“Last Chance Harvey,” writer-director Joel Hopkins’ meditation on loneliness and love, focuses on a time in life when you might think those chances have all played out.
Just about everything works in this small and surprisingly hopeful film, with beautifully attenuated performances by Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson, who slip into the characters Hopkins has sewn for them like an old sweater.
The story nestled inside “Last Chance Harvey” is neither unfamiliar nor uncommon. Life is generally good, but the years chip away at onetime dreams; relationships fail or never quite happen; days are framed by a series of compromises, big and small.
Like a lot of his late-middle-aged compatriots, Harvey (Hoffman) has long since come to terms with the notion of falling short. In the case of career, it’s writing jingles for TV commercials, his hopes of being a jazz musician long since packed away. “Were you any good?” he’s asked at one point. “Not good enough,” he replies.
Still, the job is something to hold onto. But Harvey finds even that in jeopardy as he heads to London for his daughter’s marriage, his own having fractured and died years ago. His relationship with daughter Susan (Liane Balaban) hasn’t turned out as he’d planned either.
Life for Kate (Thompson) is waning, too. In her 40s and still single, she spends her days as a survey taker at Heathrow Airport, asking other people about their far more interesting lives.
But mostly, Kate’s time is spent trying to cope with regrets. Kate’s upper lip may be stiff, but in Thompson’s hands, every blow is quietly recorded: in the sag in her shoulders, the deep breath taken on the sly, the tears that she wills not to fall. Thompson lets us witness Kate’s pain without pity — a neat trick indeed.
Hopkins takes his time getting Kate and Harvey together, moving seamlessly between their separate humiliations — hers on a blind date, among other numerous smaller slights; his at the rehearsal dinner and the wedding. The power in these moments comes from their ordinary everydayness rather than cruel intentions.
When the couple finally meet, most of what happens unfolds as they walk the streets London.
In between meandering conversations, love begins to bloom. The usually verbal Hoffman makes great use of silence and restraint, patient in unexpected moments, standing back to allow Kate time to feel.
While there are some false notes along the way, when Kate asks, “Shall we walk?” follow Harvey’s lead — and say yes.
“Last Chance Harvey”
PG-13 for brief strong language. 1 hour, 40 minutes. Directed by Joel Hopkins; starring Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson, Kathy Baker, Richard Schiff, Liane Balaban, James Brolin. Opens today at area theaters.
