Three movies came out this past weekend that I put on my Top 30 to see in '09 list, yet I ended up seeing something else this weekend. Thankfully, I wasn't disappointed. The Great Buck Howard is currently out in limited release in theaters, but it's also available already On Demand through your cable provider, which is the way I saw it.
Those that know me, know that I have been a fan of pro wrestling for almost all of my life. Being a fan, I'm frequently asked why I bother watching it. I've heard all the complaints and criticisms, and yet I still watch it. I've given up trying to rationalize it, I simply say that I'm a fan and will always be a fan. I thought about my love for a fake sport as I watched The Great Buck Howard.
Buck Howard, played by John Malkovich, is a aging mentalist who's main claim to fame is that he performed on The Tonight Show 61 times. Even though, he doesn't receive the coverage he once did, he still performs in tiny theaters around the country. We see this latter part of his career through the perspective of Troy (Colin Hanks), a law school dropout who is hired as his road manager in order to make some money.
Malkovich does a great job with this character providing him with the right amount of showmanship energy that makes it realistic that he could still entertain audiences. Of course, like most beyond their time celebrities, there's also this bubbling anger that occassionally emerges when he's not treated with the celebrity status he believes he still has.
Colin Hanks does a nice job of responding to Buck in the same way most people watching the film would. Buck brings us to the brink of repulsion but keeps drawing us back in by creating a sense of whimsy and awe over the tricks he's able to do. As a result, I found myself drawn to Hanks' character and interested in how he would continue dealing with such a combustible boss.
The film is strengthened by a couple of decent supporting roles as well. Emily Blunt does a nice job as the love interest for Troy. In the few things I've seen her in, I've been impressed and I hope she continues to get larger roles, as I feel she definitely has a future. She provides a good balance of cute and confident. Colin's father is played by his own father, Tom Hanks (who also has made out with Emily Blunt on screen, in Charlie Wilson's War). In a small role, he comes in at just the right moments to urge him to go back to law school, which only helps remind him why he's taking this thankless job in the first place. That reason being is that he's on a search to find something that he loves to do.
That brings me back to my point about being the wrestling fan. The film does a good job of establishing the message to do what you love to do. Troy doesn't want to be in love school because he doesn't love it. Seeing Buck refusing to retire even though convention says no one cares about him anymore inspires Troy to eventually get his dream job of being a writer.
This is a message that easily could turn the film into a schmaltzy mess, but that never happens. You find yourself getting caught up in Buck's, and by extension, the film's magic. The film takes you on a fun ride and leaves you feeling happy afterwards, something that should be seen in more films these days.
The film is a little too small in scale to truly feel significant. But for a smaller film, it succeeds at virtually everything it sets out to do. Buoyed by some great performances, The Great Buck Howard is a real treat. It doesn't take a mentalist to figure out why this a fun film. I have no doubt that if you see it, you too will quickly be engaged by the magic of Buck Howard. Grade: B+
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