This movie was reminiscent of Eddies Murphy's "Trading Places" for me. It's kind of a modern fable/comedy/light social commentary. In both movies, Murphy's character is a successful businessman who is a little lost personally and spiritually (which is an immediately recognizable sensation for almost anyone at some point in their lives). External, and vaguely spiritual forces intervene (in the Case of Trading places, 2 bosses who take their roles from God and Satan from the story of Job) and in the case of 1000 words, this external force takes the form a new- age spiritual guru played by Cliff Curtis. New-age spiritual guru roles are traditionally played for laughs, but Curtis displays some comedic- inspired subtle turns here and the film overall displays a surprising sensitivity towards spiritual matters in general. As in trading places, Murphy's character has problems to overcome, difficult decisions to make, and ultimately has the chance to complete a personal and spiritual transformation of his own.
The writing is not Oscar-worthy and at times low-brow but (at least to me) frequently hilarious--especially in scenes where Murphy's silence draws people in to saying things about themselves they really weren't intending to. As in other Murphy movies, there is some gentle social commentary and nerdy white people are often played for laughs--Murphy's assistant is especially hilarious as he inverts the common logic of the uncool/uptight white guy at times to assume a "gangsta" persona to take over Murphy's job duties while Murphy can only watch, wide-eyed, as the silent straight man.
This film ultimately won me over with it's good-natured, intelligent, writing and acting. Comedy bits, while while often off-color, never steer into the clichéd or mean-spirited. Don't go in expecting too much and you might leave the theater with a warm, if slightly fuzzy, spiritual feeling of you own.
The writing is not Oscar-worthy and at times low-brow but (at least to me) frequently hilarious--especially in scenes where Murphy's silence draws people in to saying things about themselves they really weren't intending to. As in other Murphy movies, there is some gentle social commentary and nerdy white people are often played for laughs--Murphy's assistant is especially hilarious as he inverts the common logic of the uncool/uptight white guy at times to assume a "gangsta" persona to take over Murphy's job duties while Murphy can only watch, wide-eyed, as the silent straight man.
This film ultimately won me over with it's good-natured, intelligent, writing and acting. Comedy bits, while while often off-color, never steer into the clichéd or mean-spirited. Don't go in expecting too much and you might leave the theater with a warm, if slightly fuzzy, spiritual feeling of you own.