A Man Called Otto movie review (2022) | Roger Ebert (2025)

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A Man Called Otto movie review (2022) | Roger Ebert (1)

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In Marc Forster’s genial, earnest yet unremarkable dramedy “A Man Called Otto,” the titular character Otto can’t pick his daily battles even if his life depended on it. Living in an unfussy suburban neighborhood of identical row houses somewhere in the Midwest, the aging man gets easily annoyed by every little misstep of a stranger. And his protests are so pronounced that they even rival Larry David’s in an average episode of “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”

Portrayed by the beloved Tom Hanks in an indistinct performance that splits the difference between quirky and grounded, Otto is often right about his grievances, to his credit. Why should he pay for six feet of rope and waste a few extra cents, for instance, when he bought just a little over five? Why shouldn’t he warn inconsiderate drivers who often block garage doors or entitled neighbors who can’t as much as remember to close a gate and respect basic rules about trash disposal? Or pick up a fuss when the soulless real estate guys from the fictional and hilariously named “Dye & Merica” show up to sabotage the community’s peace?

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Then again, not everything is as awful as Otto makes them out to be. And he could perhaps afford to have some manners himself, especially when a new, very pregnant neighbor drops by with a bowl of home-cooked meal as a courtesy.

If you’ve already seen 2015’s Oscar-nominated Swedish hit “A Man Called Ove” by Hannes Holm, a film that is not any better or worse than this middle-of-the-road American remake (yes, not all originals are automatically superior), you’ll know that Otto hasn’t always been this insufferable. In small doses of syrupy and visually overworked flashbacks, Forster and agile screenwriter David Magee show us that he was socially awkward even from his young days, but at least nice and approachable. With a squarely unstylish side-part haircut that aptly gives out a “nice but unworldly guy” vibe, young Otto (played by the star’s own son, Truman Hanks) had an interest in engineering, in figuring out how things work. His life apparently changed when he accidentally met the dreamy Sonya (Rachel Keller), who later on became his wife and passed away recently.

As was the case in “Ove,” Otto can’t wait to join his wife on the other side, but his frequent suicide attempts get interrupted in episodes that are sometimes awkwardly funny, and other times, just plain awkward. The chief interrupters of our get-off-my-lawn guy are the abovementioned new neighbors: the happily married-with-kids couple Marisol (a bubbly and scene-stealing Mariana Treviño, the absolute best thing about the film) and Tommy (Manuel Garcia-Ruflo), who often ask little favors from the grumpy Otto. There are also others in the neighborhood, like a kindly transgender teenager Malcolm (Mack Bayda) thrown out of his house by his dad, the fitness-obsessed Jimmy (Cameron Britton), Otto’s old friend Rueben (Peter Lawson Jones), and his wife Anita (Juanita Jennings), who are no longer on cordial terms with Otto. And let’s not forget a stray cat that no one seems to know what to do with for a while.

The mystery is that none of the supporting personalities in this story can take a hint about Otto, at least not well into the film’s second act. Instead, all the characters collectively treat Otto with patience and acceptance, as if he isn’t being willfully rude to them every chance he gets. For example, it’s anyone’s guess why Otto’s work colleagues bother to throw him a retirement party when it will surely go unappreciated or why Marisol continuously insists on trying to bring out the good side of him when Otto offensively shuts down every one of her genuine attempts.

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Still, the story manages to land some charms when Otto finally lets his guard down and starts making all the expected amends, while suffering a rare heart condition on the side. First, he becomes a local hero when he unwittingly saves someone’s life in front of a group of unhelpful people too preoccupied with their phones. Later on, he racks up additional goodwill when he takes Malcolm in and builds a slow yet steady friendship with Marisol, a rewarding storyline in an otherwise predictable tale.

But the biggest win of Forster’s adaptation is its worthwhile message about the small wins of everyday people who operate as a functioning and harmonious community against the evils of faceless corporations. “A Man Called Otto” isn’t exactly as philosophical as “About Schmidt” or as socially conscious as “I, Daniel Blake,” two films that occasionally hit similar notes. But it’s nevertheless a wholesome crowd-pleaser for your next family gathering.

In limited release now, wide on January 13th.

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Film Credits

A Man Called Otto movie review (2022) | Roger Ebert (9)

A Man Called Otto (2022)

Rated PG-13

126 minutes

Cast

Tom Hanksas Otto Anderson

Mariana Treviñoas Marisol

Kailey Hymanas Barb

Rachel Keller

Manuel Garcia-Rulfo

Cameron Britton

Mike Birbiglia

Elle Chapmanas Sarah

Director

  • Marc Forster

Screenplay

  • David Magee

Editor

  • Matt Chesse

Director of Photography

  • Matthias Koenigswieser

Novel

  • Fredrik Backman

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A Man Called Otto movie review (2022) | Roger Ebert (2025)

FAQs

What was the last movie Roger Ebert watched? ›

Roger Ebert continued to review movies until the end of his life, despite the challenges of his cancer, which inspired others facing the same disease. Terrence Malick's To the Wonder was Ebert's last review and showcased the director's iconic style and departure from his previous period pieces.

Is Tom Hanks' son in the movie Otto? ›

Tom Hanks' Son Truman Plays the Younger Version of Otto

Tom Hanks' youngest son Truman Hanks plays the younger version of Otto Anderson in A Man Called Otto. The 27-year-old has only one other acting credit to his name, as a nameless character titled "German Rider" in his father's 2020 Western News of the World.

What were Roger Ebert's final words? ›

Sometime ago, I heard that Roger Ebert's wife, Chaz, talked about Roger's last words. He died of cancer in 2013. “Life is but a tale, told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

Who runs Roger Ebert now? ›

Ever since the passing of the site's co-founder and namesake, Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic Roger Ebert, in 2013, it has been run by his wife, Chaz Ebert.

What happened to the baby in A Man Called Otto? ›

In a flashback scene, Otto recalls a holiday that he and Sonya took, when they were involved in a bus crash. Otto cries as he looks for Sonya. Sonya was pregnant at the time but lost her baby and is shown in hospital, weeping at their loss.

How many sons does Tom Hanks have? ›

In the decades since their wedding day, Hanks and Wilson have raised two sons together, Chester "Chet" Marlon Hanks, 33, and Truman Theodore Hanks, 28. Tom Hanks is also a father of two other children, Colin Hanks, 45, and Elizabeth Hanks, 41, whom he shares with his ex-wife, Samantha Lewes.

Who was Tom Hanks' first wife? ›

'” The divorce was between Hanks and his first wife, Samantha Lewes. The two first married in 1978, but split by 1987. Hanks met Wilson a few years before that on the set for the 1985 film, Volunteers.

When did Roger Ebert retire? ›

On April 2, 2013, Ebert publicly announced he would be writing fewer reviews due to a recurrence of cancer. He died two days later. The Sun-Times published his final movie review on April 6, for To the Wonder.

What movie did Roger Ebert write? ›

Ebert co-wrote the screenplay for Russ Meyer's Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970) and sometimes joked about being responsible for it. It was poorly received on its release yet has become a cult film. Ebert and Meyer also made Up!

Were Siskel and Ebert friends? ›

After Siskel's death, Ebert reminisced about their close relationship saying: Gene Siskel and I were like tuning forks, Strike one, and the other would pick up the same frequency. When we were in a group together, we were always intensely aware of one another.

How many stars in a Roger Ebert review? ›

Every film which Roger Ebert gave a four out of four star review in his career. Does NOT include films that were initially rated lower than 4 stars but were later included on the Great Movies List.

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