[Intro Music: Til You’re Home (acoustic mix) by Rita Wilson, Sebastián Yatra]
WHOM DO YOU PICTURE WHEN YOU HEAR THE NAME OTTO?
WHEN I HEAR THE NAME, I ENVISION A GRUMPY OLD MAN LIVING ALONE, AND THIS IS EXACTLY WHOM TOM HANKS PLAYS IN HIS NEW FILM, A MAN CALLED OTTO. THE FILM IS AN AMERICAN ADAPTATION OF THE SWEDISH HIT MOVIE AND BOOK, A MAN CALLED OVE. IT IS ABOUT AN ELDERLY WIDOWER WHOSE ENERGETIC NEXT-DOOR NEIGHBORS BRING LIGHT BACK INTO HIS LIFE.
TOM HANKS IS FAMOUS FOR CAPTURING AUDIENCES BY PLAYING ENDEARING CHARACTERS. ESQUIRE EVEN GAVE HIM THE NAME “AMERICA’S DAD” IN 2016. HANKS ATTRACTS VIEWERS IN HIS NEW MOVIE WITH HIS ROUGH OUTSIDE, WHICH FANS FALL IN LOVE WITH THROUGHOUT THE MOVIE, AS HIS HUMILITY AND GENEROSITY SHINE THROUGH.
GRACIE CORBETT, A FIRST YEAR AT NORTHWESTERN, RECENTLY SAW THE MOVIE AND SAID SHE BELIEVES HANKS PLAYS CHARACTERS IN A WAY THAT CONVINCES THE AUDIENCE HE IS TRULY THAT CHARACTER.
[GC] I think the roles that he plays are usually very iconic, very much lead roles. The only ones that come to mind are Toy Story, Forrest Gump and Sully. He has a very wide range, he can do comedy, and he can do drama.
CORBETT ALSO AGREED THAT SHE THINKS OF HIM AS AMERICA’S DAD BECAUSE OF A SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE SKIT.
[Tom Hanks America’s Dad Monologue – SNL]
[GC] I kind of do because of the SNL skit. Basically, he’s sitting by a fire, and he’s talking about how he’s America’s dad. He says I’m going to read you a story, a champ. It’s really sweet, and it makes me happy. I was like, wow, he really is America’s dad
PERHAPS HIS CHARACTER, OTTO, IS HANKS’ GREATEST ATTEMPT TO CEMENT THIS TERM. HE IS GRUMPY YET LOVABLE AND BEGRUDGINGLY HELPS HIS OVERZEALOUS NEXT-DOOR NEIGHBORS, ATTACHING AUDIENCES TO HIS HEARTBREAKING PERSONAL STRUGGLE.
INDY GOLDBERG, A SOPHOMORE AT NORTHWESTERN, RECENTLY SAW THE FILM AND SHARED HER REACTIONS. SHE BELIEVES HANKS WAS CAST PERFECTLY FOR THE CHARACTER.
[IG] Considering it was the idea of a grumpy old man living in this kind of time loop of him doing the exact same thing day after day and living in these condos in very rural America. Yeah, it made a lot of sense [for Hanks to play Otto].
[IG] I thought it was wonderful. I thought it was really sad in parts. But they also included some really great moments of humor that brought a nuance to the movie that I thoroughly enjoyed.
THE HUMOR THROUGHOUT THE MOVIE ADDS LIGHT TO THE MOVIE, ESPECIALLY AS OTTO CONTINUES TO ATTEMPT TO REUNITE WITH HIS WIFE, WHO PASSED AWAY MONTHS PRIOR. HE ATTEMPTS SUICIDE MULTIPLE TIMES THROUGHOUT THE MOVIE BUT IS UNSUCCESSFUL EACH TIME.
GOLDBERG ALSO SAID SHE READ THE BOOK BEFORE THE MOVIE AND LIKED THE AMERICAN ADAPTATION.
[IG] I also read the book before seeing the movie, which was called A Man Called Ove. It was so nice to see how the film adapted to the book structure.
WITHOUT SPOILING THE FILM, GOLDBERG SAID SHE BELIEVES THE MOVIE’S ENDING WAS A POETIC WAY TO THE END FILM.
[IG] I thought the ending was wonderful. I thought it was in ways, unpredictable and predictable at the same time, which brought the audience this happiness and settingling feeling about the whole film. Yeah, I thought it was a very good way to end it.
THE ENDING CAUGHT BOTH CORBETT AND GOLDBERG OFF GUARD. THEY WERE SURPRISED, BUT THEY BOTH SAID THEY BELIEVED IT WAS RIGHT FOR THE CHARACTER AND HIS STORY ARC.
AT TIMES THE FILM IS DIFFICULT TO WATCH, AS THE VIEWER WATCHES OTTO STRUGGLE WITH THE REALITIES OF GROWING OLD ALONE WHILE COPING WITH THE TRAGEDIES OF THE PAST.
THE FILM IS A REMINDER TO THE AUDIENCE THAT ALTHOUGH, AT TIMES, LIFE SEEMS LONELY AND INCOMPREHENSIBLE, THERE IS BEAUTY IN MUNDANITY. SMALL INTERACTIONS MEAN MORE TO PEOPLE THAN ONE MAY THINK. SEE IT.
[IG] I did cry at the movie.
FOR WNUR NEWS, I’M AMELIA DONHAUSER.
[Outro Music: Til You’re Home (acoustic mix) by Rita Wilson, Sebastián Yatra]
