hyped garbage

Fantastic!

A waste of 90 minutes of my life

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

I'm a big fan of Jessica Alba and was disappointed when the Fantastic Four franchise was dropped. I really expected more from this film, but the only mature performances among the main characters came from the reliable J.K. Simmons and 10-year-old Sophie Nyweide (who stole the movie for me). I realise that the parts played by Jessica and dad John Shea were difficult, requiring them to reveal glimpses of former brilliance along with the subtle emotional and mental damage (respectively), the combined effect of which turned mother Sonia Braga into a hag (a role that didn't do her justice either). Unfortunately, they both missed the mark and Jessica came across as simple almost to the point of retarded. The school head was a caricature figure, as was the 'bad girl' (an issue that was dismally not addressed). Indeed the whole film seemed a bit like a caricature, which is disappointing, since all the ingredients were there to produce something a lot better - a real missed opportunity. The best scene (apart from the maudlin ones involving Sophie) was when Jessica determines to find out what happened to JKS. I would really love to have liked this film more, but won't be keeping my copy.

I am compelled to review this movie because it is very underrated and has a lot of negative reviews. I don't understand the negativity at all. If you have any interest in math, for instance, this is a good movie for that alone. I didn't see anything bad about the acting, directing or dialog. Perfectly fine and engaging feel-good movie about troubled people and how they deal. No doubt a good adaptation of the book (which I haven't read).Several people express confusion at why Alba's character is thrown out of her home by her mom because her father got sick. This is not directly explained in the movie, but I think it is extremely clear: it's because her mom wants her daughter to have a life of her own. Not to be tied down taking care of the sick dad. I don't really see anything very strange about that.The movie is adorable and emotionally effective most of the time. Where I do start to get a slight problem with this movie is towards the end. The whole ax thing got over-dramatic, the reinstatement after the firing was not explained (although I suspect it probably was in the book - clearly it had something to do with the hotshot lawyer mom of one of the pupils), and the guy's comment about being her "bathroom monitor" was a very strange reaction, clearly only supposed to create artificial tension until he changed his mind seconds later. Add to this that the ending was perhaps a tiny bit too syrupy. But somehow it makes sense; most of the elements do combine to make a well-rounded whole.I enjoyed the movie and I continue to be shocked by how off-putting some people found it. I guess a lot of the negative reviewers are just aping other negative reviewers in order to seem like they are cool. Memo: People who ape other people's opinions are never cool.

I found this one on Netflix streaming movies. It is quite quirky in places, which may turn off some who enjoy conventional narratives, but in total it is a very nice little story. Jessica Alba is the adult, 20-something Mona Gray. As a small girl she loved her dad, ran with him, did "numbers" with him, and overall became somewhat fascinated with numbers. But as she grew up her dad developed a mental problem, he could no longer function normally, and as a 10-yr-old Mona thought if she did certain things, for example if she denied herself of things she enjoyed, her dad would get better. All this caused Mona to grow up with development challenges, and she became very shy and unwilling to experience normal friendships, not to mention a love relationship. But one day, to help her, mom found out the local elementary math teacher had run off to Paraguay to join the revolutionaries and Mona was to be the new math teacher. Never mind that she never finished college!So Mona jumps in there, does the best she can, has difficulty controlling the students. But she meets Science teacher, Chris Messina as Ben Smith. he is pretty much the opposite of Mona, outgoing and not overly worrying about anything. He takes a liking to Mona but finds her shell very difficult to penetrate.J.K. Simmons is interesting as the neighbor Mr. Jones, who had taught math to Mona as a child, and who now runs the local hardware store. Her confused dad is John Shea as Dad. And Sonia Braga is her mom, still attractive at just past 60. I first saw her years ago in the 1983 movie "Gabriella" where in her early 20s played a sultry cook and lover. Interesting career arc!Anyway it is a nice movie, and therapeutic for Mona, as she eventually finds a way out of her shell. I have enjoyed Jessica Alba since her days as "Dark Angel" on the TV series, and I like her here.

i will have to cast my vote with the crowd disappointed with this movie. i just couldn't figure out where this story was going. Alba has too many issues. The Simmons character is sort of mysterious and odd (who would leave their store unlocked and just go home). The boy friend is sort of mean. And on and on I could go ....The message I got out of this story is that life cannot be understood or explained via a mathematical equation and words do hurt people. But who doesn't already know this? The movie is way too complex just for this simple message. And (in my opinion) the ending has nothing to do with what happens throughout the entire film. Alba is confused and alone then suddenly she give into the Messina characters advances - which she avoided all along.I want to like this movie but i can't.