Directed By Marc Forster

Starring – Tom Hanks, Mariana Trevino, Rachel Keller

The Plot – A remake of the fantastic original film adaptation of the novel “A Man Called Ove” by Fredrik Backman. Ove (Hanks) is a curmudgeon-the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him ‘the bitter neighbor from hell, but that changes with the arrival of a new family next door, who attempt to unlock the door to cold heart.

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material involving suicide attempts, and adult language.

(1) A MAN CALLED OTTO – Official Trailer (HD) – YouTube

POSITIVES

America has once again taken another foreign film and americanized it for domestic audiences, except this time without sacrificing the elements of familiarity that made “A Man Named Ove” a sleeper success to begin with. For starters, this is a film with a lot of heart to its personality, despite its hefty subject matter of thematic impulses pertaining to everything from post-traumatic stress to survivor’s guilt, to especially depression. This brings forth a mostly kind-hearted and at times comedic demeanor to the engagement, affording the material a surprising number of impactful deliveries in the laughs department, as well as an ample offering of deviation in the events of the script that keep this from feeling like another uninspired remake. To be fair, the general structure is certainly still there, with elements of Ova’s past from the previous film being maintained equally by Otto, as well as the movie’s ending being entirely identical. However, here it’s the simplicity of the sequencing that makes all the more sense, bringing with it a naturalistic essence to the storytelling that refuses to over-complicate itself with the details of the background that are only a part of the story, and never the complete picture. Forster is also a director who typically appraises value in the visuals he constructs, this time with intimate framing and coldly lit interiors that not only vividly articulate Otto’s external loneliness in isolation, but also convey the internal struggle of the long-term battle with depression that has shielded him from the many people who value his influence. Forster clearly has a grip on the condition, and therefore uses it to immerse us in the plight of the protagonist, granting him a feeling of empathetic redemption that constantly persists within the consciousness of the audience, despite actions and exchanges that say otherwise. Finally, while it feels a little strange that Hanks is cast as the king of curmudgeons, his work here is calibrated candidly for the cause, enacting a new side to his limitless talents that affords him his most challenging role in quite some time. Hanks’ abrasiveness gives way to more than a few hearty chuckles in gruffly groaning deliveries, especially when we the audience can sense his disdain with annoyances of his respective counterparts, with limitless avenues of exploration to trigger a fiery intensity from within him. Aside from the crotchety grumpiness that inspires a devilish change from within him, Hanks’ best work is the gradual reawakening of his soul, with a transferrable care and gentility exuding the radiance of his compassion seamlessly. Hanks’ work is highly impactful but matched almost beat for beat with the star-making turn of Trevino inflicting a razor-sharp wit and vivacity to the occasion. Because Otto is so up front and apparent throughout the narrative, Trevino’s herculean balance of heart and concern is all the more appreciated, carving out a compelling dynamic between them that never requires romance to feel nourishing.

NEGATIVES

While “A Man Called Otto” is a justifiable remake with a laundry list of aforementioned qualities to its appeal, it’s ultimately defined by the few problematic consistencies that it can’t come close to ever shaking. The first and most apparent here is the movie’s predictability factor, condemning any momentary instance of insight or intrigue with a formulaic direction that keeps it from ever finding a true voice of its own. Even if you’ve never seen “A Man Called Ova”, the Sweedish original film that this is based on, you will be quick to accurately sniff out just where this one-dimensional story is headed, albeit with some dark and gravely aspects of thematic material that certainly wasn’t present in the advertising trailers. If the film chose to take more chances and deviate itself from a firmly established original, then it could’ve easily succeeded in eluding its shadow, but as it stands it’s just an Americanized summary of trails that were previously blazed. Speaking of those marketing advertisements, they’re compromising for an entirely different set of circumstances, this time with the comedic material that it outruns months before its arrival to theaters. Because the trailers contain the biggest and most effective gags throughout the entire two hour run time, it leaves so little meat left on the bone for the rest of the engagement, in turn omitting the firepower of momentum by establishing the expectations a little too early, leaving it feeling like the two-minute cut of greatest hits, instead of the tool meant to sell speculation. Finally, the one glaring consistency and hinderance that I feel this film maintains from its predecessor is in the underwhelming climax, which undercuts potential in spades of measurements. The main problem is its rushed method of storytelling, here materializing one key aspect to Otto that probably should’ve resonated early on in the narrative, but instead reserved itself for the moment that it wouldn’t feel like anything other than an afterthought, but a bigger problem is in the abrupt consistency of the third act’s pacing, which halts the film’s dramatic muscle entirely during the moments it was beginning to flex. This is where the film feels like it could truly earn the extent of its run time because these are truly its most defining moments in the life of Otto. However, the storm arrives, dissipates and ends over the course of ten minutes, leading to a credits scroll that all but inspires “That’s it?” reactions from the audience invested in it.

OVERALL
“A Man Called Otto” isn’t quite another lifeless rehashing of its superior predecessor, but its predictability factor and premature climactic pacing leave a lasting taste in an otherwise testy two-hour engagement, wasting away a decade-best performance from Hanks in its mediocrity. With more deviation in the source material, like those taken in the assembled moments of Otto’s tumultuous past, the film could’ve found a voice of its own to weather the storm of January’s forgettable fluff, but as it stands it’s just another coldly calculated clone that flounders its own forecast.

My Grade: 6/10 or C+