I thought Wrestling Ernest Hemingway was going to be a heartwarming, lightly funny movie about old folks, like Cocoon or The Boynton Beach Club. It's not, and if you're looking for a good movie, don't watch this one.
Sure, Robert Duvall has a pretty good accent as a Cuban retiree, and Sandra Bullock is well cast as a low-class but kind-hearted waitress, but this movie is pretty bad. It could have been so much better, if the screenwriters had thought a little longer. For example, at the start of the film, Richard Harris keeps talking about his son, and how excited he is to see him for a visit. Wouldn't it be an interesting twist if Richard's son was dead, but he had Alzheimer's and didn't remember? Or when Shirley MacLaine complains about her ex-husband, wouldn't it be clever if Richard Harris was her ex-husband and that's why she's always hostile towards him? I won't spoil anything, but this movie isn't very clever or twisty.
It's also pretty depressing. Richard's always talking about how lonely he is, and when he reaches out for companionship, nobody likes him. It's not very inspiring to watch an old person living alone in a retirement community, trying and failing to make friends, trying and failing to have a romance, all the while melting in the Florida heat because his apartment doesn't have a working air conditioner.
If you like Richard Harris, watch This Sporting Life. If you like Robert Duvall, watch A Family Thing. If you like Shirley MacLaine, watch The Apartment. You don't have to watch Wrestling Ernest Hemingway.
Sure, Robert Duvall has a pretty good accent as a Cuban retiree, and Sandra Bullock is well cast as a low-class but kind-hearted waitress, but this movie is pretty bad. It could have been so much better, if the screenwriters had thought a little longer. For example, at the start of the film, Richard Harris keeps talking about his son, and how excited he is to see him for a visit. Wouldn't it be an interesting twist if Richard's son was dead, but he had Alzheimer's and didn't remember? Or when Shirley MacLaine complains about her ex-husband, wouldn't it be clever if Richard Harris was her ex-husband and that's why she's always hostile towards him? I won't spoil anything, but this movie isn't very clever or twisty.
It's also pretty depressing. Richard's always talking about how lonely he is, and when he reaches out for companionship, nobody likes him. It's not very inspiring to watch an old person living alone in a retirement community, trying and failing to make friends, trying and failing to have a romance, all the while melting in the Florida heat because his apartment doesn't have a working air conditioner.
If you like Richard Harris, watch This Sporting Life. If you like Robert Duvall, watch A Family Thing. If you like Shirley MacLaine, watch The Apartment. You don't have to watch Wrestling Ernest Hemingway.