Film Review: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. Rated PG (mild themes, action violence, sexual references and coarse language). 114 minutes. Directed by Ben Stiller. Screenplay by Steve Conrad, based on a short story by James Thurber.

Verdict: Romance and adventure go head to head in this uneven tale about daring to live the life you always dreamed of.

As ideas for potentially fascinating films go, Thurber’s short story (published in 1939) about a day-dreamer who escapes into the fantasy realm to escape his mundane existence is inspirational source material.

Previously adapted for the screen in 1947 with Danny Kaye in the title role, Conrad (The Pursuit of Happyness) has a bet each way on just how interesting the story will be in 2013. By setting his very loose adaptation in the headquarters of LIFE magazine as it faces imminent closure, Conrad surrounds the fantastic central premise of the story with too much baggage. Walter (Stiller, in a fine, understated performance) becomes the butt of too many workplace bullying jokes, and his romance with co-worker and single mum Cheryl (Kristen Wiig) feels awkwardly contrived and takes up far too much screen time.

But once the second act kicks in, Conrad and Stiller’s vision for the story finally takes flight, as Walter sets off on an adventure to retrieve a missing negative that world-renowned photographer Sean O'Connell (Sean Penn) was supposed to have provided for LIFE’s final cover.

The sequences in Iceland, where Walter finds himself confronting the wild and unpredictable environment are beautifully realised, and Stiller’s performance as a mild-mannered geek from New York forced into previously unimaginable heroics is wonderful to watch.

Problematically, the film ultimately appears to duck the profoundly personal message at the core of its source, which is that is possibly more liberating to convince yourself of just how capable you are of living the life you always wanted, than by obsessing about what others think of you.

This review was commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.

Film Review: Bridesmaids

Bridesmaids. Rated MA15+ (strong coarse language, sexual references and a sex scene). 125 minutes. Directed by Paul Feig. Screenplay by Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo.

It is often said about comedy that timing is everything – and if Bridesmaids doesn’t quite sustain its arrival in the realm of tear-inducing hilarity (which it absolutely reaches in one sensational sequence in a posh bridal gown shop), it’s certainly not through want of trying.

It’s not often you laugh until you cry in the cinema much anymore, but the winning bridal gown shop sequence not only charges across the boundaries of good taste, but also successfully crashes through the gender barrier – blissfully escorting Bridesmaids into toilet humour (both metaphorically and actually) territory that is usually reserved for similar movies about blokes.

Annie (Ms Wiig, who also co-wrote the screenplay) is unlucky in love and life generally. Her small bakery business has gone bust, and she has found herself broke, miserable and desperately trying to rediscover her self-esteem. When her best friend Lillian (Maya Rudolph) announces that she getting married, Annie is invited to be Maid of Honour. Will our defeated and directionless heroine be able to rise to the challenges of the occasion?

The success of Bridesmaids all hinges on a delightfully self-deprecating performance from Ms Wiig (who is well-known to American audiences as one of the stars of the hit comedy show Saturday Night Live). It’s a star turn, but without any of the usually attendant vanity and ego. Ms Wiig is supported by an excellent ensemble of characters including Molly (the seriously unhinged sister of Lillian’s fiancé) who is played with ferocious intent by Melissa McCarthy (pictured above, centre), and a fabulous turn by Australian-born Rose Byrne as wannabe socialite Helen.

If there is a fault, it’s that Feig’s experience as a director for television (the US version of The Office, Weeds, Arrested Development) results in an essentially one-dimensional visual engagement with the material. But Bridesmaids’ profound lack of directorial ambition and depth is the only disappointment in a movie that sets a new benchmark in the evergreen ‘Chick Flick’ genre.

This review was commissioned by the Geraldton Newspaper Group.