An Invisible Sign (2010)

So. I watched *An Invisible Sign* again last Friday around 11-ish. Rain outside, cold enough to make the tea go lukewarm halfway through the first act. You know that feeling when you’re about to rewatch something that you sort of remember not hating, but also being a bit… “meh”? Yeah, that was me.

Jessica Alba plays Mona Gray, this math-obsessed loner with a dad who’s mentally ill, and the story’s sort of about how she finds some weird sense of purpose teaching math to kids. Now, I love Alba – always have since those campy *Dark Angel* days. But here? I dunno. She looks kind of lost. Like she knows she’s in an artsy drama but she’s not sure what kind.

Directed by Marilyn Agrelo, who did that wonderful *Mad Hot Ballroom* back in the day. So I expected more oomph… but this film, it’s kinda like när man blandar saft för svagt. The flavour’s there but it just doesn’t punch through, you know?

There’s a scene near the end, though, when she talks to a little girl about fear, and that actually got me a bit. Reminded me of when I was around 9 and my mum started talking to the trees. No joke. I used to count fenceposts on the way to school to distract myself. Numbers felt safe. So yeah, that part hit home.

J.K. Simmons and Chris Messina pop up too, bless them, but it all feels a bit underbaked. Like everyone’s trying, but they’re in different films somehow?

Would I recommend it? Maybe. If you’re into quirky dramas with too much whimsy and not enough bite. Or if you just wanna watch Jessica Alba do math with a chalkboard like she’s solving Fermat’s ghost or whatever. Your call.

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