‘Otto’ a feel-good sentimental film

‘A Man Called Otto’ is a Swedish novel written by author Frederik Backman, which was published in Swedish in 2012 and in English in 2014. When the novel was published in English, it reached the New York Times bestsellers list 18 months after its initial publication and stayed on the list for 42 weeks.

In 2015, a Swedish film adaptation was released, which earned rave reviews and several award nominations. Now, the American remake can be seen on the big screen and is an absolute must see.

Based on the bestseller, ‘A Man Called Otto’ tells the story of Otto Anderson, a grumpy widower whose only joy comes from criticizing and judging his exasperated neighbors.

When a lively young family moves in next door, he meets his match in quick-witted and very pregnant Marisol, leading to an unexpected friendship that will turn his world upside down.

‘A Man Called Otto’ is an entertaining film that will really make you either laugh out loud or become a little emotional. This American adaptation of the novel and Swedish film does an outstanding job delivering the hilarious and emotional moments.

Led by the always incredible Tom Hanks, this film shows what Otto has been going through since the tragic passing of his wife and would eventually do anything to be with her again. You get to see how Otto believes that life isn’t worth living after her death.

But, once he ends up meeting his new lively neighbors at precisely the right moment, his feeling of living a life very slowly changes for the better. Otto’s scenes with the neighbors can be both really hilarious and heart-warming. Mariana Trevino, who portrays the really pregnant Marisol, steals the show and her performance is also really amazing. Her scenes with Hanks are simply incredible, especially as they get closer.

There is a scene where Otto is showing Marisol how to drive which is really funny and got tons of laughs from the audience. Another scene that got quite a few laughs from the audience and myself is in the beginning moments of the film where Otto is at the hardware store and has to deal with a couple workers. You’ll have to see it for yourself.

Otto’s life with his wife is told in flashback and those scenes are also heart-warming, yet tragic towards the end. When you see him get closer once again to the neighbors, it gives you a feel-good feeling. The film itself also provides a thought-provoking look at life, love and the importance of friendship.

Overall, I highly recommend everyone to check out ‘A Man Called Otto.’ This feel-good film will really make you laugh and feel touched. And, FYI, you may want to bring a tissue or two.

The cast: Tom Hanks as Otto Anderson; Marina Trevino as Marisol; Cameron Britton as Jimmy; Juanita Jennings as Anita; Peter Lawson Jones as Reuben; Max Pavel as Andy; Kailey Hyman as Barb; Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Tommy; Christiana Montoya as Luna; Alessandra Perez as Abbie; Rachel Keller as Sonya and Mack Bayda as Malcolm.

‘A Man Called Otto’ is written by David Magee (Mary Poppins Returns; Finding Neverland; Netflix’s Lady Chatterly’s Lover) and directed by Marc Foster (Christopher Robin; World War Z; Finding Neverland).

‘Otto’ is rated PG-13 for mature thematic material involving suicide attempts, and language and has a running time of 126 minutes.

Let me know on my Wyoming County Examiner Reviews Facebook page what you thought of this film and if you have either seen the original film or read the book.

https://youtu.be/eFYUX9l-m5I