Viewed in
2010
Formats
Netflix HD streaming (Xbox 360)
Premise
James Stewart plays a man who drives his family crazy with his imaginary rabbit friend named Harvey.
Hated
Stewart's sister character, the writing.
Thoughts
The only redeeming thing I got from this mess was that the late great James Stewart's charm still shined through. He was perfectly cast as a troubled man with a heart of gold. Plus, I learned a new word: pooka.
Even after giving leniency to its dated dialogue, plot devices and sensibilities, I found very little to like about this movie. It tried to derive comedy from people doing double-takes every time Stewart mentioned Harvey or lazy sitcom misunderstandings that could have been resolved if characters did not interrupt each other so unnaturally. All the dialogue was so explicit and obvious. Comedy about mental health can be risky, and apparently impossible when attempting broad comedy on the subject. Lastly, the sister character was insufferably annoying, with her complaining, stupidity, and drama-queening.
I guess if you are a hardcore James Stewart fan, this might be worth checking out, simply because of his sheer likability.
What I would change
Made his sister less unbearable.
