GOING IN STYLE – Review

GOING IN STYLE stars Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, and Alan Arkin, relaxed old pros with easy chemistry, all of whom seem to be having a great deal of fun. Thin in plot, GOING IN STYLE is a pleasant, likable enough situation comedy that veers into some sentimental territory that doesn’t quite connect.

Willie (Freeman), Joe (Caine), and Albert (Arkin) are retired pals who once worked together at a Brooklyn steel plant. The company is merging with an evil overseas corporation and all of their pensions are being liquidated, leaving them with next to nothing. After Joe witnesses a bank robbery, he has the idea that the trio should attempt one themselves.

GOING IN STYLE is mildly amusing with its star power saving what is a clunky and somewhat problematic script by Theodore Melfi that could have used another pass or two. It’s all too comfortable and tame, delivering exactly what you’d expect and pretty much when you’d expect it. It’s a remake of a darker 1979 comedy (that starred George Burns, Art Carney, and Lee Strasberg) in which two of the leads were dead by the film’s end.  This new trio is far too cuddly and sentimental for that in a film that flirts with zany without ever taking risks.

There’s plenty to like in GOING IN STYLE. Caine, Arkin, and Freeman are all tremendous, with no character outdoing another as they all have moments to shine. Alan Arkin is the grouchy and sarcastic one, Freeman is the wise Grandpa-type who delivers a few amusing digs at other’s expense, while Caine is the ideas man, determined to stand up for his friends. Early scenes are key to how we get to appreciate these three as they interact with their families and a sassy waitress (Siobhan Hogan) at the diner they frequent. Ann-Margaret as Albert‘s paramour is always a welcome sight, looking the same here as when she performed similar duties in the GRUMPY OLD MEN movies over twenty years ago while Josh Pais gets big laughs playing it broadly as an abused bank employee. A scene stealer is Kenan Thompson as security head at a grocery store where the oldsters rehearse their larceny. That supermarket scene is far funnier than the tension-free bank job climax where the trio show up wearing lame Rat Pack masks that look nothing like Frank, Dino, or Sammy. There’s little-to-no payoff in this half-baked sequence that feels obligated to veer into more phony sentiment with a heart attack scare for Willie and an ill-advised and cutesy interaction with a little girl in the bank. A crowd-pleaser on some levels, GOING IN STYLE will likely find an audience that won’t be let down. It lacks the excitement I’d hoped up but perhaps it’s perfect for those looking to catch a matinee before the blue plate special.

2 1/2 of 5 Stars