“A Man Called Otto” is hindered by a formulaic plot, with an ending that can be predicted from the film’s opening scene. However, its extraordinary cast and easygoing sense of humor gives the at-times generic film a spirit that makes its two-hour runtime wholly enjoyable. Director Marc Forster takes on the latest film adaptation of the Swedish novel A Man Called Ove, handling the story’s swift oscillation between comedy and tragedy, with nuance that viewers may not expect based on his previous works (“World War Z” and the James Bond series’ “Quantum of Solace,” which are two of his better known films). Tom Hanks carries the film brilliantly as the titular Otto, and the power of his stardom does not outshine the story at the heart of the movie: A grumpy old man and the people who rally around him.
The film follows Otto, an old man with a general disdain for everyone and everything around him. He spends his days enforcing traffic laws around his neighborhood and lecturing the staff at local businesses. When married couple Marisol and Tommy, played by Mariana Treviño and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo respectively, and their children move into the neighborhood, Otto is forced to come out of his grumpy shell and open up about the pain behind his rough exterior. Treviño shines even next to Hanks, bringing a quick wit and warm heart to the character that saves a script that sometimes feels saccharine.
Alongside the tried-and-true reformed grinch story of the film, there is a much more sobering subplot, wherein a predatory real estate agency attempts to force senior citizens out of their homes in order to replace them with modernized condos. This subplot is a blessing unto the film, forcing the plot forward and encouraging character development, so the audience doesn’t have to sit through two hours of an old man becoming slightly less curmudgeonly every few minutes. It may feel far-fetched at times, the evil of this real estate firm is not to be underestimated, but the unfortunate reality is that this kind of thing happens all too often. Watching the characters band together to fight for their neighborhood gives us a glimpse of what this film could have been if it included a couple more plot points, and it’s an enjoyable distraction from Otto’s heartbreaking life story.
The target audience is a little unclear. Some of the jokes seem designed for older generations to laugh at themselves, while some are aimed more for younger generations to laugh at senior citizens. The result is a confusing kind of generational appeal. The film has all the makings of a family movie, but the content of the film is much too dark for children to watch, which may be enough to make older audiences uncomfortable. The film can absolutely be watched by older people with their middle-aged children, but to do so, runs the risk of a silent drive home. It’s a feel-good film that’s a little bit too dark and disturbing to make you feel, well, good.
It can be easily argued that “A Man Called Otto ” was better left in novel form. In the film, the story of Otto’s life is told mostly through warm-toned flashbacks, including a slow-motion action sequence with a soundtrack that is so aggressively sentimental that it nearly ruins the entire scene. Flashbacks aren’t necessarily bad, but when they are used repeatedly as a storytelling technique, it starts to feel like lazy screenwriting. Rather than beginning the film earlier in Otto’s life and having the viewers follow him as he ages, as the book does, or gradually revealing his story through details and subtle allusions that allow the viewer to piece together what happened, the incessant flashbacks feel a little bit too on-the-nose. They don’t interrupt the story in a significant way, but they don’t add much emotional impact either.
“A Man Called Otto” is extremely unlikely to get a sequel or become a franchise. That in itself distinguishes it from most new releases. Fueled by Tom Hanks’ billing, it has been performing well at the box office, bringing people to the theaters even outside New York and Los Angeles. It’s a rare movie that’s targeted towards the older generations, people who have the time to sit through a two-hour film and the time to buy their own ticket. Perhaps “Otto”’s success will lead to more films targeted towards an older audience, but it’s more likely that it will simply become another entry in Hanks’ impressive filmography and take a backseat to the latest Marvel release.
Written by Naomi Scissors of Richard Montgomery High School
Photo courtesy of IGN