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Starring: Gwyneth Paltrow, Anthony Hopkins, Jake Gyllenhaal,
Hope Davis. Rated PG-13. Proof, the latest
offering from Shakespeare in Love
director John Madden, pits the cold logic of mathematical certainty against the
conflicted, often irrational nature of human emotion, as one woman cautiously
attempts to tow the line separating them. She’s not sure whether she is blessed
with her late father’s genius or touched by his madness, and maybe she’s a
little of both. If nothing else, she is determined to prove herself the author
of a brilliant, complex theory that would far surpass even her father’s finest
work. The woman is Catherine (Gwyneth Paltrow), a lonely,
friendless mathematician mourning the death of dear ol’ dad (Anthony Hopkins)
and struggling to figure out just how much she’s inherited from him. Her
father, a celebrated number theorist, spent his final years caught in the grips
of dementia. Now, Catherine is beginning to question her own sanity, even as
she labors to emerge from his considerable shadow as a beautiful mind in her
own right. Catherine takes a big step toward finding her smile as she
gradually reintegrates herself into society. Nursing her father during his
descent into madness, she became something of a psychological shut-in, cut off
from any kind of healthy social life. With the help of one of her father’s star
pupils, Hal (Jake Gyllenhaal), and, to a lesser extent, her obnoxious sister
Claire (Hope Davis), Catherine learns to live again, putting her personal
tragedies into perspective and even exploring the possibility of romance. The problem is, Catherine
isn’t the most cheerful person; In
fact, she can be downright rotten, and while Paltrow’s maudlin, understated
performance is right for the role, her character’s appeal is dubious. Proof, adapted from the Pulitzer-winning Broadway play by
David Auburn (who wrote the screenplay with Personal Velocity director Rebecca Miller), is presented here as a
decidedly serious, sometimes humorless affair. Catherine’s plight is compelling
enough, and the acting is first-rate, but this is a movie in dire need of
levity. For a story about one woman’s struggle to embrace humanity, it boasts
all the warmth of an algebraic equation.
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