movie. It’s part comedy, part love story, part drama, and part science fiction? Yeah. Science fiction. Although the Sci-fi elements are played down considerably, to a point where characters reactions are genuinely realistic, this film does have an interesting way in dealing with its story. The story is about Calvin (Paul Dano) who was a massively successful writer (ten years ago) and he’s struggling to write his next big novel. With the help of his psychiatrist, he’s tasked with writing about a mystery girl he met in his dreams. Not only does that help with his writer’s block, he ends up creating the mystery girl. One day she appears in his apartment and his life is never the same.
Zoe Kazan (also the films writer) does a phenomenal job as Ruby Sparks. Kazan brings such adaptability and flexibility to the role it looks nearly natural as she changes moods, and languages, within seconds. Her chemistry with Paul Dano brings that much more depth not only to the characters, but to their genuine romance as well. The film does a great job of thrusting these two into the spotlight so much that minor characters become forgettable plot devices. Scenes where Calvin and Ruby visit family or interact with co-workers come across as bland and rushed instead of being used to develop characters or relationships more. Even the setting, as beautiful as it is sometimes, seems lacking in traits that have all gone to Ruby and Calvin.
The big struggle with this film is the tone. The story visibly shifts between comedy and romance, and becomes off-putting when the science fiction elements are presented. The transitions are sudden and never let a scene feel natural despite how hard Dano and Kazan try to make the scene work. The films climax, which could have been astounding, felt insecure and thrown-together as it stumbled through the film trying to find its footing. As soon as the scene was over, it felt as if we shifted back to the films original tone and picked up pace to get to a suitable ending.
