Critic Reviews
Dan in Real Life (2007) Rank 3 Reviews
Expert Review Summary
based on (168) reviews
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Christian Spotlight on the Movies
Without anyone telling the audience that Dan Burns is lonely, it is easy to see. Dan (Steve Carell) is in an empty bed. He wakes up and begins ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Christian Spotlight on the Movies
Moviepie.com
Dan in Real Life is a good movie, but it's also proof that casting can make or break a movie. Not that Dan's script isn't smart and sweet, because it is, but it might easily have resulted in something closer to, well, a Dane Cook movie. (Cook is actually ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Moviepie.com
Variety
Gracefully understated and thoroughly engaging, "Dan in Real Life" deftly interlaces heart and humor in a witty, warm and well-observed comedy about the unexpected and inconvenient blooming of romance at the weekend gathering of an extended family. Pic ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Variety
The Flick Filosopher (MaryAnn Johanson)
Look, this is what happens: Steve Carell runs into Juliette Binoche in a bookstore, and she thinks he works there and so asks him for help finding a funny book, cuz sheâs depressed and needs cheering up. âSomething human-funnyâ is what she wants, ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at The Flick Filosopher (MaryAnn Johanson)
The Phantom Tollbooth
For a romantic comedy to work there must be likeable characters with online chemistry and believability. In real life no one is perfect and you want
your character's flaws to add to their personality and not distract too much from it. Dan in Real Life ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at The Phantom Tollbooth
Maxim (Pete Hammond)
Finally a really smart, really funny movie about the ups and downs of life, love and family. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Maxim (Pete Hammond)
efilmcritic.com (Peter Sobczynski)
Thanks to a poster that features a bemused-looking Steve Carell with his head resting comfortably atop a plate of pancakes and commercials that feature him acting all panicky while teaching his daughter how to drive, you might expect âDan In Real Lifeâ ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at efilmcritic.com (Peter Sobczynski)
Killer Movie Reviews (Andrea Chase)
DAN IN REAL LIFE is suffused with a lovely sweetness. Not cloying, not sappy, but instead, unaffectedly joyful about what life has to offer, including the madness inherent in how very messy life tends to be. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Killer Movie Reviews (Andrea Chase)
commonsensemedia.org (Heather Boerner)
Love hurts in cute (if predictable) rom com. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at commonsensemedia.org (Heather Boerner)
CinemaBlend.com (Scott Gwin)
Easily the most uplifting, satisfying movie I've seen, or hope to see, all year. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at CinemaBlend.com (Scott Gwin)
ComingSoon.net (Edward Douglas)
An utterly charming crowd-pleasing comedy that adds another impressive performance to Steve Carell's resume. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at ComingSoon.net (Edward Douglas)
Arizona Republic (Kerry Lengel)
To call this feel-good comedy conservative is to cede 'family values' to the realm of politics, which, despite a vague NPR-ishness to the characters, is something Real Life refuses to do. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Arizona Republic (Kerry Lengel)
MovieWeb (Dodd Alley)
Steve Carell has become a recent and rather unpredictable force in Hollywood. After breaking into film with The 40-Year-Old Virgin and landing the starring role in the NBC sitcom, The Office, he was destined to become the next familiar face of comedy. So ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at MovieWeb (Dodd Alley)
ViewLondon (Matthew Turner)
cinemattraction (Brandon Fibbs)
You might think that Dan in Real Life mines the familiar story of family dysfunction, a well that, letâs admit it, never runs dry. But youâd be wrong. Dan in Real Life goes boldly (and refreshingly) where few films have gone before â into the home o ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at cinemattraction (Brandon Fibbs)
WFAA-TV (Gary Cogill)
Kids, laughter, young love, maturity, immaturity, perfect and imperfect, all chaotically swirling around a brilliant performance by Steve Carrell. It is a movie that cares about all of us. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at WFAA-TV (Gary Cogill)
Houston Community Newspapers (Gary Brown)
There are a number of reasons not to recommend âDan In Real Lifeâ but this week Iâm going to be nice. I liked this film, considering that my choice of review came down to it or âSaw 4.â Wowâsome choice. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Houston Community Newspapers (Gary Brown)
Screen International
Dan in Real Life takes on a familiar character, the seemingly omniscient newspaper advice-giver (Steve Carell), whose family life as a widower with three daughters doesn't measure up to the wisdom of his daily columns. Dan's love life is even more of a ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Screen International
Preview Family Movie Review
Palo Alto Online (Susan Tavernetti)
Steve Carell is the new Tom Hanks. He has the regular-nice-guy screen persona, vulnerability and perfect comic timing that lets him easily carry this gentle romantic comedy on his slight shoulders. Instead of playing a 40-year-old virgin, Carell slips ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Palo Alto Online (Susan Tavernetti)
Entertainment Insiders (Jonathan W. Hickman)
I guess Iâm an old softie sometimes. And a film like âDan In Real Lifeâ hit me in just the right way. I came away thinking that it just might be the sweetest film of the year. And finally, actress Emily Blunt gets to show off how hot she really is.
...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Entertainment Insiders (Jonathan W. Hickman)
Kansas City Star (Robert W. Butler)
Mostly the laughs are based in behavior and character. Carell once again displays the range that makes him something more than just another funny guy. Binoche is so appealing that you immediately understand why Dan has been smitten. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Kansas City Star (Robert W. Butler)
Cinema in Focus (Denny Wayman and Hal Conklin)
Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Steve Carell of "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" has a personality, or maybe it is a lack of personality, that is growing on me. He is content to exist on the screen without sending wild semaphores of his intentions, his uniqueness and how funny he is. He's an ev ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Los Angeles Daily News (Glenn Whipp)
Smart, funny, character-based romantic comedy that's full of good surprises. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Los Angeles Daily News (Glenn Whipp)
San Antonio Express-News (Larry Ratliff)
Dan in Real Life isn't about real life. This is reel life, Hollywood's heightened-reality take on what might go on at a large family gathering where one woman is caught between the affections of siblings. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at San Antonio Express-News (Larry Ratliff)
Sacramento Bee (Carla Meyer)
Hedges imparts, in the space of an hour and a half, a real sense of this family's history -- its rituals and its resilience. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Sacramento Bee (Carla Meyer)
Salt Lake Tribune (Sean Means)
Nearly every scene feels true, as if lifted directly from your own family reunion. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Salt Lake Tribune (Sean Means)
Aisle Seat (Mike McGranaghan)
This is one of those "feel good" movies that really does make you feel good. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Aisle Seat (Mike McGranaghan)
Detroit Free Press (Terry Lawson)
Hedges is not the most subtle of storytellers, but his sincerity shines through, as does a certain gentleness. Dan in Real Life is one of those films you cheer to succeed, even when it doesn't come close to real life. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Detroit Free Press (Terry Lawson)
Christianity Today (Josh Hurst)
There's not an iota of pretense here, not the slightest hint of hipster irony or of cynicism. It's a movie about family, made by people who know about family, who believe in family. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Christianity Today (Josh Hurst)
Seattle Times (Ted Fry)
Carell plays it fairly straight in a movie that hits high on the scales of comedy and romance, with just a dollop of dramatic reality. It's almost as if he were playing, well, real life. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Seattle Times (Ted Fry)
Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus (Bryant Frazer)
Am I a hypocrite? Sign me, Dan in Real Life. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus (Bryant Frazer)
TV Guide's Movie Guide (Ken Fox)
It's a clever idea for a romantic comedy that presents a credible obstacle for two modern, would-be lovers to maneuver around for 90 minutes. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at TV Guide's Movie Guide (Ken Fox)
MovieFreak.com (Sara M. Fetters)
The writing here is as honest as any I've experienced this year, the script a continuous symphony of all of life's numerous bells and whistles that continually keep us all coming back for more. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at MovieFreak.com (Sara M. Fetters)
The Onion A.V. Club
In bare description, Dan In Real Life sounds like a movie no one should want to see. Steve Carell plays a widowed parental advice columnist whose three daughters, get this, don't feel like he has all the answers. On an annual family outing to close up ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at The Onion A.V. Club
The Land of Eric (Eric D. Snider)
As much as I roll my eyes at the generically ironic scenario -- he's an advice columnist, but his personal life is a mess! -- I'm delighted by the effortlessly breezy humor of "Dan in Real Life." It breaks free from that lame set-up's confines to go ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at The Land of Eric (Eric D. Snider)
Salon.com (Stephanie Zacharek)
There's nothing groundbreaking about Dan in Real Life -- it's a picture that could have been made 10 or 20 years ago -- and yet its easygoing, affable nature is exactly what makes it pleasurable. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Salon.com (Stephanie Zacharek)
Film Journal International (Kevin Lally)
Steve Carell may have suffered a major setback in his short movie career with the box-office failure of the biblically extravagant summer comedy Evan Almighty, but heâs sure to win back some audience goodwill with the more sensibly modest comedy Dan in ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Film Journal International (Kevin Lally)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The world needs more movies about tender-hearted men, if only to give Steve Carell a break from playing a buffoon on TV. Carell is painfully funny on "The Office," but "The 40 Year-Old Virgin" hinted at the sympathetic qualities that could make him a ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Minneapolis Star Tribune (Colin Covert)
For all its by-the-numbers plotting, Dan in Real Life is winningly good-natured and funny. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Minneapolis Star Tribune (Colin Covert)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Mack Bates)
A wry, smart and perceptive dramedy about family and life's other surprises. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Mack Bates)
FromTheBalcony (Bill Clark)
Carell, who is quickly building an impressive big screen resume, shines and brings the rest of the film up a few notches in the process. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at FromTheBalcony (Bill Clark)
Hollywood Reporter (Kirk Honeycutt)
While not a perfect comedy, Dan is certainly a crowd-pleasing, cleverly engineered and well-executed divertissement that should put grins on the faces of movie fans of many ages and execs at Disney and Focus Features. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Hollywood Reporter (Kirk Honeycutt)
Compuserve (Harvey S. Karten)
Director Hedges's signature trademark of broad comedy with family sentiment on display with reasonable success. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Compuserve (Harvey S. Karten)
eFilmCritic.com (Erik Childress)
Thankfully, Hedges keeps his focus and doesn't allow the film to just become a series of sketches and syrupy confessionals. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at eFilmCritic.com (Erik Childress)
Big Picture Big Sound (Joe Lozito)
Sweet family comedy trifle starring Steve Carell as the titular neurotic advice columnist suffering through an impossibly quaint family vacation. Manages to be cute without being cutesy. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Big Picture Big Sound (Joe Lozito)
The New York Times
Early in Peter Hedgesâs âDan in Real Life,â the title character, at a bookstore, meets the woman he will fall in love with. Mistaking him for an employee, she breathlessly tries to describe the kind of book sheâs looking for. (He responds by gathe ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at The New York Times
Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Steve Carell of "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" has a personality, or maybe it is a lack of personality, that is growing on me. He is content to exist on the screen without sending wild semaphores of his intentions, his uniqueness and how funny he is. He's an ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Rolling Stone (Peter Travers)
Seeing the name of Iowa writer Peter Hedges on a movie (What's Eating Gilbert Grape, About a Boy, Pieces of April) means you're in for a unique blend of humor and heartbreak, with the bruising and healing powers of family right at the core. April in 2003 ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Rolling Stone (Peter Travers)
Chicago Tribune (Michael Phillips)
A low-key, highly agreeable charmer. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Chicago Tribune (Michael Phillips)
Newsday (Gene Seymour)
Dan in Real Life navigates its machinations with such laid-back assurance that it earns your attention, your respect and, ultimately, your heart. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Newsday (Gene Seymour)
Capital Times (Madison, WI) (Rob Thomas)
Add in a terrific soundtrack of original songs by singer-songwriter Sondre Lerche, and "Dan in Real Life" is an unexpected and very welcome treat, a crowd-pleasing mainstream comedy with the soul of an indie. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Capital Times (Madison, WI) (Rob Thomas)
E! Online (Matt Stephens)
Carell and Binoche do make a sweet couple, but this rom-com fare -- albeit tasty at times -- isn't as substantial as it should be. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at E! Online (Matt Stephens)
New York Post (Kyle Smith)
DAN in Real Life" is the anti-Ben Stiller comedy: There's humiliation aplenty but no mugging, no abuse to the crotch region, no straining to be outrageous. One character says she's looking for something "not necessarily hahaha laugh-out-loud funny, ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at New York Post (Kyle Smith)
Nolan's Pop Culture Review (Michael A. Smith)
Carell continues his march as this generation's Tom Hanks, equally comfortable and at home in comedy or drama. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Nolan's Pop Culture Review (Michael A. Smith)
Reel.com
It has been a while since I've seen an actor single-handedly elevate merely fair material with a transcendental performance. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Reel.com
Deseret News, Salt Lake City (Jeff Vice)
Dan in Real Life is a pretty warm, genuine comedy that succeeds, at least in part, because of some gutsy casting choices. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Deseret News, Salt Lake City (Jeff Vice)
Arizona Daily Star (Phil Villarreal)
It sounds corny, and it is -- as are many other of the goofy sequences that seem lame on paper but work in execution. But that's family. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Arizona Daily Star (Phil Villarreal)
Can Magazine (Fred Topel)
The film portrays how good will is much harder to handle than evil. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Can Magazine (Fred Topel)
Empire Movies (Erin Cullin)
Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)
IF what you're looking for in film is vampires running amok or maniacs slicing and dicing quivering flesh, you never have far to go these days. But if what you want is a star-driven sophisticated romantic comedy that is successfully aimed at actual ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)
Contra Costa Times (Mary F. Pols)
Dan in Real Life is this year's Family Stone , a pleasant enough diversion -- especially if your own family is driving you crazy -- but quickly forgotten. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Contra Costa Times (Mary F. Pols)
Spirituality & Health (Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat)
Falling in love is an experience filled with surprises. You never know what to expect, and things never go quite as you had planned. Dan Burns (Steve Carell) is a family-advice columnist and widowed father of three daughters. He is still reeling from the ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Spirituality & Health (Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat)
Reeling Reviews (Robin and Laura Clifford)
Widowed Dan Burns (Steve Carell, "The 40 Year Old Virgin") has his hands full with three daughters ranging from a fourth grader to high school senior. When he drags the family to the annual gathering at his folk's homestead on Narragansett Bay, his ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Reeling Reviews (Robin and Laura Clifford)
Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Sean Axmaker)
The cozy, lived-in atmosphere created by the ensemble and the unlikely chemistry of Carell and Binoche are so genuine that you wish the rest of the film was just as effortless and authentic. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Sean Axmaker)
Wolfpack Productions (Sujit 'Chief' Chawla)
Dan in Real Life was a fun, if sometimes random, romantic comedy that was held together by its cast. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Wolfpack Productions (Sujit 'Chief' Chawla)
MovieWeb (Matt Sheehan)
Steve Carell really has come a long way since his time on the turning point years of "The Daily Show." He stole the show in "Bruce Almighty" and "Anchorman." Then, he proved himself a suitable and bankable lead in "The ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at MovieWeb (Matt Sheehan)
Boxoffice Magazine (Annlee Ellingson)
This picture about romance found unexpectedly in middle age juxtaposes poignant observations about love and family with genuinely humorous moments. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Boxoffice Magazine (Annlee Ellingson)
Qwipster's Movie Reviews (Vince Leo)
A charming and funny romantic comedy, Steve Carell (Evan Almighty, Little Miss Sunshine) and the rest of the ensemble cast imbue their characters with the requisite energy and quirks necessary to overcome a major sitcom premise and craft one of the best ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Qwipster's Movie Reviews (Vince Leo)
MovieWeb (Francine Brokaw)
Dan (Steve Carell) is a single father of three daughters. The foursome joins the rest of his family at the family's estate in Rhode Island for their annual long weekend. Although his wife has been dead for four years, Dan has not been involved with any ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at MovieWeb (Francine Brokaw)
Philadelphia Inquirer (Carrie Rickey)
Dan is an advice guru who does not always practice what he preaches. "Home is not a restaurant, don't cater to your kids by making each their own meal," Dan advises a ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Philadelphia Inquirer (Carrie Rickey)
Richmond Times-Dispatch
It's a shame that movie producers refuse to let Steve Carell act. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Richmond Times-Dispatch
kids-in-mind
A widower (Steve Carell) with three daughters has devoted himself to them, while his family thinks it's time for him to move on and tries to get him to date again. But when he meets a woman (Juliette Binoche) in a local bookstore and is instantly ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at kids-in-mind
Toronto Star (Geoff Pevere)
After it miraculously hurdles one of the more excruciating-meet-cute scenes in recent rom-com memory, Peter Hedges' Dan in Real Life proves a movie nicely packed with pleasantly unpredictable surprises.
While ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Toronto Star (Geoff Pevere)
Hollywood Report Card (Ross Anthony)
I'm a Steve Carell fan. I quite enjoyed Evan Almighty. Although, I wasn't that crazy about 40-Year-Old Virgin. As Dan in real life, Carell is a much quieter version of himself â sort of a like the subtler side that Will Ferrell showed in Stranger than ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Hollywood Report Card (Ross Anthony)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"While Hedges doesn't completely succeed in purging the plot of its eye-rolling moments ... he makes it a largely guilt-free pleasure." ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Detroit News (Tom Long)
The previews make Dan in Real Life look like a tepid romantic comedy that makes little use of Steve Carell's gifts. Well, the previews are right. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Detroit News (Tom Long)
The New York Times (A.O. Scott)
Early in Peter Hedgesâs âDan in Real Life,â the title character, at a bookstore, meets the woman he will fall in love with. Mistaking him for an employee, she breathlessly tries to describe the kind of book sheâs looking for. (He responds by gathe ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at The New York Times (A.O. Scott)
Associated Press (David Germain)
A surprisingly plain, sappy, even insipid comedy, considering the filmmaker behind it. ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Associated Press (David Germain)
ReelTalk (John P. McCarthy)
Near the end, Dan's eldest daughter delivers a quip that neatly sums up Dan in Real Life: "This is all so queer, but I wouldn't miss it for ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at ReelTalk (John P. McCarthy)
The Movie Boy (Dustin Putman)
"Dan in Real Life" is a love story, a human comedy, and a family drama all rolled into a tidy slice-of-life package. Its natural recent comparison would be 2005's "The Family Stone," a more poignant but also perhaps glossier film that featured an ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at The Movie Boy (Dustin Putman)
Chicago Tribune (Geoff Berkshire)
Advice columnist Dan Burns (Steve Carell)âa widower raising three girlsâunexpectedly finds love during a weekend getaway with his extended family. Unfortunately the woman of his dreams (Juliette Binoche) is also his brotherâs (Dane Cook) new girlfri ...read the complete Dan in Real Life movie review at Chicago Tribune (Geoff Berkshire)
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