A Man Called Otto
Tom Hanks creates another unforgettable character, a fastidious widower who is as unyielding as he is strangely dependable.
Uncommon ground: Mariana Treviño and Tom Hanks
Otto does not suffer fools gladly. His catchphrase is “he’s an idiot!” And while he meticulously follows the rules that he has set himself, he is exasperated by the impersonal rigidity of the modern world. He is very old-school and while he might not entirely be in touch with his own humanity, he is none too happy with how computers are taking over. One might call him a grouch, but then everybody has their reasons…
The casting of Tom Hanks as Otto Anderson is a coup; not because he is everybody’s favourite Mr Nice Guy but because he is a character actor who can find the truth in every nuance. It would have been easy to have turned Otto into a caricature, but because Hanks makes the man’s belligerence and frustrations so believable, he makes us understand him. Many of us will share his vexation with an automated society, a culture that has little room for human negotiation.
The Swedish film from which it has been adapted – A Man Called Ove (2015) – has a devoted following among those who have seen it, but not being in that camp I came to the American remake fresh. It does boast a wonderful story, but one that could have been so easily mishandled, both with crudeness and sentimentality. However, the Swiss director Marc Forster has a knack for alighting on the right tone (cf. Finding Neverland, Stranger Than Fiction, The Kite Runner) and here delivers a mainstream entertainment that juggles its moods perfectly. The result is a film that is at once sad as well as funny, as tragic as it is life-affirming.
Besides Hanks’ consummate central performance (which is beginning to garner Oscar buzz), there are some perfectly pitched supporting turns, particularly from the Mexican actress Mariana Treviño as Marisol, as a new neighbour of Otto’s who refuses to take his grumpiness at face value, and Rachel Keller as Otto’s late wife Sonya, seen in flashback. Thomas Newman’s signature score may prove a little glutinous for some, but it perfectly achieves its goal of balancing the film’s emotional shades.
JAMES CAMERON-WILSON
Cast: Tom Hanks, Mariana Treviño, Rachel Keller, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Truman Hanks, Mike Birbiglia, Cameron Britton, Juanita Jennings, Peter Lawson Jones, Kailey Hyman, Mack Bayda, Peter Sipla, John Higgins, Lily Kozub, David Magee.
Dir Marc Forster, Pro Rita Wilson, Fredrik Wikström Nicastro, Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman, Screenplay David Magee, Ph Matthias Koenigswieser, Pro Des Barbara Ling, Ed Matt Chessé, Music Thomas Newman, Costumes Frank L. Fleming.
Columbia Pictures/Stage 6 Films/TSG Entertainment II/SF Studios/Artistic Films/Playtone/ 2DUX²-Sony Pictures.
125 mins. USA/Sweden. 2022. UK Rel: 6 January 2023. US Rel: 13 January 2023. Cert. 15.
