With star power like Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts, Larry Crowne seems like the perfect match with box office success. However, the lack of a noticeable hook in the trailers works against their résumés. The film itself is basically the same story. The movie is funny and charming while watching, but what is there to make it memorable? Not much. It’s the story of Larry Crowne, Hanks, who begins community college in pursuit of a degree after being downsized from a department store. Since he had chosen the Navy instead of college, he was deemed useless to the company. Then when he begins school, he meets Roberts’ character, one of his teachers, as well as some students who spark his interest in living a productive life.
With someone like Hanks playing the lead in a movie, it’s important that his character either is different or as high quality as his past roles, but Crowne is just a middle of the road guy. It’s a sympathetic and believable performance with a transformation too subtle to come across as inspirational. Roberts’ performance is what it is. Virtually any adult actress could play the character. The main kick is with Larry’s classmates. Initially a bit campy, they provide comic relief that sneaks up on the viewer.
Any fan of Hanks would probably like Larry Crowne. It deserves a chance for being a fun movie with a clean story arch and nice pace. Developing the minor characters could have given it the boost it needed. After all, pretty decent performances by Bryan Cranston, Taraji P Henson, Cedric the Entertainer and Wilmer Valderrama are left as virtual footnotes. There is definitely room for them. I mean how George Takei gets more screen-time than an Emmy winner, an Oscar nominee, a member of “the Original Kings of Comedy” and the host of “Yo Mamma”, which are all significant honors, I just don’t know. (7.0 out of 10)
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