Review: “Mortdecai” a colorful, typical performance from Depp
Lots of reviews on “Mortdecai” bash the film, and honestly I can’t see why.
It’s easy to target someone like Johnny Depp who may be going through a rough patch right now with his last major film not doing so well. Last spring’s “Transcendence” barely covered its budget. But for anyone who feels Depp’s career may be suffering, I say don’t worry; hope is on the horizon. We’ll get another rendition of Depp’s Mad Hatter in 2016 and Captain Jack Sparrow a year later.
Director David Koepp is better known for his screenwriting in films like “Mission Impossible” and “Spider-Man.” “Mortdecai” is based on the book by Kyril Bonfiglioli entitled “Don’t point that thing at me,” the first of a trilogy with the Mortdecai character.
One evening a priceless painting goes missing in London. Inspector Alistair Martland (Ewen McGregor) is put to the task of finding this artifact. In an effort to solve the crime Martland reaches out to an old university friend, Charlie Mortdecai (Depp), a man who knows his way around the art world. “Mortdecai,” tells the splendid tail of Charlie and his manservant Jock (Paul Bettany) as they travel the world in an effort to find this priceless piece of art.
Charlie Mortdecai is a man consumed by three things: his love for art, his wife Johanna (Gwyneth Paltrow) and, most of all, his walrus mustache. Depp as Charlie Mortdecai leaves quite an impression. For anyone who has seen Depp in some of his other comedic roles such as “Ed Wood,” “The Rum Diary” and “The Lone Ranger,” then you know what I mean.
When people hear comedy in a movie title, they expect to go to a theater and laugh for two hours straight. You won’t be getting that type of humor in “Mortdecai.” Instead, it will have you giggling from time to time, small quips.
One character that I really did enjoy throughout the film was Jock, Mortdecai’s manservant. Paul Bettany’s back and forth with Depp is quite enjoyable, and audiences will get the most satisfaction from their relationship. Bettany is a man who for some reason cares way too much about his job. Bettany does a wonderful job at playing a straight-faced thug who will follow his master to the end of the earth, even if that means he may be shot, run over by a car and might lose a body part along the way.
Sadly, I think audiences won’t find Koepp’s subtle — and in some cases wordy— raunchy humor as funny as he meant for it to be. Alas, while some will get enjoyment out of Mortdecai, most will leave scratching their head. For anyone who is looking for a good laugh, I would recommend sticking to the source material on this one. I give the film a solid C+.
— Jay Wolin is majoring in communications. He loves football, movies and comics. Send questions or comments to jacob_wolin@yahoo.com.