A MAN CALLED OTTO
****
Director: Marc Forster
Screenplay: David Magee, based on the novel A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman and the film A Man Called Ove by Hannes Holm.
Principal cast:
Tom Hanks
Mariana Treviño
Manuel Garcia-Rulfo
Rachel Keller
Mack Bayda
Cameron Britton
Country: Sweden/USA
Classification: M
Runtime: 126 mins.
Australian release date: 1 January 2023.
Marc Forster’s A Man Called Otto, based on Swedish author Fredrik Backman’s #1 New York Times bestseller, A Man Called Ove (originally made into a film in Sweden in 2015), comes with the tag line, “Fall in love with the grumpiest man in the world,” and you do. Tom Hanks plays Otto Anderson, a cranky 60-year-old widower who regards life through his own set of lofty standards and is the self-imposed guardian of his neighbourhood, ticking off those who break his rules. It’s either his way or the highway! When a new Latino family moves in across the road, he is forced into contact with a pregnant woman, Marisol (Mariana Treviño), her husband Tommy (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), and their two young daughters Luna and Abbie (Christiana Montoya and Alessandra Parez). Marisol has a positively exuberant attitude to life, the reverse of Otto’s, and radiates a caring quality that ultimately wears down his misanthropic edges.
When Otto and Marisol first meet, he is in the process of trying to hang himself because his beloved wife Sonja (Rachel Keller) died six months ago and he has been forced into early retirement by the company he’s spent his lifetime working for. Over the following days and weeks, a number of other attempts at taking his own life fail, too, often because of a random knock on the door or emergency involving Marisol. During each of these episodes, Otto thinks back to events in his life with Sonja but each one also brings him more and more into contact with his neighbours, some of who are estranged from Otto and some of whom he’s just getting to know. One particular event gets him really angry and galvanises him into action, bringing him closer to the community and Marisol and reminding him that you can find joy in life… occasionally.
This is a pretty straightforward remake of Hannes Holm’s Swedish version, except that the neighbouring family has switched from Iranian to Mexican. Other than that, scriptwriter David Magee has wisely decided to leave many things unchanged from the original – which is a good thing, given that A Man Called Ove was nominated for an Oscar as Best Foreign Language Film and is the third most-watched Swedish movie of all time in its home country. It’s a perfect role for Hanks, who was possibly looking around for a more lovable character to play after his stint as the loathsome Colonel Tom Parker in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis. Hanks says of his character, “Unlike a lot of grumps, he’s not trying to protect his own or maintain a status quo. Otto wants balance and equity for everyone who shares the street, and the best way to share that street is to care for it so that everyone can enjoy its benefits.” In other words, if people would just do the right thing, the world would be a better place; it’s only that Otto wants everything done his way, because he thinks everyone else is an idiot. Hanks is very good in the role, never allowing Otto to wallow in self-pity or become a stereotypical ‘grumpy old man’. He brings complexity to the character. Treviño is a delight, too. The actress is noted for comedic roles in her native Mexico and this explains why she is able to bring such a light touch to Marisol and is such a perfect foil to Hanks’s Otto. Even when she’s in trouble, she’s funny.
A Man Called Otto is one of the most enchanting films of the summer releases. If you want a movie to wipe all your cares away, this one will do it. It will leave you with a tear in your eye and a smile on your face.
Screenplay: David Magee, based on the novel A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman and the film A Man Called Ove by Hannes Holm.
Principal cast:
Tom Hanks
Mariana Treviño
Manuel Garcia-Rulfo
Rachel Keller
Mack Bayda
Cameron Britton
Country: Sweden/USA
Classification: M
Runtime: 126 mins.
Australian release date: 1 January 2023.
Marc Forster’s A Man Called Otto, based on Swedish author Fredrik Backman’s #1 New York Times bestseller, A Man Called Ove (originally made into a film in Sweden in 2015), comes with the tag line, “Fall in love with the grumpiest man in the world,” and you do. Tom Hanks plays Otto Anderson, a cranky 60-year-old widower who regards life through his own set of lofty standards and is the self-imposed guardian of his neighbourhood, ticking off those who break his rules. It’s either his way or the highway! When a new Latino family moves in across the road, he is forced into contact with a pregnant woman, Marisol (Mariana Treviño), her husband Tommy (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), and their two young daughters Luna and Abbie (Christiana Montoya and Alessandra Parez). Marisol has a positively exuberant attitude to life, the reverse of Otto’s, and radiates a caring quality that ultimately wears down his misanthropic edges.
When Otto and Marisol first meet, he is in the process of trying to hang himself because his beloved wife Sonja (Rachel Keller) died six months ago and he has been forced into early retirement by the company he’s spent his lifetime working for. Over the following days and weeks, a number of other attempts at taking his own life fail, too, often because of a random knock on the door or emergency involving Marisol. During each of these episodes, Otto thinks back to events in his life with Sonja but each one also brings him more and more into contact with his neighbours, some of who are estranged from Otto and some of whom he’s just getting to know. One particular event gets him really angry and galvanises him into action, bringing him closer to the community and Marisol and reminding him that you can find joy in life… occasionally.
This is a pretty straightforward remake of Hannes Holm’s Swedish version, except that the neighbouring family has switched from Iranian to Mexican. Other than that, scriptwriter David Magee has wisely decided to leave many things unchanged from the original – which is a good thing, given that A Man Called Ove was nominated for an Oscar as Best Foreign Language Film and is the third most-watched Swedish movie of all time in its home country. It’s a perfect role for Hanks, who was possibly looking around for a more lovable character to play after his stint as the loathsome Colonel Tom Parker in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis. Hanks says of his character, “Unlike a lot of grumps, he’s not trying to protect his own or maintain a status quo. Otto wants balance and equity for everyone who shares the street, and the best way to share that street is to care for it so that everyone can enjoy its benefits.” In other words, if people would just do the right thing, the world would be a better place; it’s only that Otto wants everything done his way, because he thinks everyone else is an idiot. Hanks is very good in the role, never allowing Otto to wallow in self-pity or become a stereotypical ‘grumpy old man’. He brings complexity to the character. Treviño is a delight, too. The actress is noted for comedic roles in her native Mexico and this explains why she is able to bring such a light touch to Marisol and is such a perfect foil to Hanks’s Otto. Even when she’s in trouble, she’s funny.
A Man Called Otto is one of the most enchanting films of the summer releases. If you want a movie to wipe all your cares away, this one will do it. It will leave you with a tear in your eye and a smile on your face.