Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Last Chance Harvey - Movie Review

Last Chance Harvey (PG-13) 99 minutes C+
Two lonely people find each other

Starring Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson, Kathy Baker, James Brolin, Eileen Atkins, Richard Schiff, and Liane Balaban

In real life Emma Thompson is approaching 50 years old, yet in this film she looks more like a youthful 40 year old. Dustin Hoffman on the other hand looks all of 70(ish) but does a fine job of portraying a struggling jazz pianist who is burning out and slowly fading away.

Last Chance Harvey is a poignant love story about a lonely woman (Thompson) and a lonelier man (Hoffman) finding each other at a vulnerable and coincidental crossroads. These types of films are never an easy sale because we've been there, seen that. But LCH is successful because of the vulnerable restraint depicted by Thompson and an almost stalker like, fatal attraction (that eventually proves to be somewhat charming) by Hoffman.

Last Chance Harvey is worth a chance... if not in the theater, check it out on DVD in a few months.

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