Last Chance Harvey (2008)
Average Rating: 6.2/10
Reviews Counted: 152
Fresh: 107 | Rotten: 45
Last Chance Harvey is an above-average story that graduates to potent romantic drama based on the chemistry and charm of its top-notch performers.
Average Rating: 6/10
Critic Reviews: 33
Fresh: 24 | Rotten: 9
Last Chance Harvey is an above-average story that graduates to potent romantic drama based on the chemistry and charm of its top-notch performers.
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Average Rating: 3.2/5
User Ratings: 27,294
My Rating
Movie Info
A disastrous trip to London proves to have a silver lining for a middle-aged American jingle writer in this romantic slice-of-life drama starring Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson. Harvey (Hoffman) is about to lose his unfulfilling dead-end job writing jingles when he boards a plane to attend his daughter's wedding in London. He hasn't turned out a memorable tune in some time, and should Harvey fail to come up with something catchy during his trip overseas, he knows that his boss (Richard Schiff)
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Cast
-
Dustin Hoffman
Harvey Shine -
Emma Thompson
Kate Walker -
Kathy Baker
Jean -
James Brolin
Brian -
Eileen Atkins
Maggie Walker -
Liane Balaban
Susan -
Richard Schiff
Marvin -
Timothy Howar
Johnnie -
Wendy Mae Brown
Aggie -
Bronagh Gallagher
Oonagh -
Jeremy Sheffield
Matt -
Daniel Lapaine
Scott -
Patrick Baladi
Simon -
Adam James
Josh Hillman -
Michael Landes
Peter Turner -
Jamie Sives
Doctor Butler -
Kate Harper
Jill -
Angela Griffin
Melissa -
Alex Avery
Andrew -
Tim Ahern
Barry -
Charlotte Lucas
Gwen
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Last Chance Harvey Trailer & Photos
All Critics (152) | Top Critics (33) | Fresh (109) | Rotten (45) | DVD (3)
Nimble dialogue, a brace of insightful moments and a slightly chocolate-box view of our city, lend 'Last Chance Harvey' a warmth and wisdom which outshine the more timeworn elements of the screenplay.
Top CriticAll this gloomy masochism is made palatable because of the performers. And yet we must ask: Is this any way to show off two of our finest actors?
These two actors are so strong that in the end we are left with a sweet and a tender movie.
Sure, it's predictable at times, and maybe even a little sappy, but overall it's a sweet movie about genuine human emotion.
Watching Hoffman and Thompson tentatively discover each other is joyously tender.
What's in it for Emma? And the answer is ... not much.
To fully appreciate it, you need to be on playing-field level with Harvey and Kate. You need some miles on the love odometer.
Decently avted by Hoffman and Thompson, this is a middlebrow, TV-like melodrama that goes out of its way to show the possibility of new romances and new beginnings at any age.
Acaba conquistando graças à doçura de sua história e, principalmente, em função do carisma e do talento de seus sempre admiráveis protagonistas.
They don't often make romances like this, so tell your mum - or granny!
A delightful confection that leaves you with a great big smile of contentment.
The problem lies in a sloppy screenplay and direction that's too slick to be credible. Added to that, while Thompson often makes acting look natural, Hoffman these days makes natural look like acting.
Undemanding, observant and beautifully performed, this is Richard Curtis-lite with added reassurance: no challenging questions here.
Hoffman and Thompson prove you can never be too old to make memories and their romance is certainly one to remember.
Watching them dance effortlessly through this film is a reminder that two actors at the absolute top of their game can weave magic even in a slightly predictable example of a wholly formulaic genre.
This bittersweet, autumnal heartwarmer about two middle-aged people getting a last chance at love and happiness exceeded my personal tolerance factor for gloop and gush - but not by too much.
Last Chance Harvey is a funny little thing - a perfectly sincere July-to-September romance with barely an ounce of irony in its DNA, just a lot of optimism and good-humoured smiling. It's refreshing, in its unforced way.
But while the film tilts progressively further towards the chick-flick (most notably with a cliché-of-clichés trying-on-dresses-to-music scene), some witty moments make this a high-living title in a low-rent market.
Last Chance Harvey deserves supreme praise for being a vessel that allows cinemagoers to bask in two wonderful turns by Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson.
It's always nice to see pros at work. But while there's nothing wrong with unabashed fluff, you'd expect something more substantial from two such seasoned campaigners.
Hoffman's undimmed star power papers over the script cracks in an otherwise polished vehicle for his and Thompson's talents.
Audience Reviews for Last Chance Harvey
Super Reviewer
A sixty-ish man facing total family and career meltdown, and a fifty-something old maid who has given up on love is NOT promising fare for a wide, multi-generational audience. This film will likely only appeal to viewers who have need of progressive lenses. However, the sunny sincerity and touching human moments make this film work - mostly. Viewers will need to come to the film with modest expectations - it's a comedy with very few laughs (instead it provides mostly wistful smiles), and a romantic film with no sex or even sexual tension.
On the negative side, this film feels like it should have ended at the one hour mark when the family is reconciled at the wedding reception. It takes some artificial, convenient plot points like apparent heart attacks to stretch out the last half hour to any kind of complete film experience.
This film is worth seeing for the performances of Hoffman and Thompson and the sensitive and well observed 'slice of life' writing. .
Super Reviewer
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- Harvey Shine: Today is tomorrow.
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Foreign Titles
- Liebe auf den zweiten Blick (DE)
- Nunca es tarde para enamorarse (ES)
