Dr. Phil Loder (Peter Dinklage – “Game of Thrones”) is a professor of Economics at Brockton University in Massachusetts. He’s an adjunct professor. That means he has no tenure, no protections against claims of improper behavior, a very low salary, and no respect.
He is a bitter man whose dreams have not worked out. However, he does have one dream which he indulges in at every opportunity – he wants the security of a house of his own. And not just any house. He wants a grand mansion with expansive grounds.
Phil has two nemeses in his life: a real estate agent named Dell (Matt Dillion) and Craig, the Dean of Economics, (Danny Pudi). Dell has dealt with Phil’s dream before and hates to see him show up at exclusive showings. Craig is constantly pestering Phil to read his own economics paper, but always fail to deliver on the small things that would give Phil a little respect, like a better parking spot that isn’t next to a dumpster.
As you might guess, Phil’s contempt for authority and capitalist society in general tends to get him in trouble. But then, one day he discovers the deal of a lifetime: a fabulous mansion for sale at a price that even he can afford as long as he serve as a “live-in” until the elderly owner, a widow named Astrid (Shirley MacLaine – “Noelle”), passes on.
This is the setup for the comedic tale of a disillusioned man discovering maybe one dream can come true – with strings. Peter Dinklage stands out as this frustrated man who gets no respect and carries off some amusing physical humor. Matt Dillon oozes capitalism incarnate while still holding a love-hate relationship with this dreamer, obsessed with owning something he never can.
Newbie director Paul Dektor (“How to Become a Tyrant”) and writer Theodore Melfi (“Hidden Figures”) have taken a true-life segment of the NPR radio show “This American Life,” and expanded it into a full blown tale about the reclamation of a bitter, disappointed man.
The only off-key note of the film is the offensive behavior of elderly Astrid during her early dealings with her live-in Phil. She has no reason to be so offensive and condescending at first, as if he were an unsuspecting fly who’d foolishly wandered into her web. She eventually warms to him, for good reasons that I won’t disclose here.
With that one exception, all the characterizations are spot on, especially Phil and Dell, and the dialogue sparkles. The cinematography is excellent, and the music perfectly accompanies the unfolding story. Some of the visual gags are old chestnuts, but Dinklage carries them off.
Runtime: One hour, 38 minutes
Availability: In theaters March 8, 2024
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