It's 1973 Cleveland, Ohio. Wannabe intelligentsia Messerman parents (William Hurt, Rita Wilson) throw out the TV. Their son Clive (David Call) is a math genius. He excels in competition but seems to be growing distant. He speaks in a secret language with his friends. His girlfriend Sandra (Michelle Trachtenberg) is secretly living in the basement. His younger brother William (Brett Davern) discovers the secret and starts falling for her.

There is a great reveal ending. The movie simply needs more intensity and tension for the rest of the movie. It needs more drama. Most of this movie is too flat. The acting is fine but they don't get enough to do. The direction is functional. There are possibilities here for great drama but it doesn't really do anything with them. Even the math competition is without drama.

A mathematical genius and his family are all what this dreadful film is all about.

Mom acts intellectual by correcting her son's grammar and playing Chopin. Dad talks a good intellectual game but he has so little material to work with here.

Our genius has a girlfriend who has been secretly living in the basement of his house for a year. By film's end, the mother of the genius claims she knows all about this.

William Hurt, as the father, mumbles his way through the film talking in a continuous monotonous tone.

Our genius has quite a surprise for us years later. Am sure it had nothing to do with the fact that his younger brother was interested in the girlfriend. Who would be interested in this all together?

Julianne Margulies of "The Good Wife" fame has dinner with her husband in two scenes. She is loud and has really nothing to say or add to this mess of a film. How fortunate for her.

The bigger thing about seeing this independent film was that I saw it at the 22nd Santa Barbara Film Festival while on a college trip, I had a fantastic time. Oh and after the film finished people in the audience could ask questions to the director, Chad Lowe, and star Brett Davern. Anyway, the film is a family-based film with a lot of talking about life in general, as well as other people's thought's and opinions. The main stars, and who are stealing the show from the teenagers, are the parents, Simon (Lost in Space's William Hurt) and Judith (Jingle All the Way's Rita Wilson) Messerman. The main plot seems to be involving the teenage brothers William (Davern) and Clive (David Call). Clive seems to be speaking what is an unknown language, and William is trying to find the "dictionary" with all words and meanings. The big twists towards the end though are that Clive and his best friend are gay, and that the language is in fact Hungarian, and the "dictionary" is in fact a poem. Also starring Inspector Gadget's Michelle Trachtenberg as Sandra, Ghost Ship's Julianna Margulies as Mrs. Cubano, Matt Servitto as Mr. Cubano, Hale Appleman as Elliot and Justin Matthews as Marty. Good!