The Intern – Innovative, no; endearing, yes
We live in a time where movies are expected to deeply influence us, and to make us ask deep philosophical questions. It is often refreshing to watch a film that is simply telling us a story of people being happy and working through their issues together. The humor is questionable, and the ending is weak, but the characters and story are quite endearing.
Ben Whitaker (Robert De Niro) is a 70-year-old man who is not enjoying retirement, and wishes to go back to work. In his search for a job he applies to be an intern in a senior-citizen program at an e-commerce fashion company. The founder of the company is the hard-working, tired, and brilliant Jules Ostin (Anne Hathaway) who initially does not wish to utilize the talents of her experienced intern, but then learns to accept his help. The investors of Ostin’s company have recommended that she hire a CEO to take on the work load of the company, but she is not sure about the decision, and she’s not sure of her abilities. Perhaps all she needs is a friend to help her. Sappy, yes, but ultimately a very well thought-out and endearing film. The film is directed and written by Nancy Meyers, who has written gems such as Something’s Gotta Give, Baby Boom, and Father of the Bride, she has clearly proven herself to be a master of feel-good comedy.
One of the issues of this film is that whilst watching it you feel as though it was written in a specific way as to be marketable. Although, one wonders who it is marketed to, because it forces so many jokes from so many different comedy spectrums. If the film is trying to appeal to the elderly population then it is a wonder why there are so many jokes made at the expense of elderly people. Thankfully the jokes are not spiteful, just not very funny. When watching this film you will not find yourself falling out of your chair with laughter, but there are chuckles here and there. There’s a particularly humorous heist scene involving De Niro and the younger male actors of the film. Hopefully your audience won’t find the Rene Russo and Robert De Niro “love scenes” as funny as mine did, because they are very uncomfortable.
The film has an easy-to-follow plot line that is a loveable story centering on the friendship between these co-workers and the lessons they learn from each other, but even after all the lessons, the tears, and the walls that were broken the ending does not deliver. Hathaway’s character Jules makes a decision that feels out of character and foolish, and the final scene is annoyingly ambiguous for such a straightforward film.
All of these elements amount to a movie that is fun to watch, but ultimately forgettable, and with a film like this that’s perfectly acceptable. Amidst all the superheroes, explosions, heart-wrenching drama, and philosophical exploration, in the current offering of films it is refreshing to sit down and watch a movie that makes you feel happy.
The Intern is rated PG-13 for brief sexual references and strong language.
It is currently in theatres.