We meet Walter Mitty, via short story writer James Thurber, as a henpecked husband who is chauffeuring his wife to her hair appointment. Back then, 1939, men did that. Mrs. Mitty accuses her husband, driving at 55mph, of recklessly speeding. Walter is otherwise engaged.
In full dress uniform, Commander Mitty is piloting a Navy hydroplane as it hurtles through an icy hurricane. His wife's criticism is cause for astonishment and Mitty is brought up short. Who is this women?
74 years later, Thurber's story continues to resonate. Haven't we all found ourselves suddenly immersed in a fantasy in which we are the star character?
Ben Stiller has attempted to capture the universality of this phenomenon as director and star of his version of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. I approached the film wanting it to work. Stiller is a talented director and actor. Unfortunately he has miscast himself in his own film. He plays the part earnestly and with such straight-on seriousness that we miss the engaging whimsy that James Thurber evokes in his original story.
The special effects are grandly executed. However, they veer into wow-land and often fall with a resounding clunk. Nice try. Kudos to Ben Stiller for giving us his best shot. Director Stiller just needed to tell leading man Stiller to lighten up.
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