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Arthur Bach (Russell Brand) consoles his ailing nanny (Helen Mirren) in the embarrassingly dated, lackluster romantic comedy “Arthur.” |
Of all the movies from the early 1980s, Steve Gordon’s rom-com “Arthur” would seem the least likely to justify a remake in 2011.
Yet, here it is, a dated dud of a movie eking by on the limited ingratiating charms of Russell Brand, stuck with the unenviable responsibility of rendering an irresponsibly insensitive character lovable.
In 1981, Dudley Moore played Arthur, an affectionately cheery, perpetually drunk New York zillionaire who does nothing but get into trouble, feed his adolescent appetites and throw money around as if it meant nothing to him, because it indeed meant nothing to him.
This Oscar-winning film (for John Gielgud and Christopher Cross’ song “Arthur’s Theme”) came out at the start of Reagan-era America, back when alcoholism could still be funny and squandering a fortune on nothing could be fantasy fulfillment.
Jason Winer’s remake, adapted by Peter Baynham, doesn’t change much of the basic story, but does err in replacing Arthur’s male valet (a perfectly cast Gielgud) with a female nanny, Hobson (Helen Mirren, pushing her Oscar-winning talents to the max to keep from being engulfed by soggy material).
Brand’s Arthur lives the life of a childish Hugh Hefner, except he doesn’t publish anything or operate businesses. His mother Vivienne (Geraldine James) has had it with Arthur’s embarrassing public behavior and scandals, because the stockholders of her megacompany worry what will happen should Arthur take over one day. (Read more…)