The Words is about struggling writer Rory Jensen (Bradley Cooper) who lives with his gorgeous girlfriend Dora (Star Trek's Zoe Saldana) in New York City. He has two unsold novels under his belt when he discovers a manuscript of unknown provenance tucked inside an old leather briefcase bought in Paris. Already you can see where this is going. Rory claims to be the manuscript's author, and fame and fortune follow, with potential ruination nipping at their heels.
As an examination of the writing process, this film offers nothing new, but it does revolve around a pair of love stories that, on their own, aren't half bad; and cinematographer Antonio Calvache gets plenty of mileage from constant flashbacks to post-Occupation Paris. Words suffers from Dennis Quaid's annoying narration and his even more irritating portrait of the self-loathing writer whose presence bookends the two main storylines.