A Man Called Otto
Tom Hanks goes for the emotionally manipulative hat trick in this middling drama
Tom Hanks grumbles his way into Mariana Treviño’s heart in A Man Called Otto.
Only three things are certain in life: Death, Taxes, and Otto (Tom Hanks) sticking his nose into everyone’s business. Recently forced into retirement, widower Otto has nothing better to do than patrol his neighborhood like some sort of Super Karen — scolding neighbors for where their dogs pee, picking through the recycling while grumbling about the idiocy of everyone around him, and chasing UPS trucks while shouting to leave his gated street alone.
But Otto isn’t only invested in making other people miserable, he’s miserable. In fact, after the loss of his wife, he sees no point in living anymore. So he goes to the store, buys some rope — after arguing with an employee about pricing because making people unhappy is an Olympic sport for him, and ties a noose. But before he can end it all, a new family moves in across the street. Otto’s need to micromanage overrides his need to end it all and he ends up backing the new family’s trailer into their parking spot. This immediately endears him to Marisol (Mariana Treviño), who decides to adopt him into their growing family.
As Marisol pushes past Otto’s grumbly exterior, an odd thing happens: Others begin to warm to him. Is life worth living now? Or should he stick to his original plan?
A Man Called Otto is a film that means well. There are plenty of platitudes about opening yourself up to new people, trying new things, and creating your own happiness. He’s got the emotionally manipulative hat trick going for him: His wife is dead, he’s been forced out of his career because of age, and he’s got no family or friends. That’s all great, or it would be if Otto wasn’t so damn insufferable for 90% of the movie. Think of Otto like Carl Fredricksen from Up, except not as warm and without the talking dog. The whole movie is a study of how much character development matters when telling a story. You can get away with a lot if you spend time really cultivating who a character is and the relationships they have. Or, you can just stick Tom Hanks in front of a camera and tell him to glower.
Director Marc Forster chooses the latter, seemingly content to remake the original film (a hit Swedish movie from 2015) almost beat-for-beat. Unless you’re a Tom Hanks superfan or unable to enjoy films with subtitles, there’s really no reason to see this American update. Forster does a workman-like job – making Otto’s life seem cold by tinting the film blue, but slowly warming up the colors of the movie as he begins forging friendships. It’s a fine enough remake, but it feels low effort.
Part of that feeling is that Forster doesn’t seem to trust the audience. When something sad happens, he cranks the sad music soundtrack up loud so we all know we should cry. When something funny happens, the music turns light and whacky, so we’re reminded to laugh. It feels condescending in a movie that’s already trying to tell you to be nice to the old man who decided to ruin a friendship over car company preference.
The other issue with the movie is that everyone in it seems to exist only to make Otto realize the beauty of life. Marisol feeds him like a stray cat and is determined to make him part of the family. A neighbor says “hi” to Otto even though he’s faced with disdain every time. Little girls just love old grumpy men who beat up clowns in front of them. It’s a movie filled with ciphers, all there to let us know that Otto is worthy and wonderful — as long as you spend several weeks tolerating his abuse.
The worst example of a character that is nothing more than a prop might be Otto’s wife, Sonya. Sonya suffers from Pretty Dead Wife Syndrome, something many movies are guilty of, where a dead spouse is only remembered as beautiful and existing solely for their partner instead of as…say, as a person. Whenever Otto remembers her, it’s all based around her being beautiful and saving him from himself. It seems she didn’t spend a moment on the earth that wasn’t dedicated to being beautiful and making sure Otto was happy — even in her hospital bed. Part of that could be Otto’s memories, but it seems odd that he was devoted to his wife until the moment she died, but he can only remember what she looked like at 28.
Still, A Man Called Otto is one of those movies that offers saccharine platitudes frequently enough that it may win over an audience. It’s a mediocre film with a mediocre effort from all involved. If you like schlocky, weepy movies about communities coming together, this might be worth the watch.
Verdict: This is a movie you stream on a rainy Sunday while folding laundry, don’t pay a box office premium for this when movies like M3GAN are available.
A Man Called Otto is rated PG-13 and is in theaters January 13.
