Brief Interviews with Hideous Men (NR, 2009)

Inspired by the late, great David Foster Wallace’s story collection, Brief Interviews with Hideous Men (which debuted at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival) is a respectful adaptation that manages to visually translate the material but doesn’t necessarily capture its potency. Then again, Wallace’s work is hardly an easy read, and rendering it onscreen may be tougher still.

That monumental task fell to The Office’s John Krasinski, who shepherded the project from concept to fruition (he also acts in it). Kudos to him for not completely botching the job -- and for instilling some structure on which to hang Wallace’s stories. He also assembles one of the most talented group of actors -- in addition to the list above, the cast includes Will Arnett, Josh Charles, Frankie Faison, and Bobby Cannavale -- we’ve seen in a while. But, in the end, the audience hardly arrives at a coherent understanding of men. The interviews are all too brief and the epiphanies unsurprising.