Dennis Quaid stars as a bitter, washed out widower in SMART PEOPLE, a film that tackles the lives of several seriously unhappy people in surprisingly funny and touching ways. A hated literature professor at Carnegie Mellon, Lawrence Wetherhold has been earning the scorn of his students, colleagues, and family since the death of his wife several years ago. The only person on his side is his teenage daughter Vanessa (Ellen Page), whose loyalty and similarities to her father belie her tender age. Between running the Young Republicans club and aiming for a perfect SAT score, the over-achieving high school student knows no life beyond the insular world of family. When the film begins, the family dynamics are well established, with Lawrence merely going through the motions of his life, unable to muster up any passion for parenting or even his literary expertise. It takes a seizure, an unexpected visit from his adopted brother (Thomas Haden Church), and a new romantic interest (Sarah Jessica Parker) to shake things up and stir Lawrence from his constant misery.

Driven by a clever script and fine performances, SMART PEOPLE is set in the land of academia, a place where both Lawrence and Vanessa have taken refuge and plunged themselves into as escape from the external world. In spite of their high IQs, both father and daughter are equally clueless when it comes to navigating relationships. This becomes obvious as Vanessa develops a line-blurring relationship with her uncle, and Lawrence stumbles in romancing his doctor. If Vanessa wants a shot at happiness and Lawrence wants to make things work in his love life, both will have to adopt new attitudes or risk further alienation. Church is hilarious as Chuck, Lawrence's adopted slacker brother, adding a funny but heartfelt element to the otherwise serious film.

DVD Features:

Region 1
Keep Case
Widescreen - 2.40
Audio:
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound - English
Subtitles - French, Spanish - Optional
Addiitonal Release Material:
Additional Footage - Outtakes
Audio Commentary - Director Noam Murro and Writer Mark Jude Poirier
Deleted Scenes (9)
Featurettes - 1. "SMART PEOPLE At Sundance" - Exclusive Footage from the Premiere of SMART PEOPLE at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival
Interview - Smartest People: Interviews with Producers and Cast

Dennis Quaid: American actor, FREQUENCY (2000)
Sarah Jessica Parker: American actress, SEX AND THE CITY
Thomas Haden Church: American actor, WINGS, SIDEWAYS
Ellen Page: Actor, HARD CANDY (2006)
Ashton Holmes: American Actor in RAISING HELL (2006)

Noam Murro: Director

Bridget Johnson: 
Michael Costigan: Executive producer
Michael London: Producer, THE GURU (2003)
Bruna Papandrea: Producer, BETTER THAN SEX (2001)

Mark Jude Poirier: Screenwriter

Nuno Bettencourt: 

"[A] small, sharp, and pleasingly literate comedy....Poirier's script is full of nicely offhand slap-down banter..." -- Grade: B
"[I]t feature witty dialogue and good performances...Church has some of the film's funniest lines, along with Ellen Page..."
"The film is the kind of observational comedy that should be enjoyed while there's still a chance....Poirier's feel for character, ear for dialogue and eye for detail are superb."
3 stars out of 5 -- "The real stars are JUNO's Ellen Page...and SIDEWAYS' Thomas Haden Church....They give SMART PEOPLE an edge..."
"[K]nowing, pleasingly literate and modishly melancholy comedy-drama....As smart as its title suggests."
"[T]he great virtue of SMART PEOPLE, attributable to Noam Murro's easygoing direction as well as to Mr. Poirier's wandering screenplay, lies in its general preference for small insights over grand revelations."