“So you just ditched Wallace Avery for a total stranger’s half-baked promise?” —Mike
Today’s quick review: Arthur Newman. Hoping to leave his mundane life behind him, Wallace Avery (Colin Firth) fakes his death and reinvents himself as Arthur Newman, a professional golfer on his way to a job in Indiana. Along the way, he finds a kindred spirit in Mike (Emily Blunt), a young woman dealing with troubles of her own. Meanwhile, Wallace’s estranged teenage son Kevin (Lucas Hedges) copes with the disappearance of his father.
Arthur Newman is a dramatic comedy with romantic elements. The movie follows Wallace and Mike on a cross-country roadtrip to get away from their past lives. Along the way, they open up to each other, try on new identities for themselves, and take advantage of the opportunity to have a little fun. Arthur Newman dabbles with some interesting themes of regret, responsibility, and reinvention, but its execution of its story falls somewhat short.
Arthur Newman comes at its story from a strange direction. The motives for Wallace’s disappearing act are relatable: a middle-aged man with a dull job, a poor relationship with his family, and a chance to start over as a new man. Likewise, Mike is locked in a pattern of self-destructive behavior until Wallace gives her a way out. These personal conflicts should be the foundation of an insightful story that mixes light humor with emotional depth.
Instead, Arthur Newman fixates on odd ideas that throw the story off-balance. Wallace and Mike do not just have one or two clearly defined failings, but a whole host of them, making it hard to track their growth as people. Their roadtrip straddles the line between a charming escape from reality and a terrible decision that could backfire at any moment. Finally, the movie sets up several emotional threads that it never ties off.
The result is a movie that does not fit into any of the templates that would suit it. As a comedy or a romance, Arthur Newman is burdened with an odd sense of humor and a tone that veers back towards drama a little too often. As a drama, the movie embraces its characters’ escapism too readily, producing a misalignment between the story and its intended meaning. Arthur Newman has potential, but a lot of it gets lost along the way.
For a true story about a con man reinventing himself, check out Catch Me If You Can. For a more insightful romantic comedy about an ordinary man and an offbeat woman changing each other’s lives, try Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind or 500 Days of Summer. For a comedy adventure about a man escaping from his boring life, try The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.
[5.7 out of 10 on IMDB](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1930546/). I give it a 6.0 for interesting ideas that don’t quite line up correctly.