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Secondhand Lions (2003)

post #1 of 11
1/3/12 at 4:56pm
Thread Starter 

What an embarrassment. How did Michael Caine and Robert Duvall get roped into this? 

 

In 1962, Haley Joel Osment is sent by Kevin Bacon's wife to live with his two great uncles, Alfred Pennyworth and Tom Hagen. Instead of seeing dead people, Forrest Jr. hangs out with farm animals, a lion, and the french bulldog from Due Date. Alfred, on holiday from Wayne Manor, tells tales of how young Robert Duvall was actually Lindsey from Angel and fought Al Qaeda while dressed as Indiana Jones. Nicky Katt shows up to bring Alfred back to Gotham, but it's too late as the butler has already crashed a crop duster into the side of a barn, making this a prequel to The World According to Garp. 

 

The end.

 

What a bad, hokey movie. 

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post #2 of 11
1/3/12 at 4:59pm

My 9th grade history teacher keeps trying to get me to watch this movie. He's a pretty smart guy (loves LAST TEMPTATION and BARAKA) but he insists STARSHIP TROOPERS is not an intelligent film, and he goes out of his way to sing the praises of this flick 

 

Glad to know my instincts were serving me well when this one appeared to me suspect

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post #3 of 11
1/3/12 at 5:05pm

I bought this on DVD (back when I just kept buying DVDs), saw it once and enjoyed it.  Never thought about seeing it again.

 

It was written by the screenwriter of The Iron Giant.  So it has some good pedigree.

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post #4 of 11
1/3/12 at 5:06pm
Thread Starter 

Michael Caine's accent is horrible. He keeps trying to cover up his British by adding "ehhhhhrrrrrr" to the end of every sentence. 

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post #5 of 11
1/3/12 at 5:08pm

It's like Big Fish.  Light airy fun, but ultimately forgettable.

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post #6 of 11
1/3/12 at 5:08pm

This is a wonderful little movie, very earnest and wide-eyed in its emotions. It might come off as hokey or old-fashioned, but I appreciate films not being cold, cynical exercises in naval gazing and try for a more optimistic angle. But it seems Bartleby's just too cool to let something like feelings affect him, and boy howdy, he just let everyone on the Internet know it.

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post #7 of 11
1/3/12 at 5:19pm
Thread Starter 

Man...

 

It's not the emotion that bothers me, I'm a sucker for the aforementioned Big Fish and the works of Capra, it's the lack of earned payoff. The only authentic moment is when Duvall gives Osment the importance of belief vs. truth speech, and that's admittedly a solid scene. 

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post #8 of 11
1/3/12 at 5:29pm

Oh man, how Big Fish left me cold.

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post #9 of 11
1/3/12 at 5:33pm

Really?  Why?

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post #10 of 11
1/3/12 at 5:49pm

I remember this being worth it for the novelty of Michael Caine and Robert Duvall as brothers, but beyond that, I don't recall much. I do remember Nicky Katt being shitty in it.

 

 

This was at the WB, and I remember some whispers that if this did well, they would seriously look at Tim McCanlies as a possible director for their aborted Superman project. He must be a superhero nut - he pitched "Gotham," which apparently became "Smallville," giving him show royalties. I've never heard of these three other post-Secondhand Lions films he's done, according to IMDb.

 

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post #11 of 11
1/3/12 at 5:56pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by neoolong View Post

Really?  Why?



One mans heartfelt is another mans trite.

 

It's as subjective as someones sense of humor.

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