One to enjoy

Rating: 8/10 (1 January 2014)

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty has many things going for it, and I'm glad the public seem to rate it more accurately than the critics as I feel it is certainly deserving of its 7.7-8 rating on here.
It has many things going for it. The scenery is spectacular and the whole film oozes adventure. Little seen places such as Greenland and Afghanistan show up in a great light and like all good adventure stories, this one makes the viewer want to pack up their travel journal and set off to far-flung places in search of an adventure to call their own.
The acting is good overall: Stiller is solid if not spectacular but Sean Penn really excels during his short time on screen. The humour is quirky if not laugh out loud (in most cases) and in general is effective. The often mentioned companies such as eharmony and Papa Johns add a sense of reality and modernity that eclipses talk of sell-out product placement: people saying these companies were mentioned just for product placement don't fully understand the film in my opinion. These companies are part of the real world and play a big part in the plot of the story also and so I think Stiller is justified in using them as he does.
One not-so-positive aspect of the film, a pet peeve if you will, is the 'shark' scene. The fact that a what looked like a great white shark could live in ice-cold water, and just happen to be around for the few seconds when Mitty occupied it with him, seemed like a typical daydream (when Mitty zones out) but it was meant to have really happened. That for me throws some doubt over the validity of subsequent happenings such as the volcano eruption, meeting the Afghan warlords etc. I think the film would be better if the shark hadn't made an appearance at all.
The ending I think is very suitable and really helps make this a feel good film. You will know what I mean when you see 25.
I saw the film twice and felt it was money well spent. I think it will age well and would advise anybody who hasn't seen it yet to do so.