Review of My Old Lady (2014) by Dave C — 21 Mar 2015

Review:

I quite enjoyed the beginning of this movie because of its unique content but it goes downhill once the main character starts to ask questions about his past. It's about a man who inherits a apartment building in France from his dead father, only to find out that the building comes with a tenant who is contracted to stay in the apartment until she dies. On top of that, he has to pay the tenant rent to stay in the apartment because it truly isn't his until she dies, due to the French law. WEIRD! Anyway, I thought that the movie was going to be about Kline trying to get the lady out of the apartment but it turned out to be about his relationship with his dead father and the tenants daughter. It was quite witty at the beginning and I enjoyed the fresh concept but it lost it's way after a while and Kline just seemed to be walking around in a daze. Maggie Smith gives a top class performance, along with Kline who I'm a big fan off but the storyline seemed to dry up in the second half of the film and the love story took away the unique element at the beginning. There were some emotional scenes from Kline, after he finds out the truth about his father and why he didn't feel love him when he was young but I personally didn't think that the director got the mixture quite right. It was good to see Kline back on the big screen and the chemistry between Maggie Smith and Kline was brilliant but the problem is with the storyline which turns out to be a bit predictable after a while. Average!

Round-Up:

I always wondered why I haven't seen Kevin Kline in more movies and after watching the bonus bits on the DVD, I found out that he is known in Hollywood as Kevin Decline due to the amount of movies he has turned down. Some of his choices haven't been that terrific, like the disappointing remake of the Pink Panther and the rom-com Darling Companion but that doesn't take away his great acting skills and his ability to always make me laugh. Personally, I think that is what worked in the beginning of this movie and it was good to see him back on top form alongside Maggie Smith who seems to be going from strength to strength at the age of 80. She was great in the Harry Potter franchise and with some top performances in Downtown Abbey and The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, she doesn't look like she is going to be slowing down anytime soon. Basically, the cast and concept wasn't the problem with this movie. It was the bad execution from the director who could have done better with the second half of the movie.

Budget: N/A.

Worldwide Gross: $9million.

I recommend this movie to people who are into their comedy/dramas about a man who inherits a house in France from his dead father, only to find out that it comes with a tenant who can't leave until she is dead. 4/10.