Stand Up Guys

Films about the geriatric demographic are usually uproarious comedy fodder, with some light dramatic touches thrown in for good measure. We've seen many: "The Sunshine Boys", Going in Style", "Harry and Tonto", "The Family Business", "Grumpy Old Men", "Grumpier Old Men", and even "The Odd Couple", although they were middle-aged, they acted as though they were old. So it was no surprise to see Hollywood produce yet another film about the camaraderie of the older generation in the form of "Stand Up Guys".

After serving 28 years in prison for accidentally killing the son of his crime boss, Claphands (Mark Margolis), newly paroled gangster Val (Al Pacino) reunites with his former partners in crime, Doc ,(Christopher Walken) and Hirsch (Alan Arkin) who gets sprung out of a nursing home by Val and Doc for a night on the town. As the three men revisit old haunts, reflect on their glory days and try to make up for lost time, one wrestles with an awful decision: Doc has orders from Claphands to kill Val, and he has until 10am the following morning to execute the job quite literally. So time continues to be running out for him to figure a way out of his dilemma.

Others to round out the cast are Julianna Margulies as Nina Hirsch, Hirsch's daughter, Lucy Punch as Wendy, Addison Timlin as Alex, Vanessa Ferlito as Sylvia, Katheryn Winnick as Oxana, Bill Burr as Larry, and Craig Sheffer as Jargoniew #1.

This was directed by Fisher Stevens ("Call of the Wylie" (short) '95, "Phinehas" (short) '96, "Just a Kiss" '02, "Crazy Love" (Documentary, Co-Dir.) '07). Interesting that this guy has done far more acting, but his directing, although adequate to the task, isn't hugely memorable. It was written by Noah Haidle ("Gym Short" (short) '01, "High Street Plumbing" (short) '08). Even though the premise of this film was interesting, the execution of it needed a defibrillator. It kind of dragged until they sprung Hirsch, but unfortunately 45 minutes of the 95 minute running time had already passed. The three main stars did what they could do, but the script needed an overhaul.

I mostly went to see this film because of the three lead actors--I really admire all of them, but the script just left you screaming for more substance for these seasoned actors to gnaw on.

Out of 4 Stars: 2.5                       Rated: R                                95mins.