Arthur Newman

R

Released Apr 26, 2013

1 hr. 41 min.

Comedy

Drama

Romance

List

20%

51 Reviews

Tomatometer

25%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Frustrated with his boring life, Wallace Avery (Colin Firth) fakes his own death and sets out to make a new life for himself as a golf pro named Arthur Newman. Along the way, he meets Charlotte (Emily Blunt), who is posing as her twin sister because her own life is too messy. Wallace and Charlotte pair up and decide to play a game in which they break into the homes of happy couples and pretend to be them. However, a large bag of cash begs the question of what Charlotte's real motives are.

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Critics Consensus

Despite the natural charisma of its leads, Arthur Newman does little with its intriguing setup, and the result is bland and unconvincing.

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greg h

I am a big follower of RT reviews and use it as a guide for viewing movies.But I was stunned when this only receives 1 star.Movies can be rated on several points.In this case criticism was warranted.But what grabbed me about this was how believable the two leads were .At the end of the movie you could see how damaged they were,how believable.Cant say that about most movies

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/29/24

Full Review

Test T

I watched this on a DVD which was titled "Arthur & Mike", but it's definitely the same movie. Don't be put off thinking it's about golf, because it's not. It's one of those slow reveal films where the viewer is dropped into an unfamiliar situation, and then by accompanying the characters gradually figures out who they are and what they are up to. When executed well, as it is in the case, this approach is very effective at engaging the audience and making fairly ordinary events seem interesting. I thought the film was very well made, making subtle use of a broad range of cinematic and dramatic techniques. Once started, I had too see how it ended, but of course just as the film has no real beginning, it also has no end either! It's just a time slice in the characters lives, where you get to see part of their story. I enjoyed the film, and found it interesting to watch, and would recommend it.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/24/23

Full Review

sue b

I very happily didn't finish it, only annoyed I had it on in the background long enough to leave a bad taste. So many 'off' things about these lying fake age-inappropriate people, and not enough to make me want to find out any more about them. Yuck. Putting me off Colin Firth actually. Did he just accept the role so he could snog the much younger Emily? Booo

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

07/22/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I watched this movie only because of Emily Blunt to see some of her earlier work. Here, she stars alongside the legendary Colin Firth where they basically form new lives and break into people's houses and make love to each other. Clearly not their best work but a very intriguing movie because both of them put on American accents which they do especially well, especially Blunt.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/24/23

Full Review

Tom M

Two of my favorite British actors in an American road trip 'buddy' film. Did I mention British ? Firth's American accent is terrible - and he does 2 different ones ! He's posing as a golf pro and he can't even address the ball properly, let alone swing well. It's too bad because the story's not that bad. If you're making an American road trip 'buddy' movie, are your first thoughts, 'let's get Colin Firth and Emily Blunt' !?

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

04/05/20

Full Review

Audience Member

This was very slow. I tried to watch it a second time and it was still slow and boring. Nothing like able. About the characters.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

Full Review

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Dante Ariola

Director

Colin Firth

Wallace Avery

Emily Blunt

Mike

Anne Heche

Mina Crawley

Lucas Hedges

Kevin Avery

Sterling Beaumon

Grant

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Video Interviews with Colin Firth & Emily Blunt of Arthur Newman

Critics Consensus: Pain & Gain is Visceral But Uneven

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

A bland and baffling oddity ...

Rated: 2/5

Jun 26, 2014

Full Review

Tim Robey

Daily Telegraph (UK)

The stars play strangers on an odd road trip who are meant to be finding things out about each other: if you were put next to either of them on a plane, you would quickly regret your seating assignment.

Rated: 1/5

Jun 26, 2014

Full Review

Louis Black

Austin Chronicle

Arthur Newman is overwhelmed with arty ambitions and a heavy-handed acting style. Ultimately, all the weight prevents the film from taking off and soaring.

Rated: 2/5

May 10, 2013

Full Review

Nicholas Bell

IONCINEMA.com

Oddly starring two well known British actors as the woebegone American leads, it's a tedious character study that forgets about characterization.

Aug 12, 2019

Full Review

Abbie Bernstein

Assignment X

A movie about a man struggling mightily for internal change needs to be more psychologically acute than Arthur Newman to command our empathy or even our full credulity.

Rated: B-

Jan 26, 2019

Full Review

Philip French

Observer (UK)

Completely disposable ...

Rated: 2/5

Jun 29, 2014

Full Review

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Synopsis

Frustrated with his boring life, Wallace Avery (Colin Firth) fakes his own death and sets out to make a new life for himself as a golf pro named Arthur Newman. Along the way, he meets Charlotte (Emily Blunt), who is posing as her twin sister because her own life is too messy. Wallace and Charlotte pair up and decide to play a game in which they break into the homes of happy couples and pretend to be them. However, a large bag of cash begs the question of what Charlotte's real motives are.

Director: Dante Ariola
Executive Producer: Lisa Bruce, Andy Cappuccino, Helen Cappuccino, Natalie G. Hill, James Holt, Eric Greenfeld
Screenwriter: Becky Johnston
Distributor: Cinedigm
Production Co: Vertebra Films
Rating: R (Language|Brief Drug Use|Sexual Content)
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 26, 2013, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 27, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $207.7K
Sound Mix: Datasat, Dolby Digital

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