Ruby Sparks

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Ruby Sparks

R

Released Jul 25, 2012

1h 44m

Romance

Fantasy

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Popcornmeter

79%

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183 Reviews

75%

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25,000+ Ratings

Young author Calvin Weir-Fields (Paul Dano), once a literary darling, is having trouble composing his next novel. Following a therapist's advice, Calvin pulls out an old manual typewriter and creates a vivacious, flame-haired woman he dubs Ruby Sparks (Zoe Kazan). Overnight, Ruby leaps from the page into Calvin's home as a real flesh-and-blood woman. And, what's more, she's unaware that she's actually a fictional character and that her actions and feelings are dictated by whatever Calvin writes.

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Critics Consensus

Cleverly written and wonderfully acted, Ruby Sparks overcomes its occasional lags in pace with an abundance of charm and wit.

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Elizabeth Weitzman

New York Daily News

Sometimes it's worth surrendering to cinematic enchantments, and Ruby Sparks makes a pretty good case for its own magic.

Rated: 3/5

Jan 8, 2013

Full Review

Linda Barnard

Toronto Star

Sure it's been done before -- man brings ideal woman to life -- but not quite like Ruby Sparks. And that sets this film up to be a smart and romantic low-key comedy that goes beyond expectations.

Rated: 3/4

Jan 8, 2013

Full Review

Justin Chang

Variety

If the result feels like a Pinocchio story that spends too much time with Geppetto, or a takedown of narcissism that never breaks free of what it's critiquing, Dano nonetheless makes Calvin compelling company.

Jan 8, 2013

Full Review

Don Shanahan

Every Movie Has a Lesson

With its recipe of unspoken magic, flawed relationships, and ideals on finding inspiration and perfection and daring to keep them, Ruby Sparks is a wholly different, unique, challenging, and satisfying romantic comedy experience.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 28, 2025

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Paul Emmanuel Enicola

Movie-Blogger.com

“Ruby Sparks,” in all its schmaltzy tenderness, is in reality a case study of the dangers of idealizing a person, and containing that person’s whole individuality based on one’s idea of perfection.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 31, 2024

Full Review

Michael Clark

Epoch Times

How empowered would you feel if you knew that whatever you wrote could immediately be physically realized? Would you tempt fate knowing that you could always go back and edit it, or would you try to try to stay true to your own inner core values?

Rated: 4/5

Dec 10, 2022

Full Review

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Kalissa H

Quite good. The type writing scene near the end was sinister.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/12/25

Full Review

Joshwa W.

This has wormed its way into my head in the best way possible. Zoe Kazan’s writing is pitch perfect, and Paul Dano, as always, does his absolute most to bring an honesty to his role that borders on terrifying.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

07/12/25

Full Review

Su L

Thought provoking, tense, and charming.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

07/11/25

Full Review

Dave D

I've seen Ruby Sparks at least a dozen times, and it gets better with each viewing. Beautifully acted and directed. Not a single sour note. And for the record, I'm not a fan of rom-coms. Ruby Sparks is only a rom-coms on the surface. Underneath it's a meditation on male toxicity, narcissism, loneliness, and the perils of idealizations. Simply brilliant.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/10/25

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Faiz D

A charming and fun film about love and magic.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

05/13/25

Full Review

Malik abdullah M

Nice watch to pass some time but wouldn't really remember it after a while like a lot of unanswered question for my interpretation of film made it fast paced for me

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

04/27/25

Full Review

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Jonathan Dayton

Director

Valerie Faris

Director

Paul Dano

Calvin Weir-Fields

Zoe Kazan

Ruby Sparks

Antonio Banderas

Mort

Annette Bening

Gertrude

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Synopsis

Young author Calvin Weir-Fields (Paul Dano), once a literary darling, is having trouble composing his next novel. Following a therapist's advice, Calvin pulls out an old manual typewriter and creates a vivacious, flame-haired woman he dubs Ruby Sparks (Zoe Kazan). Overnight, Ruby leaps from the page into Calvin's home as a real flesh-and-blood woman. And, what's more, she's unaware that she's actually a fictional character and that her actions and feelings are dictated by whatever Calvin writes.

Director: Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris
Producer: Albert Berger, Ron Yerxa
Screenwriter: Zoe Kazan
Distributor: Fox Searchlight
Production Co: Bona Fide Productions
Rating: R (Some Drug Use|Language|Some Sexual References)
Genre: Romance, Fantasy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 25, 2012, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $2.5M
Runtime: 1h 44m
Sound Mix: Datasat, SDDS, Dolby Digital

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