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Article posted: 9/6/2012 6:00 AM

Melodrama bogs down overly complicated 'The Words'

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While on his honeymoon with his supportive wife (Zoe Saldana), a writer (Bradley Cooper) finds a manuscript in an old briefcase in "The Words."

A writer (Bradley Cooper) with a loving wife (Zoe Saldana) grapples with his professional choices in "The Words."

An old man (Jeremy Irons, right) confronts a writer (Bradley Cooper) with a secret in "The Words."

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For a movie about writing and the importance of crafting something timeless and true, "The Words" is needlessly complicated. It boasts an impressive cast and some glimmers of strong performances, notably from a grizzled Jeremy Irons, whose character sets the film's many stories-within-stories in motion as a young man. But ultimately, "The Words" seems more interested in melodrama than anything else.