Dan in Real Life ***
Cast: Steve Carrell, Juliette Binoche, Mitch Burns, Dianne Wiest, John Mahoney, Emily Blunt, Alison Pill, Brittany Robertson, Marlene Lawston
Director: Peter Hedges
Running Length: 1:38
MPAA Classification: PG-13

Dan Burns (Carrell) writes advice columns and fiction. After his wife died, he raised their three girls by himself. Every year, the Burns family all gather at grandma and grandpa’s (Wiest and Mahoney) house for a family reunion. While at the bookstore, Dan meets Marie (Binoche). They hit it off, but eventually Marie has to leave to meet her boyfriend. Dan heads home to meet his brother’s (Cook) girlfriend, who happens to be Marie. Now they have to be in close proximity without letting on that they met and had an attraction. The secret gets harder and harder to keep and soon Dan must figure out how to tell his brother.

“Dan in Real Life” is a nice movie. It has laughs, but isn’t hilarious. The acting is good, but not great. Carrell is good at playing likeable characters, and “Dan in Real Life” is no exception. The family dynamic in the film is probably the film’s funniest aspect. “Dan in Real Life” will be enjoyed by most, but when its all over, it really hasn’t given you a whole lot. Still, I have to recommend it because I think it accomplishes what it sets out to do.