Paper Man (2009 film)

Richard is a failed novelist who still talks to his imaginary superhero friend, Captain Excellent. At the urging of his wife Claire, Richard has moved to a Long Island beach community for the winter season in order to overcome his writer's block.

There, Richard meets 17-year-old Abby, whom he sees while riding his rustic bike around town. He sees her light a fire in the trash can for no apparent reason. Richard hires her as a weekly babysitter even though he has no children. When she shows up to her babysitting job and he reveals to her that he has no kids, Abby seems completely fine with it and Richard decides to spend his time at the pier talking to Captain Excellent, who insists that Richard can never make a correct decision without his help. When Richard comes home he is awed by the discovery that Abby has made soup while he was away. He envies her having made this with her hands, as he has trouble using his hands to make anything. He hires her again for the same time next week, despite Captain Excellent's warning that it will only lead to bad things. Richard and Abby form a tenuous father-daughter-like relationship. Abby tells Richard about the death of her twin sister, Amy, while Richard confides in her about his failing marriage.

Meanwhile, Christopher, Abby's imaginary friend since Amy's death, watches her relationship with Richard grow, and though he feels neglected by Abby, all he wants is for her to be happy, no matter what that means for him.

Richard hosts a drunken party for local high school students and is punched by Abby's boyfriend. The party ends, the house a mess, and Abby and Richard fall asleep together on a couch, where Claire finds them the next morning. She and Richard fight, with him childishly blaming her for the fact that they had never had children and that his family name will die with him, though as she reveals, it had been his decision not to have kids.

Abby and Richard lose their imaginary friends, and Richard sends Abby a note before returning to try to rebuild his relationship with Claire.

• Jeff Daniels as Richard Dunn
• Lisa Kudrow as Claire Dunn
• Ryan Reynolds as Captain Excellent
• Emma Stone as Abby
• Kieran Culkin as Christopher
• Hunter Parrish as Bryce
• Arabella Field as Lucy
• Chris Parnell as Peter

Paper Man was first shown at the 2009 Los Angeles Film Festival.{{cite news |last1=Kilday |first1=Gregg |title='Paper Man' opening LAFF |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/paper-man-opening-laff-84674/ |access-date=30 March 2023 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=May 28, 2009}} MPI Media Group acquired the rights to show the film in North America and it was given a limited release on April 23, 2010.

The film was released with the new title Unlikely Hero in the United Kingdom on DVD by Signature Entertainment in April 2014. E1 Entertainment released the film on DVD in Canada in 2011.{{cite web |title=Paper Man (2009) - Releases |url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/paper-man-v477649/releases |website=AllMovie |access-date=30 March 2023}}

Paper Man received negative reviews from critics. Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes gives it a score of 33% based on 30 reviews with an average score of 4.73/10.{{Cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1205681_paper_man|title=Paper Man (2010)|last=|first=|date=|website=Rotten Tomatoes|publisher=Fandango Media|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=April 28, 2025}} Metacritic gives the film a score of 37% based on reviews from 15 critics.{{Metacritic film|title=Paper Man}}

Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle called the film "listless, tepid, lifeless and fake".{{cite news |last1=LaSalle |first1=Mick |title=Review: 'Paper Man' is listless and fake |url=https://www.sfgate.com/movies/article/Review-Paper-Man-is-listless-and-fake-3187624.php |access-date=30 March 2023 |work=San Francisco Chronicle |date=May 21, 2010}} Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter commented, "Off-kilter and awkward from the get-go, this comedy never finds any rhythm or reason".{{cite news |last1=Honeycutt |first1=Kirk |title=Paper Man — Film Review |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/paper-man-film-review-93282/ |access-date=30 March 2023 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=June 19, 2009}}

• Montauk, New York

{{Reflist}}

• {{Official website| https://web.archive.org/web/20120831222756/http://www.papermanthemovie.com/index_alt.html}}
• {{IMDb title|0437405|Paper Man}}
• {{mojo title|paperman|Paper Man}}
• {{rotten-tomatoes|1205681-paper_man|Paper Man}}
• {{Metacritic film|title=Paper Man}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paper Man}}

Category:2009 films

Category:2009 comedy-drama films

Category:2009 independent films

Category:American buddy comedy-drama films

Category:American independent films

Category:Films about imaginary friends

Category:Films about writers

Category:Films about dysfunctional families

Category:Films set on Long Island

Category:Films shot in New York (state)

Category:2000s buddy comedy-drama films

Category:2000s English-language films

Category:2000s American films

Category:English-language comedy-drama films

Category:English-language independent films

Category:English-language buddy comedy-drama films