Proof
Director: John Madden
Year Released: 2005
Rating: 1.0
Contrived - and seemingly endless - arguments as well as an awkward use of flashbacks mar this adaptation of David Auburn's play, which tries to get to the bottom of who wrote this brilliant math theorem: a crazy math genius (Anthony Hopkins) or his depressive daughter (Gwyneth Paltrow, no makeup and no heart). It never even bothers trying to explain the "proof" to the audience (either we're all just too stupid to get it or it's just supposed to be a MacGuffin), leaving the performers to stare at the notebook containing such reasoning all bug-eyed; further, when someone thinks of actors that can convincingly portray "brilliant math nerds," neither Paltrow nor Jake Gyllenhaal come to mind. To be fair, when I think of a "predictable, flaccid storyline," I also don't think of "Pulitzer Prize," so I could very well be wrong....
