This film could also be title "Bookception". It begins an author, Clay Hammond (Dennis Quaid), giving a reading from the movie titled book The Words. Daniella (Olivia Wilde), a huge fan and grad student attends the reading to hear his story about Rory Jansen (Bradely Cooper), an ambitious and struggling writer who pours himself into his work. After three years of dedication to his dream, Rory starts to cope with the reality that he and his new wife, Dora (Zoe Saldana) cannot live on dreams alone. While on a Parisian honeymoon, Dora purchases an antique briefcase which is later discovered to contain an old, forgotten manuscript.
Rory devours the unpublished story. He cannot stop thinking about it and even dreams about the characters. The words will not leave him and in an attempt to feel even closer to them, he types the entire book in one night. When Dora tearfully praises his work as the best she's ever seen he begins down a dark road of ego and deciet.
When finally confronted by the original author, The Old Man (Jeremy Irons),  we are introduced to another story just as involving, complex, and heartbreaking Rory's own. The Old Man's tale is told entirely through flashbacks where he, now The Young Man, is portrayed by the beautiful Ben Barnes who delievers a wholly engrossing and believable performance. I've been a a long time fan of Barnes' and his coco eyes large enough to swim in, but this is the first time I was truly stunned by his talent.
Irons shines in his role as The Old Man. Each layer of his character's joys, sorrows, and anger have a raw and potent feeling. His ability to switch from one mood to the next with out camp; each emotional slide feeling completely natural is just phenomenal. His character will garner all of your sympathies as Rory quickly begins to lose them. As Rory tries to make things right with The Old Man he realizes he cannot. The Old man tells him he must live with his choices.
After the reading, Daniella seems to knowingly question Hammond over wine; pushing him to reveal whether he is Rory Jensen. Hammond becomes cagey and aggressive; telling her that fiction and reality are not the same, but so close they almost touch. That she must choose between reality and fiction. This is the question the audicene is left with. How much of the story will you believe?
The Words is a loving crafted film with soaring and thought ful score that truly adds to this brillianty acted tale.