Touchstone Movie   ••• Picture   •••½ Sound   •••½ Extras   •••

Steve Carell is Dan, who writes an advice column on personal affairs — but as a single parent with three daughters, he has his own hands full, often seeming to need advice himself. On a family visit to his parents' house, he meets a wonderful woman (Juliette Binoche) at the local bookstore, only to find out that she's the same wonderful woman who has been dating his brother. Moreover, she has been invited to the family gathering.

With the wrong performers and director, Dan in Real Life could have become one of those usual (read: tasteless, obnoxious) sex romps, with sight gags every other minute. But as handled by the deadpan, lovable Carell and director Peter Hedges, the movie emerges as a good romantic comedy that seems genuine and quite true to, yes, real life. There are few guffaws here but a lot of smiles and chuckles. The cast is likable to a man and woman, and the length feels just right for the slight subject.

The DVD picture glows, as there are lots of rich reds and oranges. Detail is good — well, everything about the picture is good, if not outstanding, and quite adequate for the story. The sound is the same: largely economical and upfront, with only occasional excursions to the surround channels. The focus remains on the characters and what they have to say, even if that means forgoing the opportunity to envelop the audience with nature sounds during outdoor scenes.

The extras are okay but won't make you feel like you know the movie better. Outtakes and deleted scenes are mostly extensions of kept scenes, and one of the production featurettes is just the usual excuse for backslapping. A more interesting featurette concerns the creation of the film's music. (This is one movie that doesn't have to rely on a big orchestral score to make its points.) The director's commentary is so enthusiastic, you may think that Hedges had a lot more fun making this film than we have in watching it.