A breathtaking, inspiring piece of cinema

Rating: 10/10 (15 February 2014)

Daydreaming. We all do it, some more than others but Walter Mitty does it on a whole new scale.
After watching this, I realised that The Secret Life of Walter Mitty was originally a short story written in 1939 and was adapted into a film a few years later in 1947. A few directors have tried to get their hands on it since 1994 but it constantly fell through due to budgets, directors and actors pulling out. That's until Ben Stiller signed on.
Ben Stiller's lovable but lonely Walter is the heart of the story. Walter is lonely in a sense that he doesn't put himself out there, resulting in him going out of his comfort zone to find the missing photo. He looks on longingly day by day at Cheryl who waves in his direction but is actually waving at her friend behind him. He works on one of the lower floors of the building with one other colleague and only emerges for lunch or when the day is over, and gets hurled abuse from his new asshole boss. Ben Stiller nails Walter's vulnerability and all of this makes you hope he succeeds from the first 5 minutes.
The scenery is absolutely breathtaking. Filmed in Iceland, New York and California, Stiller's directing shows the true beauty of their landscapes.
Day-dreams full of romance, heroism, action and utter strangeness, and the perfect amount of wit from comedy queen Kristen Wigg, Walter Mitty is an inspiration. Powerful lessons throughout will make you think of life in a new light - "life shouldn't be taken for granted", "If you want to do something, do it" and "If you never try, you'll never know" are just a few that might just change your life like it did Walter's. A brilliant directorial debut for Stiller, and if Walter Mitty is anything to go by, expect big things in the future.