Rating of
3/4
A Simple Buddy Movie
Amoeba Johnny - wrote on 03/04/14
I won't lay down the plot, because that's been done better in previous reviews. The movie, to me, feels like every time I go back to my hometown: I get together with old friends, we have a couple of laughs, some drinks, get as wild as we can at our age, and the time is over. And in that way, the movie works.
As for the actors, I think they play well off of each other. Walken's straight-man works well as an opposite against Pacino's party guy. And Arkin... man he always spices up a movie/show, doesn't he? And trust me when I say he doesn't disappoint here.
I just think Pacino tries too hard to be the party guy. While the rest of the guys understand and accept their maturity, Pacino's character doesn't/can't. That being said, I think there's one in every group of friends like that. Unwilling to accept the reality of the present and always striving for the better days gone.
The movie, on a whole, plays out like a simple buddy movie. It doesn't throw any punches or try to reinvent the wheel. It just... is what it is. It's just some friends trying to have one last hurrah before their time is up. Only this time the hourglass is literal, not figurative.
