SYNOPSICS
Larry Crowne (2011) is a English movie. Tom Hanks has directed this movie. Tom Hanks,Julia Roberts,Sarah Mahoney,Roxana Ortega are the starring of this movie. It was released in 2011. Larry Crowne (2011) is considered one of the best Comedy,Drama,Romance movie in India and around the world.
Until he was downsized, affable, amiable Larry Crowne (Hanks) was a superstar team leader at the big-box company where he's worked since his time in the Navy. Underwater on his mortgage and unclear on what to do with his suddenly free days, Larry heads to his local college to start over. There he becomes part of a colorful community of outcasts, also-rans and the overlooked all trying to find a better future for themselves...often moving around town in a herd of scooters. In his public-speaking class, Larry develops an unexpected crush on his teacher Mercedes Tainot (Roberts), who has lost as much passion for teaching as she has for her husband. The simple guy who has every reason to think his life has stalled will come to learn an unexpected lesson: when you think everything worth having has passed you by, you just might discover your reason to live.
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Larry Crowne (2011) Reviews
Very good
Why is the movie getting such a bad rap?? It's really a very charming film with wonderful acting by Hanks and Roberts as well as a very good support cast. While the plot itself is no great shakes, it's very interesting, especially in these times of disheavelment. I know a lot of people as well as critics don't like it. Amazed. It's a 'feel good' kind of movie with no villains. Maybe that's why it doesn't sell to the average movie goer who likes foul language, violence, special effects and fast paced editing with hand held cameras yet. This is an old fashioned movie that was made in the 50-60's, so it's not relevant today? Too bad. See this one and you won't be disappointed. AND DON'T READ THOSE UNKIND COMMENTS.
Larry Crowne is like organic wholemeal ciabatta.
While I was scrolling through the different titles available this weekend, I chanced upon "Larry Crowne". Looked it up on IMDb; not so good - an average of 5/10. Scroll down further and voilà! Written by Tom Hanks himself, gotta see it. And I'm glad I did. First, let me get the 'acting' part out of the way - It's good. Not mind-blowing, but most certainly good enough to be worth the US$9 weekend price of a movie ticket here in Singapore. The actors were good enough that I felt connected, and that's as good as it ever has to be. As for the plot - nothing jaw-droppingly complicated and twisted, but then again neither was Forest Gump. And what a big success that movie proved to be. Don't expect character development to blow you away, but it did, at the very least, impress me. Of course, if you walk into the theater expecting "Harold & Kumar" or "Chuck & Larry" humor, you would most definitely be sorely disappointed. Some others have criticized the film, saying that it had "cheap laughs" at best. Now that isn't necessarily true, because it all depends on what your expectations are. So hear this - Larry Crowne isn't an all-out-LOL-fest, it's a wholesome film sprinkled with subtle, clever, and thoughtful humor. In my opinion, this film was an excellent cross-section representation of the sandwiched American Middle-class - too rich to qualify for welfare, too poor to save any money. Most people (outside the United States) wouldn't know the America shown throughout this film - where folks are priced out of their own states, where they attend community colleges that aren't crazy over keg parties and crawling with bikini-straddling blonds, where students have to juggle work and school, where they might have to choose the former over the latter too often. Hollywood glamorizes the American lifestyle each and every chance it gets, and this film provides a rare glimpse into the real America where most people reside. All things considered, I would consider this film a feel-good movie, and there's much more to it than meets the eye. If you enjoyed Forest Gump, you'd most likely enjoy this one - even if the feel-goodness sets in slightly more subtly. One final thing - I've never written a review for any movie before, ever. But I felt that the reviews here (as of 9th July 11) were doing Larry Crowne such injustice that I had to write this to balance it out. Cheers.
An enjoyable way to spend an hour & a half.....
To begin, I'm not sure what some of the other reviewers expected to see in this film. Larry Crowne is not a sizzling drama, a fast paced action movie, or an over-the-top comedy, & it's not likely to win a bunch of Oscars for acting, screenplay or anything else for that matter. What is is, however, is a well written, fun movie that is fairly well acted & very enjoyable. The story does take a little bit to unfold, but does so in an organic way as not to give away too much too soon. The cast was well chosen & I found the characters to have been well developed & really fun people. Like most other films, there is certainly some creative license taken in that most everybody in it is funny and likable, which is what you want from a film like this. If only reality were filled with such great people, we should all be so lucky. There are a few loose ends that may have been stitched up a bit better (per several of the reviews I have read) but I'm not sure that was necessary at all to the story. Moviegoers these days seem to have a need for everything to be spelled out to the Nth degree. If it wasn't critical for the story to unfold, it didn't make its way into the picture. There's something to be said for movies that leave a bit to the imagination for the viewer after the film is over, Keeps you thinking about it for awhile after you've left your seat. I would watch it again. I left feeling good, with a smile on my face, which is what I was after upon deciding to watch it.
Wonderful comedy
I believe this movie to be very underrated and cannot understand why. I loved the story and characters. They were all so real and very funny. Hanks and Roberts were simply great but the whole cast did an impressive job and George Takei as the economics lecturer, Dr. Matsutani, was absolutely hilarious. OK the story is predicable and so was the ending, but I didn't care. It's a fun ride that's not to be taken seriously, so just sit back and enjoy this wonderful comedy.
A quite enjoyable film
Back in 1996, Tom Hanks made his debut as a director with the mediocre That Thing You Do!. Now, 15 years later, he decided to make his second movie as a filmmaker with Larry Crowne, which despite not being something brilliant, kept me very entertained, and I appreciated its intention of recovering a honest, kind and inoffensive style of comedy, which seems extinct nowadays. The publicity of Larry Crowne suggests the film is a typical romantic comedy; however, the truth is that the screenplay aspired to something more complicated, which does not exactly fit into the romantic formula, but which neither stays very far from its established subjects. Let's say that the couple meets, falls in love...and nothing else. There are not any lachrymose revelations nor unexpected twists; we simply have the gradual revelation of compatible spirits whose attraction with each other is not exactly physical or sexual, but the result of solitary lives who might improve a little bit with some intimate contact. Besides, I guess that the relaxed ending might disappoint to those who were expecting a big romantic gesture, or a declaration of eternal love. However, I liked that minimalistic tone, as well as the pleasant humor which rounds around this passive love story. But that is not all, because parallel to the incipient romance, we witness the main character's evolution...with which the screenplay also takes a very interesting road. Larry Crowne is not one of those movies about the "loser" who becomes a "winner" thanks to the magic of love, the popularity or the use of phrases such as "be yourself". The main character is the same person on the beginning and at the end of the movie; but the things he lives introduce subtle changes in his attitude, his comprehension of the world, and even his nature, leaving us the impression that his evolution is just starting. And now that I think so, I guess that that is the point from the movie: sowing the seeds of the change of the main character and making us to imagine his future flowering. As for the performances, I do not have any complaints either. Hanks makes a solid work in the leading role, and I also liked the work from the supporting cast, highlighting Cedric The Entertainer, Malcolm Barrett and George Takei. Finally...Julia Roberts, who co-stars the movie with Hanks. I am not a big fan of hers, because there were various films in which I did not like her performances (two examples: Erin Brockovich and Dying Young). However, there have been a few occasions in which she was able to bring competent works, like in Larry Crowne. Her "Hollywood star" status never interferes with her performance in here, which I found honest, detailed and totally credible. The complaint I have against Larry Crowne is that some scenes feel a bit repetitive. For the rest, I enjoyed this film pretty much despite not being something excellent, and I think it deserves a recommendation because of its many positive elements.