Cast: Robert DeNiro, Anne Hathaway, Adam Devine
Director: Nancy Meyers
Genre: Comedy
Duration: 121 minutes
Now showing: Cinema Magic Metroplex Mall Naalya and Century Cinemax, Acacia Mall.
Just seeing Nancy Meyers’ name attached to a movie is enough appeal to make movie fans watch it. But that is not the only reason The Intern is one of this season’s most anticipated movies. It has the kind of plot that gets you looking forward to seeing how it plays out. The titular intern is Ben Whittaker (DeNiro), a widower who comes out of retirement when it gets too dull for him. He interns with an online company that concentrates on fashion. Jules Ostin (Hathaway) started the company and is also its CEO.
She agrees to having Ben as an intern as part of a community outreach programme. Ben’s interaction with the much younger staff at the company creates several interesting dynamics for the movie’s plot, keeping us interested. One, is the fact that Ben comes to work in true zeeyi style – in a suit complete with a tie, while all the other guys in the office come in sweatshirts and jeans. Now, a clichéd movie plot would be that the office guys make fun of him or make him uncomfortable. But because Meyers knows how to endear us to her characters, instead a camaraderie develops between Ben and the other guys, especially when they realise that he is just one of the guys, despite his advanced age.
In fact, they grow to admire him. The other dynamic is the relationship between Ben and Jules. To tell you the truth, I was a little scared when I found out that Hathaway was playing the boss lady in this movie. I thought she would be as mean as her boss in The Devil Wears Prada, and that we were meant to get the irony.
Sure, there is the initial discomfort of having an intern decades your senior, but soon, Ben becomes a shoulder for Jules to lean on. This, especially comes in handy when the investors in her company question her competence. In short, The Intern is just as heartwarming as a Nancy Meyers is expected to be. This, however, means that it may not be a cup of tea for movie fans with a penchant for the “hard” stuff that require little concentration.