By Melissa Antoinette Garza
I love Dudley Moore. I have loved him since I was a child and when he died 12 years ago, I was really very sad. I grew up watching him in Arthur (1981) and Arthur 2 On the Rocks (1988). I was one of the few I know who actually enjoy the sequel. I even enjoyed him in Santa Claus (1985), and one of the films I still watch and think is hilarious is Crazy People (1990). There was something special about Mr. Moore. It was because of this that I really never watched the remake. Not to mention back then, I really disliked Russell Brand. As I explained in the article about the talk show Brand X, I had preconceived notions about Brand and really disliked him. I had only heard about him on Yahoo News and all I heard was negative.
Anyways, I began to get really intrigued with him and subsequently realized that my viewpoint was wrong when I heard him speak. When I heard his spiritual beliefs and his overall knowledge on a vast amount of subjects, I knew he was more than a pretty face.
So as I had today off of my day job as a nice surprise, I decided to finally watch the remake of Arthur. I really thought it was going to be awful. I thought it was either going to be a complete play-by-play of the first or I thought it was going to resort to toilet humor consisting of vomit, fart, and erection jokes.
Nonetheless, I gave it a chance. I rented it off Amazon Prime as unfortunately it wasn’t on Netflix or in Redbox. It was definitely worth it.
There are admittedly a lot of similarities between the original and remake, but I must say that the 2011 version is actually a superior version. First, the modification in making Hobson (Helen Mirren) a matriarch type really changed the dynamic. Here much of the film is Arthur not only learning he was capable of love, but learning he had a parent in his corner from the start – even if it wasn’t biological.
It was heartwarming and rang of hope and love. It was sweet and sentimental and in another generation could have been a classic all its own.
The plot of course follows Arthur (Russell Brand) who is a rich, alcoholic freeloader who is an embarrassment to his mother. His father died when he was only three and then Hobson and later his driver Bitterman (Luis Guzman) stepped in as an untraditional family. His mother, though alive, was a businesswoman and never paid much mind to him. In fact, they were on a first name basis and only really saw each other during scheduled meetings at her office.
Arthur, though having over 750 million dollars at his disposal, felt a great emptiness inside of him. He attempted to fill the void with expensive items, random women and liquor. Finally, he pushed the limits too far when getting arrested in the Batmobile dressed like Batman while the family company attempted an important collaboration.
Arthur’s mother Vivienne (Geraldine James) gets fed up and orders Arthur to marry businesswoman Susan (Jennifer Garner) to gain some credibility. If he doesn’t he loses everything.
Initially he agrees, but then he meets Naomi (Greta Gerwig). Picture a much less annoying and genuine version of Zooey Deschanel and you have Naomi. Naomi is quirky but in a manner that doesn’t make me want to hit her in the head with a hammer. It’s as if she doesn’t mean to be different but just is. Even as she tells a tale of how when she was a child and thought the moon was following her, she comes across charming and sweet.
The love story between the two is great. It’s clear that Brand has chemistry with anyone including himself so of course Arthur and Naomi captures something absolutely beautiful and innocent. While Susan attempts to win him over by being aggressive and demanding, Naomi is the complete opposite. She’s like him – a lost soul who stopped believing in fairytales.
Arthur convinces her to pursue a writing career and both she and Hobson through their actions convince him to sober up and fight for true love –even if it means giving up everything.
I absolutely adored this film. It is one of the few remakes that add to the original rather than take away. Brand is a convincing actor. Even through moments of heartbreak and tragedy he is able to pull it off in a way that tugs at the heartstrings.
It goes without saying that Helen Mirren is amazing. I could watch her host a show about paint drying and it would be great. She’s just one of those actresses who bring it in every role without exception. Luis Guzman was perfectly cast as Bitterman and played well as a buddy and almost brother to Arthur. Even Garner who I couldn’t imagine playing a believable villainess does a great job.
Most impressive of all was Gerwig. I really didn’t anticipate liking Naomi. In the original Arthur’s love interest Linda was portrayed as such a strong and sassy woman. It played really well against Moore’s over-the-top drunk antics. As he was so eye-catching, she needed to be loud to get attention, but it was also that flair that helped get Arthur straight in the original. Here Naomi is much more subtle and quiet yet amazingly just as strong as Linda. She gets hurt and she acts very human which certainly makes her more empathetic to the audience, but when she strands up to Arthur insisting he get well before being with him, her strength is shown – not in the volume of her words but in the conviction in which they were said. She’s quite an actress and did remarkably well against Brand who can easily steal a scene just by being in it.
I can’t recommend this enough. It was a great comedy and extremely heartfelt. This isn’t the over-the-top nonsense like The Hangover films or movies like Knocked Up which is probably why it didn’t do so well. I do believe this movie will see a second life. I know as soon as I was done watching, I bought the DVD. I think as others see it, they too will find enjoyment. The hardest part is separating Moore from the role, and Russell Brand is a genius when it comes to making the role his own.
Scared Stiff Rating: 8.5/10
Melissa,
Thank you for this review. Like you, I haven’t cared much for Russell Brand. Now, you have me curious. I’m a huge fan of the late Dudley Moore and find it difficult to see other actors protraying the roles that he made famous. Still, I now want to watch the remake of Arthur and see for myself how Brand does.
Thanks! I really hope you like it and would love for you to let me know if you agree 🙂 Brand really grew on me and I hope he does that for you too! All the best, Missy