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List Price: $14.95 | | Label: Weinstein Company
Salesrank: 24696
Released: February 12, 2008 |
| Our Price: $3.69 |
| Used Price: $2.28 |
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MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Dedication is a modern love story in which a misanthropic, emotionally complex children’s book author named Henry is forced to team up with a beautiful illustrator after his best friend and creative collaborator passes away. As Henry struggles with letting go of the ghosts of love and life, he discovers that sometimes you have to take a gamble at life to find love.
Description of Dedication:
At first glance, Justin Theroux's directorial debut looks like a romantic comedy, but it's really a character study. And misanthropic children's book author Henry (Billy Crudup, who worked with Theroux in Broadway's Three Sisters) is one heck of a character. For inspiration, he turns to the Japanese cult classic Gamera. When feeling stressed, he piles books on his prone chest. Henry has worked with illustrator Rudy (Tom Wilkinson, Crudup's Stage Beauty co-star) for 15 years when the unthinkable happens. Contractually obligated to produce another Marty the Beaver adventure, his agent (Bob Balaban) partners him with doctoral-candidate-turned-artist Lucy (Mandy Moore). While Henry mourns his only friend, Lucy nurses a broken heart--her mother/landlord (Dianne Wiest) has just evicted her and her boyfriend/thesis advisor (Martin Freeman) has just dumped her. It's discomfort at first sight, but feelings soften as these wounded personalities learn to work--and heal--together. You can see the conclusion coming from a mile away, and Moore's character is underwritten (David Bromberg penned the script), but Crudup makes what could be an indie film cliché--the New York neurotic--almost seem fresh. As for Theroux, a busy actor best known for his movies with David Lynch, like Mulholland Drive, the first-timer has a sharp eye for the arresting image and a discriminating ear for the evocative tune--the soundtrack includes music by alternative rock favorites Deerhoof, Cat Power, and Joanna Newsom. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Dedication Reviews:
Of romance and other languages 
2009-08-29 - It's rare very rare in these days to explore forgiveness and grace when you are speaking of romance. The persona of both the main characters in the love interest here Mandy Moore and Bill Cudrup are excellent choices by the casting crew.
Both of them are extremely suited for their roles, Bill Cudrup as the product of a typical abusive childhood and Mandy Moore as the product of a "normal" childhood. Immediately the audience can relate to two personal emotions in this romance, frustrated manhood for Henry Roth (Cudrup) and unrequited love for any young woman Lucy Reilly(Moore) great hair. Cudrup is great because even if he is socially handicapped he remains attractive (think James Dean) and Moore is of course the wonderful girl next door.
The antiheroes that keep popping up are the alter egos of Bill's character and Mandy's old rotten boyfriend Jeremy. The ex boyfriend Jeremy is everyone's ex boyfriend who could not or would not be the man he was meant to be. Jeremy keeps for selfish reasons trying to get back to the place he was before, proving that brilliance as a writer does not make you smart or likeable. Lucy Reilly has moments with her overanxious and over bearing mother played quite convincingly (dianne Weist)and with perfect timing. Through the interestind scenes all Lucy never loses her ability to love or to maintain her own dignity more importantly her sense of self in the plot. It is not cloying but timely, and you can see how the lovers begin to long for each other as they walk into their love scenes. Even without overt chemistry but with thorough acting they accomplish a believable romance between Henry and Lucy.
Although the movie is rated R it is thankfully not for explicit sexual content but more for foul language.
Yes there is still for many people a sense of propriety. You can look at romance as something that happens between two people or you can choose to look at it as something that happens on a much higher level. It is the level just above the heart, the one that chooses to be good for another person as the expense of ones self. You can easily and naturally see this in Mandy Moore's character which attracts men to her like a magnet, and you can see it in Bill Cudrup as he dares to leave his mental obsessiveness for the one love he "can" long for.
The only people that could hate this movie are the ones that have been made perfectly cynical by life. Given the crude nature of romance in Hollywood these days it is not suprising that this was not much bigger at the box office the sound track is very well done for anyone in their 20's. It's Hollywoods loss, and highly recommended.
not your average romantic comedy 
2009-08-09 - This romance has a hero who is edgier than most and not very likable on the surface. Little by little, he starts to get under your skin until you are hooked, even though he seems determined to sabotage the whole thing. Very well acted and written.
Dedication is a depressing movie - Stay Away 
2009-07-13 - I really enjoy most of Mandy Moores movies, but this certainly is not one of them. I wouldn't waste my time watching it, not even as a renter.
One of my favorite movies
2009-03-23 - Well directed, well written and well acted. There's a humor in the story that isn't common. This film is a sleeper. One person will watch it and dismiss it as just another romantic comedy, and another will see it for what it actually is: multiple talents working together to create an excellent movie. Loved it.
Offbeat, but ultimately unlikeable 
2009-02-23 - Billy Crudup plays a misanthropic self-hater full of obsessive quirks that make no sense and that turn him into an extraordinarily unlikeable schmuck. Therefore, the film makes no sense in its attempt to redeem him with Mandy Moore playing his baby-talking foil. His relationship with his late father appears to be his central reason d'etre, but that makes no sense either. The plot makes out another guy to be worse than Billy because he wrote two dedications to his pending book, one for Mandy Moore and one for another girlfriend, depending on which one takes him back. Got it? In the end, this film is annoying, but it is certainly not the lightweight romantic comedy you figure it is from the packaging. Watch it if you like Mandy Moore.
