Film Clip: A Thousand Words

A fast-talking, insincere literary agent (Eddie Murphy) finds a magic tree in his backyard that loses a leaf for every word he says; when the last leaf is gone, he and the tree will both die. How does he know this? It has something to do with a simpering New Age guru (Cliff Curtis), but really, don’t ask—it’s just one of the gaping holes in Steve Koren’s script, which seems to be suffering from some mysterious strain of screenplay blight. The movie is equal parts labored allegory without resonance and forced comedy without laughs. Murphy does what he can but is reduced to flailing and grimacing; his considerable talents don’t extend to making a bad script better, and neither do the far more modest skills of director Brian Robbins. Kerry Washington, Clark Duke and Alison Janney flounder in support. J.L.