Arthur

[lety]

The story remains nearly the same, with Brand playing Arthur Bach, the sole heir to a fortune who's been raised by a nanny (Mirren) and is detached from his all-business mother (Geraldine James). Arthur goes about life without a care in the world, but after one particularly embarrassing run-in with the police, his mother demands he either marry Susan (Jennifer Garner), a Type-A personality fully capable of running the family business in Arthur's stead, or else he'll be cut off and disinherited.

 

Arthur agrees to the marriage, despite the fact he's not attracted to Susan, because he can't live without the money. However, when he runs into an unlicensed tour guide named Naomi (Greta Gerwig), Arthur discovers he's stuck between following his heart into the poor house or retaining his luxurious lifestyle alongside a woman he'll never love.

It's possible that my lowered expectations for this remake played into the fact this Arthur actually worked for me. It's not a laugh-a-minute romcom and it doesn't live up to the comic heights reached by its predecessor, but 2011's Arthur stands on its own as a sweet romantic comedy with heart. Will we remember this Arthur as fondly in 30 years as we do the original? Absolutely not. If we remember this Arthur in 3 years, it'll be a minor miracle. But 2011's Arthur is energetic and fun, a likable enough comedy that's faithful to the original film while not attempting to be a carbon copy.