There are many reasons I like a movie. It could the actors, the director, the story, the special effects or even the writing. Combine all of these and I will rave about the movie for days on end. What happens when you are left with just one reason for enjoyment? It all depends on which one it is. More often than not, it is the actors who drive my enjoyment of a movie. Such was the case with “Last Chance Harvey.”
Harvey Shine (Dustin Hoffman) writes music for commercials. He is divorced and has had a shaky relationship with daughter. She is about to get married and he is invited to the wedding. As he leaves he is told one of his clients is going with a younger composer.
Kate Walker (Emma Thompson) takes surveys for an airline. She is single and has an overbearing mother. Her mother calls her all the time to check what she is doing.
Kate Walker (Emma Thompson) takes surveys for an airline. She is single and has an overbearing mother. Her mother calls her all the time to check what she is doing.
The two meet in an airport bar and hit it off. They spend the day together and both feel that there is something between them.
As I watched the first third of this movie all I thought of was a quote from the “Scrubs” episode, “My T.C.W” In a voice over J.D. says, “I don’t think people are meant to be by themselves…because nothing sucks worse than feeling all alone, no matter how many people are around.” That is exactly how the movie begins. It shows how lonely these two are. Harvey does not fit in with the rest of people at the wedding. He is an outsider who can be and has been replaced. His daughter wants her step-father to give her away and he seems to have nothing in common with anyone he encounters.
Kate is set-up on a date and is isolated when the date’s friends show up and join them. She spends her lunch hour in the airport bar with a glass of wine and a trashy romance novel.
There was an almost depressing feeling of isolation. I give the filmmakers credit for that. That may be more of a credit to the two actors at the center of the movie than anything else.
Kate is set-up on a date and is isolated when the date’s friends show up and join them. She spends her lunch hour in the airport bar with a glass of wine and a trashy romance novel.
There was an almost depressing feeling of isolation. I give the filmmakers credit for that. That may be more of a credit to the two actors at the center of the movie than anything else.
As it stands the only thing I liked about this movie were the two main actors. They are great at what they do and elevate the movie. The story is cookie cutter stuff. It has been done before and will be done again. It is Hoffman and Thompson who make it better simply by their presence in the movie. This is what makes the movie worth watching. Both of them give great performances. They are able to convey intense loneliness and sadness and then the joy of new love and the happiness that comes with it.
Acting can make or break a movie and this is one of those times. Had the acting been anything less than it was, the movie would have been a waste of time. When you have two actors like these, they can save a movie from utter disaster.
6 out of 10
Rated PG-13 for brief strong language.
92 min
Acting can make or break a movie and this is one of those times. Had the acting been anything less than it was, the movie would have been a waste of time. When you have two actors like these, they can save a movie from utter disaster.
6 out of 10
Rated PG-13 for brief strong language.
92 min
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