THE INTERN DVD (2015)

SYNOPSIS: Ben Whittaker, a 70-year-old widower who gets the chance to work as a senior intern at an online fashion start-up founded and run by the ambitious Jules Ostin. As the two generations collide, they also find friendship and someone to count on - each other. 

MOVIE REVIEW:

Nancy Meyers normally makes fluffy comedic dramas that likely appeal to mature audiences. Her latest effort is no exception; The Intern deals with the young, the old and the Internet.

Ben Whittaker (Robert De Niro) is seventy, retired, widowed and bored. Married with a daughter and a supportive stay-at-home husband Matt (Anders Holm), Jules Ostin (Anne Hathaway) is a young successful CEO of fashion startup, About the Fit. When these two unlikely people meet when Ben applies to be a senior intern at Jules’ office, you realized an engaging dramatic movie doesn’t really need romance to be the core subject.

Meyer’s movie touches on stuff that you won’t normally see in conventional studio flicks. The Intern explores the interesting relationship between an elderly and his much, much younger boss. Nothing creepy or unnatural about that. It’s like a dad constantly dispensing worldly advice to a daughter. The movie shows us how the aged can apply their old-school theories to the present evolving technological world. Come to think of it, The Intern is a prime example why our government encourages employers to re-employ older workers.  

There are some sweet tender moments sprinkled throughout liked Jules teaching Ben how to Facebook and Ben’s interaction with his younger geeky male co-workers. It’s sweet, charming and full of good taste though Meyers seems to have trouble wrapping up after creating a huge wreckage involving Matt’s affair with a fellow mom and Jules’ indecisiveness to leave her duties to a new CEO or staying on in the company she built up.

It has been a while since we have Oscar winner Robert De Niro acting ‘normal’ and right here, he is extremely believable as trusty old Uncle Ben (not the one in Star Wars though). A decade ago, Hathaway was a bullied assistant in The Devil Wears Prada now she has all the commanding presence of a confident young CEO. Rene Russo (Nightcrawler) lends some glamour to the production as the company’s in-house masseur and Ben’s love interest.

The Intern is a solid, feel good movie that offers compelling performances and a pleasant message about the current working climate. If you want a movie that is not bloated with CGI, ultra-violence and offensive gags then Meyer’s latest offering is just the movie for you. 

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Learning From Experience is a brief 4 minutes segment that has the cast members talk about the theme of the movie. 

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The digitally shot movie looks great on DVD. Details are sharp, colours are bright and no obvious artifacts are noticed. Sound is clear with a nice music selection, it’s all expected for a comedy drama.  

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Linus Tee