A Man Called Otto

This weekend, A Man Called Otto was released in theaters. A Man Called Otto follows grump, Otto who has given up on life after the passing of his wife. However, his life begins to change when he meets his new neighbor Marisol which leads to a new friendship that will brighten up his life.

This was a very nice heartwarming story. The core of the story is all about friendship and learning how to move on from loss which is handled very well. The movie has many moving and emotional moments that make it such a solid feel good story. Tom Hanks does a great job of playing the lovable grump. He delivers a performance with such layers and emotion. He also does a great job at delivering some subtle funny moments. I also really like the different relationships that are established throughout the story with the relationship between Marisol and Otto being a standout. The two of them just play off each other so well. While they are complete opposites, Marisol is very bubbly and positive while Otto is more reserved and negative, they are still great together and deliver on a lot of sweet moments. All of the moments between Otto and the two little girls are also really sweet. It is really fun to see Otto lighten up a bit and interact with these kids. Finally, I thought the movie did a great job of tackling difficult topics. Otto's main struggle is with grief. This movie does a great job of portraying the impact of grief and how it can lead to depression and suicide. The way it handles the suicide topic is very well done as it finds the balance between making the film super heavy and making it too much of a joke. I also thought the movie did a really good job of showing the importance of moving on and continuing to live after a loved one passes away. Overall, this was just a really sweet movie with great performances.

I only have a few minor issues with the film. The first issue is that I felt that there were a few too many relationships with Otto and because of that it caused some to not get much time to develop. The only other thing is that I felt that the movie should have ended about 10 minutes sooner. There is a spot in the movie that is very uplifting and closes everything out where you feel like it should end. However, it goes on for a few more minutes and ends on a less positive note.

In the end, this is a very well made heartwarming movie that manages to tackle some difficult topics. While it does have a few minor issues, overall it is a very good film with a solid performance from Tom Hanks.

Score: 8.5/10 Grade: A- Recommendation: Go check it out.