"Arthur" Movie Review

If you first noticed "Arthur" from its advertisements you probably had one of two reactions. You either had a vague recollection of the plot and title of this film from the 1981 comedy classic by the same name, or you felt a healthy bout of deja vu with the trailers for "Get Him to The Greek". If these two films are fond memories, then this film may just bring you in to the theaters; if not, then you may want to stay at home and save yourself the trouble.

Russell Brand in "Arthur" plays a rich alcoholic playboy whose antics make up the entire film. Arthur must try to choose between a poor, nice love interest played by Helen Mirren or a rich, obviously horrendous one. The rich heiress has the appeal of an instant $950 million, but isn't true love worth more? The alcoholism of Arthur really hit it off for the 1981 fans of the original film, but it has perhaps lost some of its appeal in this remake. Arthur is not the type of person you would like to have as a friend, let alone a husband, so you will find yourself wondering why the nice girl, played by Helen Mirren, would bother with this mad-cat, albeit occasionally charming, rascal.

That having been said, if you are a die hard fan of the distinctive British slapstick of Russell Brand, then this might still be worth it for you. The script of this film does nothing new with the 1981 plot, so don't expect it to. With the simple story of the choice between money and love at a stark contrast with the irreverence of the rest of the film makes for a confusing audience experience. Helen Mirren does probably the best job of the film when it comes to the emotional half of the plot, but she has a few awkward moments with Brand that makes you question whether they would be a good match after all.

All in all this is a good movie for a little light-hearted fun, but not something you'd want to spend too much time with unless you are a guru of all things Russell Brand. I give this film a 2/5 for a few funny moments, but an overall rehash of the Brand you've already seen and a script that was already made into a film back in 1981.

Source: Wikipedia

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