Highbrow Magazine - christopher walken https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/christopher-walken en ‘The War With Grandpa’: A Sweet but Painfully Unrealistic Family Movie https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/10953-war-grandpa-sweet-painfully-unrealistic-family-movie <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/film-tv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Film &amp; TV</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Fri, 10/09/2020 - 09:06</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1warwithgrandpa.jpg?itok=CFdVj3Ly"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1warwithgrandpa.jpg?itok=CFdVj3Ly" width="480" height="320" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p> </p> <p><strong>AT A GLANCE</strong></p> <p><strong>The War With Grandpa</strong></p> <p><strong>Director: Tim Hill (<em>Hop, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Max Keeble’s Big Movie</em>)</strong></p> <p><strong>Starring: Robert De Niro, Oakes Fegley, Uma Thurman, Rob Riggle, Laura Marano, Poppy Gagnon, Cheech Marin, Jane Seymour and Christopher Walken</strong></p> <p><strong>Rated: PG</strong></p> <p><strong>Critical rating: 2½ stars out of 4               </strong></p> <p><strong>                                      </strong></p> <p>According to Margaret Atwood, “War is what happens when language fails.” According to director Tim Hill, it’s what happens when Peter is forced from his room by an unwelcome visit from Gramps.   </p> <p> </p> <p>That’s right, <em>The War With Grandpa</em> tells the story of Peter, a precocious sixth-grader who gets worked up when his mom, Sally (Uma Thurman) and dad, Arthur (Rob Riggle) force him into the attic so Grandpa Ed (Robert De Niro) has a place to sleep. Ed doesn’t want to displace Peter, but a bad encounter with a self-checkout machine convinces Sally that her recently widowed father needs to be closer to family. Since Ed is an old man and Peter’s sisters – Mia (Laura Marano) and Jennifer (Poppy Gagnon) – share a room, the kid draws the short straw.</p> <p> </p> <p>One might expect a youngster to get excited by the prospect of an extended stay from Grandpa, but Peter is more selfish than the average kid. This is a problem area in the script, but viewers should feel some sympathy because Mom and Dad don’t have the decency to fix the leaky roof in Peter’s new home in the attic.  </p> <p> </p> <p>I can’t help but think most sixth-grade boys would dig the prospect of converting an attic to a living space, but not Peter. After going to war with a huge bat (Mom and Dad didn’t clear that out either), he decides it’s Grandpa who needs to pay. So Peter makes a formal declaration of war … and Ed buys in. Pretty soon we’re witnessing a May-December prank-fest with countless pratfalls, significant property damage and, of course, a little grandpa-grandson bonding.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2warwithgrandpa.jpg" style="height:338px; width:600px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>Anyone who has seen more than a dozen family films knows where this one is headed as soon as it starts because the other possibilities are hopelessly dark, and <em>The War With Grandpa</em> is only dark if you stop long enough to think about it. Director Tim Hill, who brought us <em>Hop</em> and <em>Alvin and the Chipmunks</em>, is not the sort to do gloomy. His films are bright and cheerful, and <em>The War With Grandpa</em> is clearly meant to be a warm, slapstick comedy about a friendly feud. The movie IS entertaining.  </p> <p> </p> <p>De Niro and Thurman are too good – and too famous – to be in a picture like this. The same can be said for Christopher Walken, who appears in several scenes as one of Ed’s buddies. These actors elevate the movie to a degree, and I admittedly laughed, probably more than I should have.</p> <p> </p> <p>That said, <em>The War With Grandpa</em> is not objectively good. It mixes TV comedy plotting with an A-list cast and thematic elements that are slightly disturbing. It’s hard to like a kid who won’t willingly give up his room to an aging senior who is nothing but kind to him. The physical comedy is also harder to laugh at knowing the real-world results of virtually every stunt would be an extended hospital stay for Grandpa, likely followed by a permanent spot in a senior home.  And that analysis allows for the rather optimistic assumption that Grandpa would survive. Yes, this war is extreme.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3warwithgrandpa.jpg" style="height:334px; width:600px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>I do understand this is a movie, and suspension of disbelief is part of the game. If you are willing to embrace a cinematic world where Grandpa can fall from towering heights without winding up in a coma and where Peter is too dim to see this as a horrifying possibility, <em>The War With Grandpa</em> is sort of fun. It also includes the requisite sappy finish and condemnation of war that youngsters need to see. Both are handled awkwardly, but they are better present than not.</p> <p> </p> <p>Although Mom and Dad never address the terrible condition of Peter’s room, we are led to believe there is love in this family. We also see that Peter’s war puts a spring in Ed’s step that wasn’t always there. In other words, if you read the film the way Hill wants, it’s sweet. We just have to hope real-world sixth graders know they shouldn’t duplicate these stunts at home.  </p> <p> </p> <p>Should you watch? That depends on how desperate you are for family entertainment. There are worse ways to spend 90 minutes, but that means there are better ways as well.  </p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Author Bio:</strong></p> <p> </p> <p><em><strong>Forrest Hartman, a </strong></em><strong>Highbrow Magazine</strong><em><strong> contributor, is a longtime entertainment journalist who teaches in the Department of </strong></em><a href="https://www.csuchico.edu/jour/" target="_blank"><em><strong>Journalism &amp; Public Relations at California State University, Chico</strong></em></a><em><strong>.</strong></em></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Highbrow Magazine</strong></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/war-grandpa" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">the war with grandpa</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/robert-de-niro" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">robert de niro</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/uma-thurman" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">uma thurman</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/christopher-walken" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">christopher walken</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/family-movies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">family movies</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/kids-movies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">kids movies</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/comedies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">comedies</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/new-movies" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">new movies</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Forrest Hartman</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Images courtesy of EPK.TV</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Fri, 09 Oct 2020 13:06:31 +0000 tara 9896 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/10953-war-grandpa-sweet-painfully-unrealistic-family-movie#comments Even Acting Legends Pacino and Walken Can’t Save Lackluster ‘Stand Up Guys’ https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2008-even-acting-legends-pacino-and-walken-can-t-save-lackluster-stand-guys <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/film-tv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Film &amp; TV</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Fri, 02/01/2013 - 09:59</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumstandupguys.jpg?itok=aneRx-JO"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumstandupguys.jpg?itok=aneRx-JO" width="480" height="236" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>  </p> <p> Spoiler alert: Al Pacino and Christopher Walken are old. This is the premise of the movie <em>Stand Up Guys</em> directed by former second male lead in the “Short Circuit” franchise, Fisher Stevens. Oh yes, Alan Arkin is also old. This is emphasized by breaking Arkin out of a nursing home. Upon which he is magically rejuvenated and no longer needs a respirator due to the mere presence of Pacino and Walken, basic medical science.</p> <p>  </p> <p> There is no use in memorizing the characters names or the movie’s exposition. Al Pacino plays a just released “gangster” who has all the exaggerated manners of Pacino, circa someone impersonating Pacino in <em>Scent of Woman</em> with a dash of Al Pacino from <em>Heat</em>. Christopher Walken plays Christopher Walken circa numerous <em>Saturday Night Live</em> appearances and one particular Fat Boy Slim video. For popcorn entertainment purposes this is not a bad thing. Walken could read bird bath installation instructions on the big screen for two hours and elicit more than a few chuckles. The movie is at its best with Arkin serving as an emotional fulcrum and delivering dry one-liners to extinguish Pacino’s over-acting.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The movie limps along at a choppy pace that dares a moviegoer to pay attention.  All females in <em>Stand Up Guys</em> only serve as one-dimensional, over-sentimental cyphers to bring attention to the fact that these gangsters need redeeming. In the Hollywood pantheon of careers that deserve redemption, gangsters certainly have the pole position.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Whether it is Sylvia, played by Vanessa Ferlito, who is so street-tough she brushes off an abduction and sexual exploitation due to Pacino’s and Walken’s sense of honor as men.  Julianna Margulies, feeling no need to stretch her acting chops, returns to the ER as a nurse and the daughter to Alan Arkin’s character. She is oddly touched when Walken explains he threw her in the air decades ago at birthday party. All the while, Pacino lies prone on a hospital bed suffering from an overdose of Viagra… because he is old. Then there is the waitress with a painfully obvious connection to Walken’s character, portrayed by Addison Timlin, whose character has been written to possess worldly wisdom beyond her years and child-like naivety when most convenient for the other characters in the film.</p> <p>  </p> <p> All films have an ending and this one is unsatisfactory. As with all tales of redemption, there is a final confrontation. The redeemed use their new found insight to defeat an adversary and/or perform an act of great sacrifice that will have their names whispered with reverence. In <em>Stand Up Guys</em>, Pacino and Walken spend more than hour using their worldly wisdom to best younger, stronger adversaries at every turn, woo women and heal past wrongs. They forget everything by the last five minutes of <em>Stand Up Guys</em>, including how to shoot. A lot of good windows are lost as a result. The essence of senility is captured as no one in the audience has a clue what happened or why.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Author Bio:</strong></p> <p> <em>Kurt Thurber is a contributing writer at</em> Highbrow Magazine.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/stand-guys" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">stand up guys</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/al-pacino" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">al pacino</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/christopher-walken" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">christopher walken</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/alan-arkin" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">alan arkin</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/stand-guys-movie" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">stand up guys movie</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/heat" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">heat</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/saturday-night-live" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">saturday night live</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/scent-woman" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">scent of a woman</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Kurt Thurber</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Fri, 01 Feb 2013 14:59:10 +0000 tara 2296 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2008-even-acting-legends-pacino-and-walken-can-t-save-lackluster-stand-guys#comments