As always, I love movies. Unfortunately I never seem to have enough time to go see them at the theater, so I am never current with my movie selections and reviews.

I am giving Stranger than Fiction a 4 Banana Salute. I really enjoyed the flick and it works great as a “date film.”

Harold Crick, played brilliantly bland by Will Farrell, is an IRS auditor who lives a solitary life, which he measures by numbers. Numbers of strokes with his toothbrush, number of steps to the bus, and anything and everything else measured and quantified by numbers. His daily rituals change suddenly one Wednesday morning when he becomes aware of a voice narrating his life, “accurately and with a better vocabulary.” Without giving away the entire plot, the voice is that of a writer we learn is struggling with writer’s block. When Harold overhears his impending doom, he takes action, and the strong story line makes this a fun journey with great acting jobs by Emma Thompson and Dustin Hoffman.

I was impressed by Farrell, usually he has to be over the top on everything. But this time he played it low-keyed and it was a fine acting job. Emma Thompson is brilliant as the blocked author with a wild imagination and Dustin Hoffman reminds us of what a talented actor he remains - his scene without shoes was a great little twist.

Written by Zach Helm, the movie had a Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy quality to it. And the over all vision appeal comes from director March Forster of Monster’s Ball fame.

So rent it with your better half and enjoy.

And I WANT that watch.