I am a big fan of the original film and I did have a hard time separating myself from it and constantly compared it. It is because of this that my review is rather skewed, but I will try my best to be objective.
Yes, Arthur a remake of the 1981 film starring Dudley Moore and Liza Minelli. The concept is the same but the story as been “updated” for a modern audience by first-time feature director Jason Winer. Arthur (Russell Brand, Get Him to the Greek) has never had to work or do anything responsible, is constantly making headlines with his crazy shenanigans and he drinks heavily. His mother (Geraldine James, Sherlock Holmes) is the CEO of a large multi-national corporation and after another publicity nightmare, tells Arthur he must marry Susan (Jennifer Garner, 13 Going on 30), or lose his inheritance. He is still looked after by his “nanny,” Hobson, played by the always excellent, Dame Helen Mirren (The Queen, Red).
The only thing that saves this is Russell Brand (oh, and Helen Mirren, duh). I’m actually getting a little tired of his schtick, but in this movie, it actually works. This is probably the case where this story couldn’t have been pulled off by any other modern actor. I did have a problem with him as a drunk, that is where it really, really wasn’t believable. I understand that the story is about a drunken playboy, but they added in so much zaniness, that I really felt that they didn’t even need to make him a drunk, he was silly enough sober.
Adapted by Peter Baynham (Borat, Bruno), the story borrows several lines from the 1981 film that sometimes don’t really fit into the situation and seem to only exist as an homage to the original. One line is when Hobson is faking dying and Arthur says, “Hobson, please don’t die anymore it’s getting very boring.” It played well in the original, but here it seemed forced and not funny. The general audience will probably not pick up on it, but I found it rather uncomfortable.
Speaking of uncomfortable, Nick Nolte (48 Hrs) as Susan’s father, Burt, was truly scary, not as the character, but his voice. He sounds like he’s struggling to speak. I heard gasps in the audience when he first spoke on screen and was quite taken aback.
I thought Luiz Guzman (Boogie Nights) was completely underused as Bitterman. I didn’t like how his character was 1-dimensional and seemed only to exist as the but of Arthur’s jokes. He wasn’t given any good lines and didn’t contribute anything to the story.
I like Greta Gertwig (Greenberg) but not in this role. I didn’t see a good chemistry between her and Arthur. I didn’t quite understand why she was attracted to him. Also, her character name was the only one changed. As Naomi rather than Linda, perhaps they changed the name because they really changed the character completely from the original. I really liked the new character, but given her background, it was difficult to see why she would be interested in Arthur. He seemed to only like her because she was a “regular” person and I didn’t fine their interactions romantic, it was more of a friendship. On a side note, I find it completely strange how there are posters that completely leave her out and replace her with a hat. (See the one in this article) Even in the one she’s in, you can’t see her face. It’s as if they don’t want to show her. What’s that about?
(warning: spoilers for scenes) It was shot in New York City and it really does use fantastic locations. I especially enjoyed Grand Central Terminal (not Grand Central Station, that’s the post office, look it up) and the scenes in Dylan’s Candy Bar. When my aunt visited last year, we actually saw the Batmobile where they were filming it downtown on Wall Street. Pretty nifty. (End spoileri)
With its cast, it will surely do all right, but it doesn’t have enough laughs outside of what’s given away in the trailers. You’ll watch, enjoy, and then forget about it 10 minutes later.
Rating: Amusing, but forgettable. 4/10
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