Review 297: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Based on the short story The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber, Walter Mitty (Ben Stiller) is a negative asset manager at Life Magazine who lives life through his daydreams, but when his job along with that of his co-worker Cheryl (Kristen Wiig) is threatened, Walter takes action in the real world embarking on a global journey that turns into an adventure more extraordinary than anything he could have ever imagined or dreamt.
The plot is simple but effective, Ben Stiller (who also directs) and writer Steven Conrad tap into a common human need of dreaming of changing their life. We are given a guy who is in a dead end job, who doesn't really know where he is going, who's taunted at work, who's fed up with his life. He suddenly grabs this opportunity to go on this rollicking adventure that will ultimately change his life.
I know we have all seen these elements before, but Ben Stiller's comic touch makes them hard not like. It doesn't exactly make them fresh but it's the eclectic combination of genres (romance, comedy, fantasy and adventure) keep this film afloat with touching naivety. I also think these elements
It's also so much fun to watch e.g. scenes of Mitty skateboarding down Greenland highways or dreaming of saving a woman from a burning building or him battling new boss Ted Hendricks (Adam Scott) in the streets of New York. I was completely sold on it.
Ben Stiller's direction is sharp, the cinematography is fantastic, the special effects are stellar (Ben Stiller has a really distinctive visual style and effects for the dream sequences in particular are some the best since Inception), the score by Theodore Shapiro is catchy, the production design is terrific, the costumes are brilliant, the locations are amazing, the scenery is breathing, the humour is touching and effective, the make up is rich, it's well paced and the ending makes me smile.
The acting is mostly good in this film, Ben Stiller is really likeable in this film. Walter Mitty at his core is a dreamer
Kristen Wiig is sympathetic a lovely as Cheryl, Walter's love interest, she feels sorry for him and becomes someone he can connect with. Which gives her a bigger role to play than just a simple love interest. Both Walter & Cheryl have been at the magazine for a long time and have sort of been a little let down by their lives
Adam Scott from NBC's Parks & Recreation is also terrific in this movie playing Ted Hendricks Walter's boss who is leading the charge of this company that's acquiring Life Magazine the film does an excellent job of building him up as such a smug, sarcastic bully who enjoys making his employees feel small. He craves support from his team and has no regard whatsoever for the humanity of the magazine which has been a marker for American culture for so long. He sees Walter as a pathetic person yet there's something interesting about him, he can't put his finger on who he is and he thinks he's hilarious, but Walter needs to find this photo so he can't just dismiss him entirely, he has to keep track of him So he starts to enjoy Walter until he (from his perspective) starts ruining his life.
Kathryn Hahn is charming and sweet as Walter's younger sister Odessa, she is a polar opposite to Walter Mitty, she's a "hot air ballon" full of grand ideas but not much real action and Hahn manages to convey that in a good natured way with her own brand of charm and cookey nature.
Even big stars like Shirley Maclaine and Sean Penn make an appearances here, Maclaine is perfectly cast as Walter's overprotective mother and she's really good at it. I know the characterisation is a cliche but she manages to rise above the material with her own quirky charm and humour.
Sean Penn is also great in the movie, he has the daring, adventurous, enigmatic personna and provides mystery and mystery to and otherwise funny, dreamy comedy.
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty updates the original James Thurber short story for the 21st century, 4/5.
The Anonymous Critic.
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