There are those that will cry foul on this movie. That a remake of Arthur during a recession is unseemly and any attempt to try and recreate the brilliance of Dudley Moore would be fool hearty. Sure all of that is true but the original is about a drunk with one liners, that movie has been redone so many times why not try to re-share the story for a new generation.Both old and new Arthur focus in on a drunken millionaire living up the high life, but he is forced to marry a woman his family believes will finally make him grow up. Right before he pops the question he meets and falls in love with a working class girl and now must choose between a life with money or one with love.
There was little to no chance this iteration was going to be as good as the first one. It was exactly 30 years ago when the original came out and not only was it nominated for four Oscars (winning two) but it is on AFI's top 100 comedy list. In order to enjoy this movie it is best to keep the original out of your head.
Russel Brand does his best to do just that, while both leading men come from across the pond, Brand makes the character in his own image. You imagine he didn't have to dig too far back to gather the necessary inspiration to portray the title character. It was not long ago when Brand himself was a wealthy womanizing alcoholic, that is till he met Katy Perry. I'd probably give up the drink to be hittin that as well. He injects himself into the character and delivers Arthur's famous one liners perfectly. It is tough to tell how much of his humor is written in the script and how much is improvised.
Those behind the scenes decided to do a couple gender role reversals, most likely in an attempt to highlight Arthur's immaturity. I doubt the choices hurt the film any as Brand's female co-stars do admirably in their roles, but certainly don't elevate the movie to any great heights. Both Helen Mirren and Jennifer Garner's characters are written as very strong female foils to the lead. Each character receives their own batch of one liners and jokes to deliver but neither nail the deadpan delivery to get the big laughs. Meanwhile indie star Greta Gerwig plays the love interest which serves to highlight the best points of Arthur's childlike naivety. She plays the role as written but there is zero pop in the performance.
All of the clever zingers get left behind in the second half of the film and are replaced with attempted heartfelt complications. This shift in tone ruins any aspirations the movie may have had of leaving a mark on the movie goers. Any Russel Brand fans out there may just want to wait until this one comes out to DVD, or better yet find the original on Netflix as they have it in their instant viewing section. There is nothing in this movie that can't be seen elsewhere without the cost of a movie ticket. D+
