Who has ever heard of secondhand lions?I never had until seeing the mildly foolish family flick of the same title.The term "secondhand lions" refer to lions that are considered worn out -- "defective," as Uncle Hub (Robert Duvall), himself once a young thrill-seeker, would describe them in the film. Although this movie includes strong performances from Duvall and Michael Caine, who plays Hub's storytelling brother Garth, these performances are frankly to be expected and cannot save it from a weak script and choppy directing.
"Secondhand Lions" begins with Walter (Haley Joel Osment), a withdrawn adolescent boy, being dropped off at his uncles' by his careless mom. Hub and Garth, who have lived together in Texas since mid-century, are at first bothered with Walter intruding on their isolated home. They would rather, it seems, grow old and die old.
In addition to this stance, the uncles apparently have taken issue with the rash of unexpected visitors that keep appearing at their doorstep -- family and traveling salesmen alike -- since they suspect any visitor of only wanting one thing: Their rumored wealth. As the uncles begin to warm up to Walter, however, he is considered an exception since he repels such visitors.
Walter is in the transition of leaving boyhood and becoming a man. Osment, like Walter, is also in transition from being one of the greatest modern child stars to becoming a respectable adult actor. This role could have benefited him, if it were not for his constant squeaky voice and "A.I." nodding. I didn't find his acting to be natural, but it was a respectable effort.
Osment's average performance cannot be blamed only on him. Other than Duvall and Caine, the direction given for every character seemed unnatural and one-dimensional.
However, I did like how the story of the young adventurous uncles unraveled. Though the stories were told pitch-perfect by Caine, it seemed novice of a director (who is also the screenwriter, might I add) to make Garth describe the flashback, and later actually show the flashback. I did, however, enjoy Walter's comic-like interpretations of these stories, and appreciated the childish (yet also beautiful and colorful) cinematography by Jack Green that such flashbacks entailed.
As Walter learns more about his uncles' wild youth, he befriends a secondhand lion. They instantly connect, since Walter feels useless for being an abandoned son, and the lion for simply suffering from old age. At best, this relationship becomes a son-mother dyad.This relationship is secondary to the plot, however, since the main focus is on human relationships.
As Walter becomes more enthralled with his uncles' past, the uncles themselves begin to let loose in a manner reminiscent of their youthful escapades. The eccentric style embodied in their youth reemerges now in old men, with stunts such as flying in a biplane or shooting in the air with their rifles -- all for the hell of it.
It's too bad that these types of scenes are considerably short. Given that this movie is less than two hours long, it would not have gravely hurt the film if the director had made these scenes a bit longer. Instead, time is spent on pointless scenes that are intended to make you laugh, but instead encourage the audience to anxiously check the clock. In addition, the dialogue is trite and corny for a large part of the film.
With a more experienced director and several more re-writes of the script, I think this movie could have been an exceptional family flick. Since moviegoers are stuck with this version, a matinee screening is all it's worth -- a second-rate showing for a second-rate film.
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