09 July,2011 06:55 AM IST | | Suprateek Chatterjee
Larry Crowne
U/A; Romantic Comedy, Drama
Dir: Tom Hanks
Cast: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Cedric the Entertainer, Wilmer Valderrama, Gugu Mbatha-Raw
Raitng: '1/2
Tom Hanks returns to directing for the second time after 1996's That Thing You Do with Larry Crowne, a mildly amusing romantic comedy that spends 98 minutes trying to say precisely nothing. It also commits the cardinal sin of releasing a film in 2011 with a cast that belongs to the '90s and a storyline that looks like it's from the '80s.
On the surface, Larry Crowne seems appealing. A story of an ex-navy man named Larry Crowne (with an 'e', as Hanks' character keeps reminding everyone) who, when fired from his job in a departmental store on grounds of not having a college education, sets about to correct that is rife with possibilities. This could've been Hanks' 'Jerry Maguire' or 'Michael Clayton' moment; instead, what we get is a supremely predictable and watered-down film version of the TV show Community.
The story, credited to Hanks and Nia Vardalos (best known for her role in My Big Fat Greek Wedding), mistakes frivolity for frothiness. It creates several moments of forced humour that elicit no more than a gentle chuckle from the viewer (at best). Moreover, we are forced to watch characters and situations that were never meant to be stereotypical, but end up being so anyway. A prime example here is the free-spirited Talia (Mbatha-Raw), who inducts Larry into her scooter gang, redecorates his house according to feng shui and flirts with him openly in front of her glowering boyfriend Dell (Valderrama), but ends up being a one-note character anyway.
One of the main selling points for this movie is the purported chemistry between the films two leads. It is, therefore, disappointing to see the lukewarm interactions between actors of the calibre of Hanks and Roberts, both known for their '90s rom-coms. Much of the blame can squarely be laid on Hanks' surprisingly tepid performance, which mostly consists of him reacting to events around him with a furrowed brow and pursed lips.
The only saving grace is the radiant presence of Julia Roberts as Mercedes Tainot, the public-speaking teacher with an alcohol addiction and a disintegrating marriage. Amidst all the saccharine sweetness in this film, she charms us with her poise and spontaneity. At 43, with her slender physique and that familiar smile, she's still looking great. Ultimately, one wishes the same could be said about co-star Hanks, who misfires in all three departmentsu00a0-- writing, direction and actingu00a0-- to make what is at best an utterly forgettable distraction.
