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This year’s films
seem to be missing the emotional spark that lets you dive deep into the story. This
movie should have been exactly what I needed. It's a very warm story that gives
us a reminder that we need to not judge people. This move has all the elements
for a green light film but falls sort of making a connection. They get a yellow
light for the effort.
Oliver (Jaeden Lieberher)
and his mother Maggie (Melissa McCarthy) move next door to the world’s largest
curmudgeon, Vincent (Bill Murray). Being tight on options, Maggie asks if
Vincent can watch Oliver after school as she is a single mom with a job that
keeps her late. He agrees and takes care of Oliver. Hummm, that’s a stretch. Better
to say he takes Oliver around with him everywhere he goes.
They go to the
track and to the nursing home where Vincent’s wife lives and to the strip club
where he visits his “girlfriend” Daka (Naomi Watts). They go everywhere really.
Their exploits are documented by Maggie’s husband, David (Scott Adsit) and used
against her to gain joint custody of Oliver. During their journey, Oliver gets
an assignment to find someone who has the qualities of a saint, and he picks
Vincent
Some movies you
can tell are going to be aiming for the heart strings. This is one of them. As
I have stated before and if you follow me you know I am a sap when it comes to
movies. I am an easy cry. I never had an emotional connection to the characters.
It was a really great show with the right characters and with some really good
performances but lacked spirit.
There seemed to be
a lot of elements that bogged down the story. I think the subplot where Vincent
had a stroke really was almost too much to add with the gambling debts. The
other problem was the neatness of how everything was wrapped up. I was thinking
through the film that there is not going to be an easy way out of this mess. It
felt like the ending was forced and wasn't a natural resolution to his
problems.
The underlying
message not to judge others is solid. We are never fully understanding a person’s
journey so we shouldn't make assumptions about people. In the story, Vincent
plays a completely unlikable character, but he is a product of the choices and
events in his life. Oliver is forced to spend time with him so he gets to see
him in a different light. Oliver gives us the fresh perspective that we need to
see past the gruff nasty exterior.
It's hard to give
this movie a lower than green light because it is was defiantly trying very
hard. The failures of the story were just too much to cram into the amount of
time. They were trying way too hard to make the differences in Vincent
noticeable. The only real connection is between Vincent and Oliver.
Chris O’Dowd needs
to get more work. He is absolutely hilarious in this role as an unflappable
Priest who assigned the class the task of finding Saints among us. The
interaction between him and Maggie is outstanding. Overall the Director/ Writer
/ Producer (Theodore Melfi) did a good job of making a clean movie, He just
needs to eliminate some of the distractors and he could have a really great
product. He did an interview and said he doesn’t like to get his stink on a
film. It is a stink free film, but it does need a stronger voice.
What movie have
you seen that was just short of making a connection?
