John Madden's second collaboration with Gwyneth Paltrow lacks both the chemistry and poignancy of \Shakespeare In Love,"" the award-winning 1998 film. The potential is evident in ""Proof,"" given the array of talented actors and its success on stage, yet it falls short of anything but mediocre. The lead performances are not the source of the film's inadequacies-but David Auburn and Rebecca Miller's screenplay fails to come together, giving the film a noticeably incomplete tone and leaving one wondering when the plot was supposed to thicken.
The opening scene alone lays out what could potentially develop into an intricate story of brilliance, psychology and love as Catherine (Paltrow) recreates an episode in which her deceased father, Robert (Anthony Hopkins), surprises her on her 27th birthday. Echoing 2001's ""A Beautiful Mind,"" ""Proof"" plays with the notion of what does and does not actually exist, leaving the audience intrigued. Hal (Jake Gyllenhaal), one of Robert's nerdy but charming students, interrupts Catherine's dream after attempting to find more of Robert's mathematical genius among the 103 notebooks he left behind.
Though Robert often said he had achieved his greatest work by age 24, Hal believes the man who revolutionized modern mathematics must have left more to the field. Much of the film's beginning revolves around Robert's impending funeral, which Catherine's badgering but well-intentioned sister, Claire (Hope Davis), flies in from New York to attend. Through Madden's skillful use of cross-cutting, we learn that Robert had apparently endured deep psychological suffering throughout the majority of his late life, and Catherine had been taking care of him for the past five years. Catherine fears her father's mental instability may run in her genes, and the audience is often left wondering if what she sees in fact exists.
The plot seems it may come to life when Hal discovers a proof that could once again change the way scholars approach contemporary mathematics. However, the argument over whether Robert or Catherine actually wrote it begins to consume the film, leading to a sour ""do-the-right-thing"" climax. Madden never actually exposes his viewers to the content of the innovative proof, assuming it may be just a tad too difficult for the average Joe to understand. He does, however, create a brilliant window into the world of a top-level university, paying attention to every academic detail.
Paltrow plays the role of Catherine beautifully, conveying the insecurity of losing her father to mental illness combined with the fear of her father's fate one day becoming her own. The effects of running a five-year psychiatric ward unaided are clear in her expressions. Gyllenhaal is charming and credible as a witty math-nerd, and he shows noticeable chemistry opposite Paltrow. Hopkins and Davis play their supporting roles flawlessly, but the performances have nothing to do with the film's failure to reach its true potential.
