Customer Reviews:
 Disappointed June 9, 2008
Murthy Pidaparthi (San Diego, CA)
1 out of 4 found this review helpful
I watched the movie and liked the song "whole wide world". Purchased the CD. But, very disappointed by the song. The original singer's voice sounded child-like. I think Farrell did a better job of singing than the original artist. :(.
 It's Never too Late! October 17, 2007
W. N. Craft (St. Louis, MO USA)
0 out of 3 found this review helpful
I LOVED this movie! Never been a Will Ferrell fan (is he really that funny?) but he works perfect for this movie. Anybody about to enter the middle years of life needs to see this. Heck, anyone who isn't there yet should watch it and save themselves years of a wasted life!
I can't spoil the movie, but I can tell you that the main character, "Harold", is trapped in a dull and uninspiring life. Some "strange" things happen to shake him up and to finally light a fire in his life. This movie could even be labeled an "inspirational" film. It is not quite as inspiring as "Rudy", "Apollo 13", or "The Rookie," but it was definitely motivating to me.
A CD for both bookish and dumbed-down personalities September 9, 2007
Sal Nudo (Champaign, Illinois)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
If you've ever seen the fantastic movie Stranger Than Fiction, then you know how perfectly placed the music is -- and how great it sounds. When done right, the music heard within a movie can really enhance what you're watching. Spoon's angular but tuneful piano contributions in "Stranger Than Fiction," for instance, are tailor-made to be background music as Will Ferrell brushes his teeth and a literary female voice provides narration about the goings-on of his life. "The Way We Get By" is the aforementioned Spoon song I'm referring to, minus the lyrics, and the track's tone wonderfully sets the stage for Ferrell's bizarre travails.
Spoon's music is splattered throughout this soundtrack, and it's a good way to discover the band's talent. "The Way We Get By" is pure sing-along gold, a tuneful, soulful romp with the lyrics of admitted degenerates. Its instrumental representation in the movie, as noted, is the perfect melodic hook. Spoon's "The Book I Write" was another stellar choice for the soundtrack, for obvious reasons if you've seen the movie. It's another crisp and catchy song that leads off the CD perfectly. "My Mathematical Mind" by Spoon contains lively piano and biting guitar -- classic Spoon elements -- and is basically one giant hook throughout. Spoon's final contribution, "Vittorio E," is different, a mellow acoustic number toward the end of the disc that winds things down nicely.
The producer of this soundtrack, Brian Reitzell, collaborated with Spoon singer Britt Daniel for some short, soft, ethereal selections that enhance the soundtrack and give it a "movielike" feel. The piano on "Writer's Block" is especially moving. "Auditor" is a chipper track, more quirky than the duo's previous songs on the CD but still atmospheric.
A few of the rockers on this CD equal or even exceed Spoon's contributions, and that's saying a lot. "Going Missing" by Maximo Park contains urgent guitar work, cool lyrics and a raw, rocking sound that makes you want to discover the band more. "Whole Wide World" by Wreckless Eric, though played acoustically in the movie by Ferrell, is an electric humdinger on the soundtrack. It's debatable which version is better, but there's no denying the power of the raw-to-the-bone song. A demo version of The Jam's great 1980 tune "That's Entertainment" is also a welcome donation to the CD, and sounds right at home with both its more contemporary rock `n' roll brethren and daintier tracks like Vangelis' "La Petite Fille de la Mer" (an aery tune from 1973).
Overall, this CD is an interesting mix of the refined and unrefined, kind of like the elements of a plot within a well-told tale of a novel. If you haven't seen this movie, I highly recommend it.
 Stranger than Fiction May 27, 2007
Franz Scheurer (Sydney)
1 out of 4 found this review helpful
Stranger than Fiction is a terrific film, although a bit 'close to home' if you are an obsessive compulsive. The music is a complementary score that works well.
great soundtrack May 13, 2007
Let U B U (Chi town)
1 out of 4 found this review helpful
We saw this movie and really enjoyed it. I thought it would be hollywood quirky but it was clever. The soundtrack in the movie was so good that sometimes it was distracting..We love it!!
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