Review of Arthur Newman (2012) by Kat H — 05 Sep 2013

Ho-hum. Arthur Newman in a word. At first, Arthur Miller is actually Wallace Avery ... a man tired of his humdrum life that includes: a mediocre job and love life, a divorce, an un-spectacular apartment, a tired routine, a boring car, broken dreams, depression, and a very strained (practically non-existent) relationship with his young teenage son.

Wallace Avery (Colin Firth - The King's Speech, A Single Man) has had enough of his sad life and decides to purchase a new name and identity and get a fresh start ... and this is where Arthur Newman comes into being.

Staging a sad disappearance at a Florida beach, Wallace Avery vanishes overnight and Arthur Newman drives north out of Florida as a new man in a new-ish car. A one-time golf pro, Arthur used his fake identity months ago in hopes of securing a new job as a golf pro at a small private club in Terre Haute, Indiana.

On his way to Indiana, Arthur crosses paths with Michaela "Mike" Fitzgerald (Emily Blunt - The Devil Wears Prada, Looper), a pick-pocket/con-artist depressed over a failed relationship and the institutionalization of her twin sister.

After she quickly learns his secret, the two reluctantly find themselves linked to one another through common situations and understandings of one another. His solo trip to Indiana becomes a road trip and the pair bond with one another and form a romantic attraction with one another .

.. while they break into houses and role-play (temporarily stealing others' identities I presume?). If that sounds as if it just came out of left-field ... that is exactly how it feels while watching it too.

Before any explanation is given, I assumed she became an instant schizophrenic or something and was confused. I am still somewhat confused by its purpose and inclusion -- and it doesn't just happen once or twice.

The film loses its way when this third layer of "pretending" began and it never fully recovers as each scenario becomes more grandiose than the last. While these two are living it up and "finding themselves" while pretending to be someone other than the person they are already pretending to be (?), those they've left behind in Florida (Anne Heche - Donnie Brasco; Lucas Hedges - Moonrise Kingdom) miss them.

The movie is a jumbled mess and I don't even know who I am supposed to like and root for. First-time director Dante Ariola couldn't keep this all in order as he had too much going on to keep straight.

When he lost control of the ship, we were all doomed.