After
70+ years of going to movies I am still thrilled by being surprised, in
a positive way, by a film. I am not particularly a fan of Paul Giamatti but in his acting in the title role he is near perfection. He is
supported by actors like Minnie Driver, who looks gorgeous and is very
believable as a 'Jewish princess' with a Master's Degree. Dustin
Hoffman, as his father, a retired cop who didn't always follow the
rules, brings a wry sense of humor to the man who obviously loves his
son.

Rachelle Leferve plays his first wife who is pregnant when they get married. Driver is
his second wife where during their wedding meets the love of his life.
None of these are spoilers as most of the film is in flashbacks, The
love of his life, his third wife, is played by Rosamund Pike, who is new
to me, is the perfect love, wife and mother which makes you wonder how Giamatti's character ever gets her and that is the gist of the story.

"Barney's Version" surprised me in that it is a sweet, sometimes kooky,
love story but it also disappointed me in that the screenplay was too
long by about 20 minutes with unnecessary bits thrown in such as a
murder, hockey games and extraneous characters. The movie would have
been a lot better if it started at Barney's wedding to his second wife
when he sees his third one for the first time. His pursuit of the latter
pays off in his persistence and determination.

Walk
in after the first 15 minutes and you will see a sweet, funny, feeling
love story with excellent acting by a strong supporting cast. It
certainly changed my mind about Paul Giamatti enough to make me want to
see his next film and made me interested in the actress Rosamund Pike.