The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

Rating: 7/10 (25 October 2015)

The 1947 version of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty has long been a favourite film of mine, certainly one that's lingered from childhood, although it wouldn't be in my top-ten nowadays. That film was the epitome of what a star vehicle could be during the forties; especially for a talent such as Danny Kaye. It's bright, fanciful, puts Kaye front-and-centre with opportunity to showcase his many talents, whilst offering a gorgeous love interest in Virginia Mayo, and a risible villain in the ominous shape of Boris Karloff. Plot-wise, this was paper thin, and whilst Ben Stiller's recent version could have been a like- minded project, this new story far exceeds what was done in 1947 and presents one of the most engaging, uplifting and joyous films of the past year. Directed by Stiller from a screenplay by Steve Conrad, this story of a daydreaming photo executive for Life magazine is a mightily impressive and very sincere effort from Stiller, whose Mitty jumps from train station platforms to burning buildings, battles his new, obnoxious boss like a superhero would a super-villain on the streets of New York, and romances his office crush, played by Kristen Wiig. But this is all in Walter's mind, of course, and part of an imagination wonderfully and creatively realised by Stiller, whose framing, composition and ability to find humour in Mitty, without making a clown of him, is hugely impressive and highly endearing. Even the opening credits are a simply effective visual treat, whilst there's genuine sadness in Stiller's facial expressions, delivery of his lines and the way which he shoots and frames the lonely, grey Mitty. As the story progresses from fantasy to realism, such care and attention to who the character is and what he needs allows for a leap of faith to be taken with Mitty when an important photo negative goes amiss and he decides to find the photographer, played by Sean Penn. There's shades of Hearts of Darkness here, as Penn is almost akin to the elusive Col. Kurtz with regards to Mitty's quest, and if there are a few broadly comical missteps, perhaps Stiller, as a director, felt occasionally unsure of himself in territory largely new to him. But he needn't have. This is utterly charming, life-affirming cinema that I enjoyed tremendously, especially with Stiller on truly ace form both in front of, and behind the camera.