Films keep premiering even though 2022 is almost over, and now it is the time for the film directed by Marc Foster, A Man Called Otto, which is a comedy-drama film, and the second film adaptation of the 2012 novel A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman, following the 2015 Swedish film of the same name written and directed by Hannes Holm. A Man Called Otto premieres on December 30, 2022 for a limited theatrical release. The film will be wide released on January 13, 2023, by Sony Pictures Releasing.
A Man Called Otto follows the story of Otto Anderson (Tom Hanks) after his wife dies and he is forced to retire from his job of nearly 40 years. Otto, a grumpy 60-year-old man decides to end his life, but his attempts are constantly interrupted by his boisterous new neighbors. Otto starts a friendship with his neighbors as they challenge him to see the brighter side of things.
The main stars of A Man Called Otto are Tom Hanks as Otto Anderson, Truman Hanks as young Otto, Mariana Treviño as Marisol, Rachel Keller as Sonya, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Jimmy, and Mike Birbiglia as Real Estate Agent.
A Man Called Otto’s critical reception has been quite mixed, on the web aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film scored 70% out of 100% based on 36 critics. On the other hand, Metacritic gave the film a score of 49% out of 100%, based on 11 critics, most of them indicating mixed or average reviews.
The film is adapted from the novel A Man Called Ove, a Swedish novel by Fredrik Backman. In the book, Ove is described as “the grumpiest man you will ever meet”, yet being a pedant does not mean he has been through a sad story. After its release, in 2015 the first film adaptation took place, with the title of the same name, A Man Called Ove (2015) was critically acclaimed, receiving 91% out of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. The film was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Makeup and Hairstyling categories at the 89th Academy Awards.
Andrea Rich
