MovieGuide

Colette and The Upside reviewed, Cold War on blu ray and win tickets for a screening of Clint Eastwood’s The Mule

★★★ Dir: Neil Burger

Starring: Bryan Cranston, Kevin Hart 12A 126m

As a comic, Kevin Hart is noted for his timing. That trait clearly doesn’t translate to his film career. Just as Hart delivered his strongest screen performance to date, he found himself under fire for past homophobic remarks, with the Oscar’s hosting gig having been wrenched from his grasp. Based on a true story, The Upside is a remake (sometimes scene for scene) of the award-winning French comedy Les Intouchables (2011) that chronicled the relationship between a rich quadriplegic (François Cluzet) and the man from the projects (Omar Sy), who he has surprisingly chosen to be his caregiver. Hart is no Omar Sy, but there’s real chemistry in the scenes he shares with the excellent Bryan Cranston. Meanwhile director Burger manages to avoid (for the most part) the cloying sentimentality that others might have brought to the table. Though the heart of the drama is this mismatched bromance, The Upside also offers a striking supporting cast that includes Nicole Kidman, Golshifteh Farahani and Julianna Margulies. If you’ve already seen Les Intouchables, it’s hard to make a strong case to also take in The Upside; but if you haven’t, the tag team of Cranston and Hart is reason enough.