The movie presents a story that's quite intertwined among the characters. The story shows the characters to be in some kind of a wheel of life. They are sometimes in control and having great events in life, and also sometimes are so down low and doing foolish things in life. The ending is so bleak that for me it dwarfs all those funny moments that had been established previously. Although bleak and contradicting, the movie depicts characters in extreme sides which sometimes are found in real life; the over achiever who turns out to be a friendless person, the responsible teacher who sometimes also falls into the pits of temptations, the kind person who is often clueless of life itself, and also the one who becomes a rebel after a rejection. The acting overall is a neat job. All the actors can portray their characters to the needed hyperbole. Matthew Broderick's simpleton acting gives good life to his character. Reese Witherspoon's overachiever character fits right to her face.
