One Paragraph Review: A Beautiful Mind

I can't think of any movie that has a more unnatural and unexplained romance than this film, and unfortunately it really irritates the hell out of me. Jennifer Connelly's gorgeous character, who ,by the way, is the only remotely attractive female in the entire three hour film, falls in love with Russell Crowe's hapless, unlikable character for absolutely no reason at all. I get that people fall in love for unobvious or subtle reasons, but "so we can stick Jennifer Connelly in the movie" is not one I'm willing to accept. Her character, which oscillates between a devilish siren and a Lifetime Move of the Week supporting cast member, falls in love with Nash early, giving no explanation for her choices or actions. This shoddily written romance, which is a core element of the film, really stands out like a cheap trick in what is otherwise a well acted, aptly directed movie. Crowe's acting and Howard's direction were well worthy of great acclaim, but Connelly's role is more suspect for me. She does a great job with what I find to be a blight of a character on an otherwise solid film - oh well, I guess it's an acting award, not a writing award, right?