Don’t go into “Arthur” anticipating a laugh-out-loud comedy because it’s not one. However, “Arthur” is full of witty remarks and funny moments.
With Russell Brand as the lead actor in this movie, of course you can expect his type of vulgar humor throughout the entire film.
The basic plot line of this movie goes like this: a rich billionaire named Arthur (Russell Brand) is an irresponsible 30-year-old who is known for his wild spending, extravagant parties and causing chaos in general throughout New York City. Though Arthur is heir to the Bach Corporation, his mother Vivienne (Geraldine James) is forcing him to marry a woman named Susan (Jennifer Garner).
Though Susan is very wealthy and responsible, she is the daughter of a construction worker from Philly who made his money by working his way to the top. She wants to marry Arthur for his name so that she will finally be accepted into upper society. Now here’s the twist – Arthur doesn’t want to marry Susan (shocker) because she’s the exact opposite of him and a selfish b-word.
Despite Arthur’s lack of attraction and strong dislike of Susan, Arthur’s mother will cut him off completely if he doesn’t marry her. And for a person who will go withdraw 78-grand from an ATM and just give it all away to random people, he wouldn’t know how to function with being cut off. Right after he proposes, Arthur meets another girl named Naomi (Greta Gerwig) and falls in love with her. Didn’t see that one coming.
The whole movie revolves around Arthur and Naomi falling in love, then Arthur losing Naomi because she finds out he’s engaged to Susan, and Arthur trying to win her back again. Of course there’s a deeper plot, as well, which involves Arthur realizing how lonely he is in the world, learning how to become a responsible adult, and combating his extreme alcoholism. I’m pretty sure Arthur is drunk in literally every single scene.
Arthur can’t seem to live without his nanny and best friend, Hobson (Helen Mirren). She’s supposed to keep Arthur in line and encourage him to marry Susan, but Hobson too ends up liking Naomi and even goes to Naomi to tell her not to give up on Arthur.
This movie is funny and entertaining, though it’s nowhere near the same caliber as “The Hangover” and other similar, really good comedies.
One of the things about this movie is its music choice. There were a lot of really awkward parts in the movie. For example, there is a scene of a bird’s eye view of New York City, and there was no music playing at all for a good 10 to 15 seconds. You’re just sitting in dead silence in the theater. I don’t know if this is supposed to be a metaphor for the loneliness that Arthur is experiencing or what, but it doesn’t work. Also, a lot of times there will be music playing but it’s just voice, no instruments, and it’s quiet too, so you’re just kind of wondering what the heck is going on. Someone made a very poor decision with the sound and music.
This movie is good, but that’s it. I mean, it has funny parts, and it’s entertaining, but it’s also very predictable. Basically, Russell Brand plays a nicer version of himself. A lot of parts of the movie don’t seem to mesh very well together. It’s very random. If you’re in the mood for dry humor, learning lessons and “true love” triumphing, then you’ll probably enjoy this movie.
2 ½ out of 4 stars
