Rather than look at the merits of the film as a whole, I'll focus on Justin Long's strange and disturbing performance of a character who really gets under your skin. There is a definite distinction between how annoying and irritating the *character* of Hal Nestor is and Long's portrayal of him; Long does such a good job that I found myself not liking Long on a personal level. It took some remembering of roles I did enjoy, like his Apple commercials, to realize that it was Long's talent that was producing this effect.
The character of Hal Nestor is written really well, and defies a whole slew of stereotypes. The arch-typical nerdy math savant who doesn't fit in and longs for the popular girl ALWAYS turns the tables on establishment (his mom and his high school class in this case), gets the girl, and triumphs in the end. This type is usually portrayed as a misunderstood genius/saint. But Hal/Long doesn't achieve *any* of these typical goals.
Instead of the sweet saintly outsider, Hal/Long is a nasty piece of work. He's highly manipulative, pathologically narcissistic and just plain mean. Because of his distorting narcissism, he thinks so highly of himself that I have to wonder if indeed he was any kind of math prodigy. He never challenges his solutions against any known establishment like a teacher or professor; he just keeps scribbling away and locking the outside world out. The writing is so good, and Long so disturbing that I frequently found myself cringing when he enacted one of his childish manipulations to get what he wanted. Long also does a great job of looking the part, with his pale, skinny and wasted frame, and a head of the greasiest stringiest hair I've ever seen. And Long in his private life is a handsome guy who is known for his fashionable mop of trendy hipster hair.
The rest of the film has its flaws, to be sure. But Long's and the writers' character study of Hal Nestor is masterful, and makes the movie memorable, and something I'd recommend.
The character of Hal Nestor is written really well, and defies a whole slew of stereotypes. The arch-typical nerdy math savant who doesn't fit in and longs for the popular girl ALWAYS turns the tables on establishment (his mom and his high school class in this case), gets the girl, and triumphs in the end. This type is usually portrayed as a misunderstood genius/saint. But Hal/Long doesn't achieve *any* of these typical goals.
Instead of the sweet saintly outsider, Hal/Long is a nasty piece of work. He's highly manipulative, pathologically narcissistic and just plain mean. Because of his distorting narcissism, he thinks so highly of himself that I have to wonder if indeed he was any kind of math prodigy. He never challenges his solutions against any known establishment like a teacher or professor; he just keeps scribbling away and locking the outside world out. The writing is so good, and Long so disturbing that I frequently found myself cringing when he enacted one of his childish manipulations to get what he wanted. Long also does a great job of looking the part, with his pale, skinny and wasted frame, and a head of the greasiest stringiest hair I've ever seen. And Long in his private life is a handsome guy who is known for his fashionable mop of trendy hipster hair.
The rest of the film has its flaws, to be sure. But Long's and the writers' character study of Hal Nestor is masterful, and makes the movie memorable, and something I'd recommend.