Secondhand Lions : capsule reviews in UK media

October22 , 2003

Copyright © 2003,We acknowledge fully the original reviewers of these capsule reviews.

Based in Texas during the 60’s, the story follows a 14-year old named Walter (Haley Joel Osment), who is practically dumped by his insecure mother (Personal Velocity’s Kyra Sedgwick) to live with his two cranky 60-year old uncles. Walter’s mother tells him that she has to go to school in Fort Worth, Texas, and that he will be with his uncles for a few weeks. Not wanting to be left, Walter also learns that for some reason his uncles disappeared for 40 years, and now that are supposedly filthy rich by means that know one knows. The uncles, Hub (Robert Duvall) and Garth (Michael Caine) are the two temperamental old school men that live on a huge piece of rural land in Central Texas, with many animals and critters roaming around. The two spend their days fishing with shotguns, spitting tobacco, sipping on tea, and scaring away anybody (mostly salesmen), with of course again their shotguns.

Wanting to be left alone, the uncles tell Walter he must take care of himself during his stay. However, the curious teenager begins to grow on the two men and gives them a reason do something with their lives, rather than just sitting out on the porch waiting to die. Walter also constantly badgers his Uncle Garth about the two brothers past adventures, which include stories of their African expeditions, and Hub’s one true love. The stories are seen in flashbacks, and intertwine with development of the character’s relationships and reveals early secrets that arise in the first act. The two uncles lead Walter to cherishing his imagination and to believe in what he wants to believe in.

This film is by no means perfect, but it grows on and it is for sure winner for all ages. Not as exceptional as other family films this year, such as Finding Nemo (2003) or Holes (2003), but Secondhand Lions is terrific in its own way.

Writer/director Tim McCanlies captures this "Texas" film with the dusty atmosphere and a beautiful array of colors. However, his warm and fuzzy family story is inspiring for youngsters, and will tug at your heart. McCanlies’ previously wrote the wonderful and very underrated animated children’s film The Iron Giant (). This filmmaker for sure knows how to capture spirit, texture, and more than anything how to build a likeable connection to his audience. Like Holes, Secondhand Lions has a lot going on it, especially with hidden similes and interpersonal relationships, but the film never comes across as bogged down. It has a strong message in it for children and for adults to grasp life, and to never let your beliefs or imagination falter. Laughs surface throughout the film, as well as a keen essence of adventure in the flashbacks. There is some clumsiness in the script, in which the film is told in a flashback within other flashbacks. However, the charm and kind heartedness of Secondhand Lions overcomes its obvious problems.

The great Robert Duvall and Michael Caine deliver wonderful performances as the two grouchy uncles. As Hub, Duvall exhibits the same rough person that everyone has seen before, but this character has more depth than some of his recent rough roles. The audience actually learns why he is so frustrated, especially with teenagers. As Garth, Caine is convincingly effective as the Texan storyteller, and who better to tell stories than the consistent and well-spoken Michael Caine. Young Haley Joel Osment, now as a teenager, shows range as he continues to grow. Osment is already fantastic, and he can only get better. Kyra Sedgwick also arises, as Walter’s energetic and heavily accented mother.

In a certain way, Secondhand Lions reminded me of Rob Reiner’s The Princess Bride (1987), with its creative storytelling by Caine’s character. In which, in The Princess Bride, Peter Falk tells the film story to a young Fred Savage. Though not nearly as enchanting as The Princess Bride, Secondhand Lions holds its own as a family film. It is not perfect, but it is entertaining.

With the release of New Line Cinema’s “Secondhand Lions”, a new non-Disney family film revolution could spring forth.

Haley Joel Osment of “Sixth Sense” fame stars as Walter, a neglected and disenfranchised 12-year old boy who is severely lacking a strong male role-model in his life. His delusional mother, Mae (Kyra Sedgwick), learns that her eccentric uncles, Garth (Michael Caine) and Hub (Robert Duvall), have been squirreling away millions of dollars. The uncles have just resurfaced after a 40 year absence and Mae is convinced that if she abandons Walter with them that he will be able to find the riches. Where didn’t the legendary stash come from? Where have Walter’s great uncles been for the last 40 years?

The mysteries and tall-tales are a lot of the fun elements that dwell in this fun and original family film. “Lions” delivers a sense of awe and special bonding a wide-eyed boy might have when searching for a role-model. Writer-director Tim McCanlies finds that whole element of growing up and allows it to flourish within Osment’s character. It’s very magical but how could one not expect magic from the same writer-director who sculpted the nearly flawless animated film, “The Iron Giant”.

There are however flaws in “Lions” and its all-star cast. Osment has grown so much since “Sixth Sense” and looks a lot older than the 12-year old he is playing. Osment, 15, has shot up at least a foot and filled out considerably since his last film. It is hard finding what McCanlies is trying to see in Osment when he looks like he should already know who Santa really is. The disbelief and wonderment are the cornerstones of the film and it’s hard to imagine them in a vastly maturing Osment.

The second flaw is the overtly rugged portrayal by Robert Duvall who becomes the hero in so many of the film’s legendary flashbacks. Duvall only shows a breakdown and some compassion towards the end of the film which seems very flat. Compared to Duvall, Caine’s uncle is a lot more fun as his character’s depth tries to help flesh out the two-dimensional Duvall. Just wish we got more personable with Duvall’s hero character.

I really loved the casting of Emmanuelle Vaugier (TV’s Smallville) Christian Kane (TV’s “Angel”) in the flashback sequences. Their whole story and acting reminded me so much of those old Arabian Nights movies I remember when I was a kid.

There is a lot of cherish in “Lions” and it is a delightful film for the whole family despite some obvious flaws.

In Secondhand Lions, they play Garth and Hub McCaan, a pair of aging hillbillies in '60s America who sit about on their porch, drinking iced tea and taking pot shots at the local travelling salesmen with their trusty pump-action boom sticks. Then their teenage nephew Walter (Haley Joel Osment) comes to spend the summer and the old gits turn into grouchy paternal role models...

"MORE ROTHERHITHE THAN RED ROCK"

It's bad enough that Sir Michael's Southern drawl (more Rotherhithe than Red Rock) requires a leap of faith beyond the reach of most Olympic athletes, or that Duvall's ex-French Foreign Legion hard man practices his hand-to-hand combat on a bunch of punks in the local diner (go, granddad!), there's also a menagerie of animals (including a pig and the 'secondhand' lion of the title) thrown in for good measure and a series of flashbacks to the pair's adventures in 1920s Africa.

Joel's perpetually clenched features and beady eyes look like the after-effects of sitting on a vacuum cleaner, but it's quite possible they might just be an indication of his embarrassment: this schmaltzed up, dumbed down, bombastically-scored family drama of touchy-feely life lessons is enough to make any self-respecting human being pucker up their arse.

"NOTHING BUT CORN!"

Meanwhile, Caine soldiers on with the kind of stiff upper-lipped purposefulness that only a man who has paid the mortgage several times over can muster. Duvall grumps about like a crotchety old git, surveying the family farm and delivering what may well be the most accurate (if unintentional) review any actor ever gave himself: "Corn, corn, nothing but corn!"

Three out of Five stars Reviewed by - Matthew Turner

Curious as to whether Haley Joel Osment’s voice has broken yet? Itching to see Michael Caine do another American accent? Can’t get enough of movies about crazy old coots? Then Secondhand Lions may just be the movie for you…

Written and directed by Tim McCanlies (who wrote The Iron Giant), the film opens in the present day and cartoonist Walter (Josh Lucas) gets a call saying his two Crazy Uncles have carked it in a bi-plane accident. Cue the flashbacks...

Shotgun Toting Nutcases

The rest of the film is set in Texas in the early 1960s (this may be the only film set in 60s Texas in which no-one even mentions the Kennedy assassination). Haley Joel Osment (growing up fast, voice breaking) plays Young Walter and his Slutty Mom (Kyra Sedgewick) dumps him on Crazy Uncle Caine and Mental Uncle Duvall, with instructions that he should try and discover the whereabouts of their reputed secret fortune.

The Uncles’ only pastime is waiting for travelling salesmen to show up and blasting them off their property with shotguns but when Walter convinces them to get a clay pigeon shooting machine, they start to splash out a bit - hence the 'secondhand lion', which they initially buy intending to shoot but Walter adopts it as a pet when it turns out to be old and pathetic. (The boy and his lion will later form his cartoon strip 'Walter and Jasmine - a blatant Calvin and Hobbes rip-off, illustrated by Bloom County's Berkley Breathed).

Meanwhile, Walter uncovers a mysterious photograph of an exotic-looking lady named Jasmine and Crazy Uncle Caine begins to tell him stories – in flashback - of the two men's exploits in Africa, in which Duvall (played by Christian Kane from TV’s Angel) is a swashbuckling hero...

Osment No Culkin

Caine and Duvall are great together and are clearly having a whale of a time as the two crazy uncles. As for Caine’s accent, it’s nowhere near as bad as his Cider House Rules atrocity (“Goodnight, you Princes of Maine, you Kings of New England!”) and to be honest, it barely registers. Haley Joel Osment is very good too – on the strength of this he may avoid Macauley Culkin Syndrome and end up with some decent teen parts. The casting directors also deserve some praise because Osment and Josh Lucas have oddly similar eyes.

The Africa flashbacks are a lot of fun - Kane is great as Young Duvall - and the film has a lot of fun with 'alternate versions' of their heroics. Duvall also has a great speech when he takes on a gang of 'punk' teenagers in a bar (the whole sequence is a definite highlight) and there are several similar moments that make the film very enjoyable.

As a film aimed more or less at young boys, Secondhand Lions carries a decent, understated message about growing up in an imperfect world and the importance of honour and valour. A shame, then, that the ending decides to ladle on an extra scoop of sentimentality (and bad acting from a child extra) right at the very end.

That said, it’s a sweet, enjoyable movie, that’s worth seeing for Caine and Duvall and better than a lot of other movies aimed at children. Stick around for Breathed’s animated credits sequence at the end, too.