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"Last Chance Harvey" is a tremendously appealing love story surrounded by a movie not worthy of it. For Dustin Hoffman , after years of character roles (however good) and dubbing the voices of animated animals, it provides a rare chance to play ... an ordinary guy. For Emma Thompson , there is an opportunity to use her gifts for tact and insecurity. For both, their roles project warmth and need.

When "Last Chance Harvey" gets out of their way and leaves them alone to relate with each other, it's sort of magical. Then the lumber of the plot apparatus is trundled on, and we wish it were a piece for two players. One subplot, scored with funny-bumpy-scary music, is entirely unnecessary. And even with the two stars onscreen, there is too much reliance on that ancient standby, the Semi-Obligatory Lyrical Interlude.

But what's good is very good. Hoffman plays Harvey, a failed jazz pianist who has found success writing jingles for TV ads. Thompson plays Kate, an airport interviewer for a British agency. Harvey flies to London to attend his daughter's wedding, and in the space of 24 hours he learns that he has been fired and that his daughter would prefer her stepfather gave her away. At the same time, Kate is ignored on a blind date and has to deal with a mother who fears her new neighbor is a vivisectionist.

They met briefly when Harvey was rude to Kate at the airport. The next day, when both are deep in misery, they find themselves the only two people in a pub. Harvey recognizes her, apologizes and, out of desperation, tries to start a conversation. She resists. But notice the tentative dialogue that slowly allows them to start talking easily. It's not forced. It depends on his charm and her kindness.

Pitch perfect. But then the dialogue fades down, and the camera pulls back and shows them talking and smiling freely, and the music gets happier, and there is a montage showing them walking about London with lots and lots of scenery in the frame. The movie indulges the Semi-OLI more than once; it uses the device as shorthand for scenes that should be fully transcribed. In " Before Sunrise " and " Before Sunset ," Richard Linklater sent Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy talking all through a night in Vienna and all through a day in Paris, and never let them stop, and kept his camera close. Why didn't Joel Hopkins , the writer-director of "Last Chance Harvey," try the same? He had the right actors.

Hopkins gets one thing right. They stay outdoors. Going to his hotel or her flat would set the stage for body language neither one is ready for. They avoid the issue by walking around London, although unfortunately Hopkins sends them mostly up and down the Victoria Embankment and the South Bank, so he can hold the Thames vista in the background. We get more montages of them walking and talking, as substitutes for listening to a conversation we've become invested in.

One subplot works well. After Kate starts Harvey talking about why his relationship with his daughter failed, she tells him he must attend her wedding reception. He says she must go with him. He will buy her a dress. There is a gratuitous and offensive montage of her trying on dresses, including one frilly gown that looks perfect for a fancy dress ball in " Gone With the Wind ." Not only is this montage an exhausted cliche, they're in a hurry, remember? But when they get to the reception, Harvey is touching in a carefully worded speech.

The subplot that doesn't work involves Kate's mother ( Eileen Atkins ). She peers through her curtains at her suspicious neighbor, thinks she sees him carrying a body to the woodshed and speed-dials her daughter every five minutes. Every time we cut to her, we get that peppy suspense music, as the movie confuses itself with light comedy.

"Last Chance Harvey" has everything it needs but won't stop there. It needs the nerve to push all the way. It is a pleasure to look upon the faces of Hoffman and Thompson, so pleasant, so real. Their dialogue together finds the right notes for crossing an emotional minefield. They never descend into tear-jerking or cuteness. They are all grown up and don't trust love nearly as much as straight talk. Hopkins deserves credit for creating these characters. Then he should have stood back and let them keep right on talking. Their pillow talk would have been spellbinding.

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

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Film Credits

Last Chance Harvey (2009)

Rated PG-13 for brief strong language

James Brolin as Brian

Richard Schiff as Marvin

Eileen Atkins as Maggie

Emma Thompson as Kate

Kathy Baker as Jean

Dustin Hoffman as Harvey

Liane Balaban as Susan

Written and directed by

• Joel Hopkins

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Film review: last chance harvey.

Imagine Paddy Chayefsky's "Marty" saddled with more sentimentality and sprinkled with a few more laughs and you pretty much have "Last Chance Harvey."

By Kirk Honeycutt , The Associated Press November 9, 2008 2:27pm

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Imagine Paddy Chayefsky’s “Marty” saddled with more sentimentality and sprinkled with a few more laughs and you pretty much have “Last Chance Harvey.” This sentimental romantic comedy about two aging misfits who find unlikely love benefits enormously from the casting of Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson. Even when British writer-director Joel Hopkins asks them to perform doubtful bits of comedy, they pull it off with a professional nonchalance that is fun to watch.

This Overture Films release plays to an older audience, the kind that often prefers to wait until movies arrive on video or cable. Indulging heavily in feel-good cheer, the film might pick up momentum in its limited Christmas release to boost boxoffice numbers for a wider January opening.

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Hoffman’s Harvey Shine wanted desperately to be a jazz pianist but, he admits, he “wasn’t good enough.” That just about sums up both Harvey and Kate, two souls found wanting in so many departments.

Instead of being a musician, Harvey ekes out a living in New York as a commercial jingle writer, which he believes always embarrassed his ex-wife (Kathy Baker) and daughter (Liane Balaban). He wasn’t a good enough father, so he’s lucky to even get invited to her wedding in London. As he heads to the airport, his boss (Richard Schiff) tells him his job is in jeopardy.

Meanwhile, Thompson’s Kate is good enough for only a dead-end job interviewing cranky passengers passing through London’s Heathrow Airport, disastrous blind dates and a suffocating mother (Eileen Atkins) who rings her mobile phone almost hourly. After a weekend of even more — and frankly, somewhat forced and predictable — humiliations for both parties, the two meet by chance in an airport pub. Kate agrees that Harvey’s humiliation tops hers — his daughter decided to let her stepdad (James Brolin) give her away.

From there, Hopkins has his hands full keeping the two together long enough for the misfits to fall believably in love. This entails a trip back to London — Harvey, of course, has missed his flight and lost his job — getting-to-know-all-about-you ambles around a postcard-ish London and an opportunity for Harvey to resolve issues with his daughter.

Thanks to his two stars, Hopkins manages most of this without the strain showing. However, the film is dogged by a cinematic deja vu. You can even cite the movies Hopkins might have looked to for story points. Along with “Marty,” the whole thing reminds you of “Brief Encounter” with perhaps a dose of Richard Linklater’s “Before Sunset” and “Before Sunrise.” Harvey’s failure to make an agreed-upon rendezvous is straight out of “An Affair to Remember,” while Kate’s mother’s obsessive spying on her suspicious next-door neighbor is a lightly comic reworking of “Rear Window.”

The film weighs more heavily toward Harvey and his woes. Hopkins could have invested more time in Kate’s background and emotional life. On the surface, she just doesn’t seem like someone who is always the odd woman out, and the surface is all this movie scratches.

The tour around London is a polished one as John de Borman’s cinematography and Jon Henson’s decor are very much designed to please.

A Process production. Cast: Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson, Kathy Baker, James Brolin, Eileen Atkins, Richard Schiff. Director-screenwriter: Joel Hopkins. Producers: Tim Perell, Nicola Usborne. Executive producer: Jawal Nga. Director of photography: John de Borman. Production designer: Jon Henson. Music: Dickon Hinchliffe. Costume designer: Natalie Ward. Editor: Robin Sales. Rated PG-13, 92 minutes.

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Last Chance Harvey Reviews

Sweet. Delightful. Lovely. Romantic. Funny. Hopeful. Take a chance with Last Chance Harvey. It will make your heart smile.

Full Review | Nov 14, 2019

The romantic comedy tends to be one of the most predictable of genres, but Last Chance Harvey has even fewer surprises than most. What it does offer, though, is the chance to watch a couple of old pros do what they do best - charm us and each other.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Dec 11, 2018

With a deficit of good characters, a poor script and surprisingly weak central performances, Last Chance Harvey is only for those who have run out of options at the multiplex.

Full Review | Nov 1, 2018

The pleasure of seeing Thompson and Hoffman gamely steal scenes from one another gives the film a chance to entertain.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Aug 8, 2018

Maybe I'm damning with faint praise, but these are two actors I don't mind wasting time with.

Full Review | Dec 30, 2017

Full Review | Original Score: B+ | Feb 18, 2012

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Nov 17, 2011

To fully appreciate it, you need to be on playing-field level with Harvey and Kate. You need some miles on the love odometer.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Sep 28, 2011

Decently avted by Hoffman and Thompson, this is a middlebrow, TV-like melodrama that goes out of its way to show the possibility of new romances and new beginnings at any age.

Full Review | Original Score: C+ | Jun 3, 2011

Full Review | Original Score: 0.5/5 | Apr 4, 2011

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Feb 3, 2011

Acaba conquistando graças à doçura de sua história e, principalmente, em função do carisma e do talento de seus sempre admiráveis protagonistas.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Jun 20, 2009

They don't often make romances like this, so tell your mum - or granny!

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jun 5, 2009

A delightful confection that leaves you with a great big smile of contentment.

Full Review | Jun 5, 2009

The problem lies in a sloppy screenplay and direction that's too slick to be credible. Added to that, while Thompson often makes acting look natural, Hoffman these days makes natural look like acting.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Jun 5, 2009

Undemanding, observant and beautifully performed, this is Richard Curtis-lite with added reassurance: no challenging questions here.

Hoffman and Thompson prove you can never be too old to make memories and their romance is certainly one to remember.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Jun 5, 2009

Watching them dance effortlessly through this film is a reminder that two actors at the absolute top of their game can weave magic even in a slightly predictable example of a wholly formulaic genre.

This bittersweet, autumnal heartwarmer about two middle-aged people getting a last chance at love and happiness exceeded my personal tolerance factor for gloop and gush - but not by too much.

Last Chance Harvey is a funny little thing - a perfectly sincere July-to-September romance with barely an ounce of irony in its DNA, just a lot of optimism and good-humoured smiling. It's refreshing, in its unforced way.

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Last Chance Harvey

By Peter Travers

Peter Travers

The Golden Globes people actually did something right for a change: They nominated Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson as best actor and best actress in a comedy for Last Chance Harvey. The movie itself, written and directed by Joel Hopkins, is so light a whisper could blow it away. But acting this richly funny and touching is too good to resist.

Hoffman, in his best screen performance since 1997’s Wag the Dog , plays Harvey Shine, a New York jingle writer barely holding on to his job. Even worse for the divorced Harvey is his arrival in London to attend the wedding of his estranged daughter (Liane Balaban). His ex-wife (Kathy Baker) and her tall, annoyingly handsome husband (James Brolin) smile brightly and do everything they can to lower the already chilly temperature between father and daughter, who announces her stepfather will be the one to give her away.

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After being odd man out at the rehearsal dinner, Harvey is ready to chuck it and head back to Manhattan. That’s when he meets Kate Walker, a survey taker at Heathrow Airport who persuades Harvey to stay in London for the reception. The act of persuasion, coming after some sly, charmingly nasty give-and-take between the American and the Londoner at a bar, is a lesson in the seamless blend of acting styles.

After a shopping expedition for Harvey and his insistence that Kate accompany him to the reception, the movie hits a comic peak when Harvey and Kate are seated at the kids’ table. The emotional high point comes when Harvey interrupts the toasts to make a toast himself. Hoffman reportedly wrote much of the speech, a poignant blend of joy and regret, and he delivers it with the timing and subtlety expected from an actor audiences have taken to since The Graduate and Midnight Cowboy. And when cuteness and contrivance get too much, as in the film’s ending, the radiant Thompson can be counted on to put a tart spin on sentiment. British director Hopkins likes to mix it up, playing the romance old school ( Brief Encounter ) and new ( Before Sunset ). He does well. But Hoffman and Thompson work the necessary magic. It’s the pleasure of their company that makes this an affair to remember.

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Last Chance Harvey Review

05 Jun 2009

Last Chance Harvey

A difficult sell, mature romantic-comedies demand heavyweight stars. With two Oscars apiece, Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson are certainly that. Having barely brushed shoulders in Stranger Than Fiction, the pair have a chance to get cosy in this comedy-drama that takes place over the course of a couple of days.

Initially, it’s not the best phase in Harvey’s life. In London for his daughter’s wedding, he’s been instructed to “take his time” by his boss — younger composers are fast filling his shoes. Then comes the big blow: daughter Susan (Liane Balaban) wants her stepfather, not Harvey, to give her away.

Desperate to cling onto what little he has left, Harvey tries to fly back to save his job, but ends up wallowing in Scotch at the airport. “That’ll help,” quips nearby Kate (Thompson) sarcastically, and so an afternoon of gently flirtatious banter is born. The world-weary pair find comfort in each other, his ambition, persistence and near-desperation cutting through her dry despondency. It’s the American Dreamer versus the self-deprecating Brit — and in the land of romantic comedies, they make a good pair.

Hoffman is an enjoyable lead, gleaning laughs from trivial misfortunes such as a security tag still attached to a suit jacket. But it’s Thompson that really shines, imbuing every line with depth and pathos — lines that could have been thrown away by other mouths. There’s a telling early scene in which Kate has a blind date in the pub with a younger man, Simon (Patrick Baladi). She readily admits defeat when his lively friends arrive, babbling a language she doesn’t understand. But Kate’s hangdog manner is offset by a quick wit and a desire to learn. Like Harvey, Kate is underestimated by people who judge by age.

All this, of course, positions Last Chance Harvey as ideal for older audiences who feel overlooked. The message is clear: there is life after divorce, and there is hope for a single woman approaching 50. Last Chance Harvey is a brief but slow-paced film with no grand romance, no tension, no tragedy. It recalls Sleepless In Seattle and Four Weddings And A Funeral, but it doesn’t have the suspense or energy to compete. It’s cute, but it’s not compelling. In fact, like Hoffman himself, Last Chance Harvey is short, but very sweet.

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• DVD & Streaming

Last Chance Harvey

• Drama , Romance

Content Caution

In Theaters

• Dustin Hoffman as Harvey Shine; Emma Thompson as Kate Walker; Eileen Atkins as Maggie Walker; Liane Balaban as Susan; Kathy Baker as Jean; James Brolin as Brian; Bronagh Gallagher as Oonagh

Home Release Date

• Joel Hopkins

Distributor

• Overture Films

Movie Review

His name may be Harvey Shine. But for this sixtysomething composer of commercial jingles, life long ago lost its luster. Dreams of becoming a jazz pianist never materialized. Divorce left him broken. And as Harvey prepares to jet to London for his daughter Susan’s wedding, his boss warns that any more mistakes on the job will mean the end of his professional road.

“There are no more chances, Harvey,” he says.

An intercontinental change of venue hardly brightens the horizon. Susan’s cool response—and an even frostier one from his ex-wife, Jean—remind Harvey of his failures as a father and a husband. His penchant for social gaffes, like taking business calls during the rehearsal dinner, doesn’t endear him to anyone either. And Susan’s news that she wants her stepfather, Brian, to give her away during the ceremony hits Harvey like a final sucker punch to the gut.

But Harvey isn’t the only one slogging through a disappointing life. Fortysomething Kate Walker spends her days attending to passengers at Heathrow Airport (including, briefly, a very rude Harvey when he first gets off his plane). Romance novels, white wine and dreams of a writing career offer momentary diversions. But love has eluded Kate, despite the well-intentioned attempts of her friends and the suffocating concern of her mother.

Harvey’s path crosses Kate’s again when he skips Susan’s wedding reception to catch a plane for an important meeting. Harvey misses the plane, of course, and promptly gets fired over the phone. Assuming residency at a nearby airport bar, the beaten-down American loudly tries to drown his sorrows. And it’s Kate who informs him that the strategy likely won’t get the job done. Never mind that she’s doing the same thing—a fact Harvey helpfully points out.

In that brief encounter, both recognize a spark of honesty and zest neither has felt in a long time … and an unlikely romance begins to bloom.

Positive Elements

Despite the many setbacks he’s experienced in life, Harvey recognizes an opportunity with Kate as the two begin to connect, and he seizes it. Kate initially tries to talk him out of pursuing her. But his determination to woo her gently overwhelms her meager defenses. Harvey is willing to keep taking risks, even though there’s always the possibility of further hurt. He reassures Kate that he’s up to doing whatever it takes to make their relationship work.

As Harvey and Kate begin to tell their stories to one another, Harvey describes the hurt he’s just experienced by essentially being rejected by his daughter. Kate convinces him that he must return to the wedding reception, where Susan is visibly relieved that her father has come back.

Harvey’s losses in life have also taught him significant lessons about what matters most. In an awkward-yet-poignant toast to his daughter, he acknowledges that the children of divorce suffer the most, and he compliments Susan on having become a strong, determined and sensitive woman despite the “fracture of her birth family.” He graciously recognizes Susan’s stepfather for shouldering the fathering load that he couldn’t. The looks he shares with Susan and with his ex-wife in this scene seem to communicate forgiveness and acceptance that’s long been absent.

In one of their conversations, Kate confesses that she had an abortion in college. “I was pregnant once,” she says. “I didn’t have it. I didn’t think twice about it. That’s what all the smart girls did.” But years later, the act still haunts her as she thinks about who her child would have become. She tears up wondering if her baby would have grown into someone who was “clever.” Obviously, Kate’s abortion was a much bigger deal, one with long-lasting emotional consequences, than she realized at the time.

Sexual Content

Oonagh tries to set Kate up with a friend of her boyfriend. He turns out to be much younger than Kate, which prompts Oonagh to say that he’ll have “more energy,” presumably for sex. She also points out, suggestively, his large hands. Kate’s mother, Maggie, calls her daughter incessantly, asking for updates on what Kate is doing and who she’s with. Oonagh says of Maggie’s penchant for up-to-the-minute news, “She’s like a human contraceptive. Honest to God, she’s ruining your sex life.” It’s therefore implied that lonely Kate would be open to a casual sexual encounter, though the film suggests such encounters have been very rare for her.

Kate and Harvey share a single quick kiss. Susan and Scott’s wedding kiss is also shown. A few characters display a bit of cleavage. Kate jokingly tells her mother that she’s wearing a “boob tube and a miniskirt.” An elderly man reads a ridiculously over-the-top passage from a story he’s writing about a violent, sex-crazed psychopath; the tale relates his love for the smell of sex and the taste of blood. Kate tells Harvey how her father left her mother and went to France with his secretary.

Violent Content

None, really. But Kate’s mother does witness a neighbor carrying something wrapped in burlap into a backyard smokehouse. The shape resembles a body, and she thinks the man is a killer disposing of his victims. (He isn’t.)

Crude or Profane Language

A dozen uses of the s-word (half of which take place in one conversation). One abuse of Jesus’ name and two of God’s. “Bloody” pops up.

Drug and Alcohol Content

Harvey and Kate both tend to use alcohol to wage war on their woes and calm their nerves. Harvey has a drink on the plane and tells the woman next to him he needs it to fight off his fear of flying. After he misses his return flight, he quickly downs three drinks at an airport bar. Kate and Harvey also drink socially. Other folks drink pints and wine, and several empty beer bottles are visible on a table. Champagne shows up at Susan and Scott’s rehearsal dinner and again at the wedding reception.

Other Negative Elements

When he misses his flight, Harvey rudely cuts in front of others and demands service from the airline. Kate makes a meanspirited, sarcastic comment to her mother.

As implausible as their quickly kindled romance might seem, Harvey and Kate are about as regular and down to earth as anyone you’re likely to see on the big screen. That’s one of the things that drew actress Emma Thompson to the story. “I want to see people who I actually believe to exist, who are vaguely like me, falling in love,” she says. “People who aren’t perfect, who aren’t so beautiful that anyone would go for them. You don’t see love stories about that, you just see very beautiful people falling in love with each other, and I’m just bored, I’m bored witless [of that].”

Even more unusual is a story in which the starring couple never even hints at jumping into bed. Indeed, Harvey and Kate share but one modest kiss. (Booze, yes. Sex? No.) Combine that carnal restraint with affirmation of marriage and a reflection on the costs of divorce and abortion, and Last Chance Harvey feels decidedly old-fashioned.

Dustin Hoffman says of the marital themes, “I think one of the things that happens when a marriage fails is that you realize you don’t know what you think you know. You knew that this person was the one for you—or you thought you did—and it shatters your belief system, and you shut down. What makes this film interesting is that these are two people who are no longer in the flush of youth. They’ve been so pained by the expectation of what they thought they were going to have that they very much do not want to get involved with each other, and I think that gives the film tension.”

Less old-fashioned, of course, are the script’s s-words, the interjection of Jesus’ name and a bit of suggestive banter. And I’ve already mentioned the liquor—which is old-fashioned, but not in a positive way.

Last Chance Harvey still surprised me, though, with its honest-feeling attempt at elevating the ordinary along with the importance of family and forgiveness, humility and even the basic value of life.

Adam R. Holz

After serving as an associate editor at NavPress’ Discipleship Journal and consulting editor for Current Thoughts and Trends, Adam now oversees the editing and publishing of Plugged In’s reviews as the site’s director. He and his wife, Jennifer, have three children. In their free time, the Holzes enjoy playing games, a variety of musical instruments, swimming and … watching movies.

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Last Chance Harvey (United States/United Kingdom, 2008)

Last Chance Harvey is a standard-order romantic comedy with a couple of unusual ingredients that make it worthy of notice. It is common, of course, for movies of this genre to focus on young, photogenic individuals. While not unheard of, romantic comedies featuring post-menopause women and AARP-eligible men are a rarity. In addition, when the principals of such a movie are both multiple Oscar winners, one can hardly ignore such a production, no matter how formulaic the premise and execution might be. Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson bring credibility to Last Chance Harvey merely by their presence. The result is a holiday parfait.

Harvey Shine (Hoffman) is a TV commercial jingle writer who is fired by cell phone while he's in London for the wedding of his daughter, Susan (Liane Balaban). Things go from bad to worse for Harvey - not only is he jobless, but Susan informs him that she would prefer to be given away at the altar by her step-father, Brian (James Brolin). Harvey takes this as well as can be expected, which is to say, not well at all. Then, to further exacerbate an already awful situation, he runs into traffic on the way from the wedding to Heathrow and misses his flight. He's in an airport bar drowning his sorrows when he meets Kate (Emma Thompson), who's not experiencing the best of times either. Her mother (Eileen Atkins) believes the new neighbor is a serial killer and Kate's blind date the night before did not go well. When Harvey tries to make small talk, she is initially unreceptive, but his persistence pays off and they are soon spending the day together wandering around the city. He accompanies her to her drama class and she agrees to be his date for the wedding reception.

By echoing the motif that made Before Sunrise so popular among a segment of romantic comedy fandom - the concept of having two people fall in love as they tour a city - Last Chance Harvey provides viewers with ample opportunity to see Harvey and Kate interact. This in turn gives Hoffman and Thompson a chance to revive and enhance the on-screen chemistry they displayed in their few shared scenes in Stranger than Fiction . It's a pleasure to see them interact and to hear the way they utter some of the wry one-liners provided by writer/director Joel Hopkins' occasionally witty screenplay.

There are two primary subplots populating the sidelines in Last Chance Harvey . The first involves Harvey's attempts to show his true feelings to a daughter to whom he was not, by his own admission, a good father. There's some emotional resonance to this element of the movie and, while it doesn't stray into the realm of heavy drama, it has more heft than one might expect from this sort of frothy motion picture. Kate's secondary story, which focuses on her mother's unwillingness to sever the late-life umbilical cord, isn't as interesting. Apparently recognizing this, Hopkins plays it primarily for comedy, thereby wasting the not inconsiderable talents of Eileen Atkins.

Although the idea of Hoffman at a wedding might immediately call to mind The Graduate, Last Chance Harvey has no tangible links to the Mike Nichols classic. Emma Thompson's character, on the other hand, calls to mind her portrayal in The Tall Guy (they even have the same first name). Any baggage brought on board by either actor does nothing to detract from the essential elements of the film. Hopkins understands the conventions of the romantic comedy and lets the storyline play out in a largely predictable manner. This is a film of small pleasures that come through dialogue and character interaction, but there are few (if any) surprises. It's a romantic comedy for an older generation, arguing that the fantasy of falling in love isn't just for the young, no matter how much Hollywood seems to believe differently.

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Last chance harvey, common sense media reviewers.

Midlife love story is sweet, but may not appeal to teens.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

A father tries to patch things up with his daughte

Tense conversations, but no physical fights.

A sweet kiss between two people falling in love.

Some brief outbursts of profanity, primarily &quot

Some visible signage and product placement -- incl

Some drinking, mostly social -- though one scene s

Parents need to know that this sweet romance about middle-aged lovers deals with some mature themes -- family dysfunction, for starters -- in a low-key way that likely won't lure too many younger viewers. But those who do see it, especially older teens, will be greeted with strong storytelling about a very…

Positive Messages

A father tries to patch things up with his daughter, putting his already endangered job in more peril. A woman comes to a man's aid and not only befriends him but also helps him through a rough patch, as he does for her. A daughter grows increasingly exasperated with her needy mother but still stays patient and giving.

Violence & Scariness

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Some brief outbursts of profanity, primarily "s--t."

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Some visible signage and product placement -- including but not limited to Johnnie Walker Black Label, Air Berliner, and Marriott -- but not an overwhelming amount.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Some drinking, mostly social -- though one scene shows a man ready to drown out his sorrows in hard liquor.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that this sweet romance about middle-aged lovers deals with some mature themes -- family dysfunction, for starters -- in a low-key way that likely won't lure too many younger viewers. But those who do see it, especially older teens, will be greeted with strong storytelling about a very realistic relationship. There's some strong language (mostly "s--t"), and few scenes involve drinking, primarily in a social setting (at pubs, for instance) -- though one character sits at a bar seemingly ready to drown his sorrows. It may feel like a downer at first, but it's ultimately a hopeful film. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

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Community Reviews

• Parents say (4)
• Kids say (1)

Based on 4 parent reviews

Good but not great

One of those beautifully, rare films you gotta see, what's the story.

Harvey ( Dustin Hoffman ), a composer who makes his living writing commercial jingles, has hit a series of wrong notes. His estranged daughter is about to get married in London, and he's determined to prove himself worthy of her trust by being there for the weekend. His boss threatens to fire him if he's not back on Monday, so Harvey promises to return in time. But there are challenges ahead: Once he gets to London, he finds out that his daughter has asked her stepfather to walk her down the aisle instead. And Kate ( Emma Thompson ), a government statistician whom Harvey meets at Heathrow and winds up spending the weekend with has given him pause ... as well as the courage to change his fate. But Kate isn't sure she can trust in a virtual stranger when life, up to this moment, life has disappointed her so.

Is It Any Good?

LAST CHANCE HARVEY plays on a low register but achieves maximum impact with a simple story that feels achingly authentic. As two souls who've lost their way in middle age, Hoffman and Thompson play their characters subtly but with tremendous empathy. And their chemistry is lovely; they're like two puzzle pieces meant to fit together very well.

Kate and Harvey's relationship -- which mostly unfolds in a series of languid walk-and-talks that make the most of the London setting -- is a grown-up pairing that relies less on sizzling sex appeal and more on an unexplainable, but very real, feeling of connection. It's a sweet movie -- a mite predictable, yes, and not exactly groundbreaking, but a joy to watch, even if only to witness two acting masters at work.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about what makes this movie different from many Hollywood romances. Does the central relationship seem more or less realistic than in other romances you've seen? Why? How do most movies define "love"? How does that compare to real life? Also, what does the movie say about the power of forgiveness -- not only of others, but of yourself?

Movie Details

• In theaters : January 16, 2009
• On DVD or streaming : May 5, 2009
• Cast : Dustin Hoffman , Eileen Atkins , Emma Thompson
• Director : Joel Hopkins
• Studio : Overture Films
• Genre : Drama
• Run time : 99 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG-13
• MPAA explanation : brief strong language
• Last updated : March 24, 2024

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Last Chance Harvey

This week's films

Reviews in chronological order (Total 2 reviews)

7 March 2009 12:33PM

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Last Chance Harvey - Krissy1

11 June 2009 9:26AM

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Last Chance Harvey

Last Chance Harvey is the kind of movie that probably wouldn't get much attention if it were released at any other time in the year. An unambitious romance aimed at grown-ups, it deserves the handful of champions it will find, but probably not the Oscar campaign it's heading into. Featuring a lovely performance from Emma Thompson , with slightly less impressive Dustin Hoffman in the title role, it's a small movie of simple pleasures that's easily forgotten when it's over.

The heavy-handed title refers at first to a deal Harvey is trying to work out with the music recording studio that employs him. Just before he heads off to London to see his estranged daughter (Liane Balaban) get married, his hard-nosed boss (Richard Schiff) hints that he shouldn't bother to hurry back. Harvey, not getting the clue, rushes awkwardly through the rehearsal dinner and ceremony, alienated by his ex-wife (Kathy Baker), her suave new husband (James Brolin) and even his daughter, who asks her stepdad to walk her down the aisle. Skipping the reception to get to the airport, he gets one more cell phone call from the boss to tell him, pointedly, that he's fired.

In the meantime we're also spending time with Kate (Thompson), who spends much of her life fielding phone calls from her loony mother, who's convinced her neighbor is a serial killer. As Harvey suffers through the rehearsal dinner, Kate bumbles through a blind date set up by a co-worker at the airport census office. The date goes badly, of course, so when Kate runs into Harvey in the airport bar the next day, they both have something to complain about.

Harvey's flight is delayed until the next day, Kate helps him find a hotel, he accompanies her to her writing class, and gradually these two middle-agers have the kind of whirlwind, up-all-night romance more familiar to teenagers. The night is mostly devoted to helping Harvey work things out, as the new couple attends the wedding reception after all and harvey gets to make the father toast. Kate, despite both Thompson's and writer-director Joel Hopkins' efforts to make her a well-developed character, unfortunately falls into the "supportive female" stock character trap.

When the sun comes up there are obvious obstacles Kate and Harvey need to deal with-- the distance between New York and London being just one of them-- but Hopkins instead throws in an emergency room visit to create third-act drama. It doesn't necessarily betray the movie's emotional honesty up to that point, but it is a fairly cheap trick for what's otherwise a mature and low-key film.

As the central character who goes through the movie's main arc, Hoffman is a bit of a letdown. He's good as Harvey the beaten-down schlub, as well as Harvey in the flush of new romance, but the transition between the two doesn't exist. Thompson is empathetic and lovely, as ever, but she's not helped by the script or her hammy co-star. Last Chance Harvey offers many pleasures that may be overshadowed by the high expectations that come with a December 26 release date. It's a shame, but this is the kind of movie probably destined to perform better on DVD anyway.

Staff Writer at CinemaBlend

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Last Chance Harvey Parent Guide

The plot unfolds at a slow, meandering pace which likely won't have teens clamoring to see this film. but strong performances by the cast keep the story engaging in a quiet, unobtrusive way..

When Harvey Shine (Dustin Hoffman) travels to London for his daughter's wedding, he carries along the baggage of disappointment and loneliness. While there, he meets an equally unhappy woman (Emma Thompson).

Release date January 16, 2009

Run Time: 93 minutes

Official Movie Site

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The guide to our grades, parent movie review by kerry bennett.

There is nothing sunny about the life of Harvey Shine’s (Dustin Hoffman). Arriving in London for his daughter’s marriage, the tired traveler, who had to fortify himself with a good stiff drink while flying, finds himself alone in a hotel room while the rest of the wedding party share a rented home nearby. The connection with his ex-wife Jean (Kathy Baker) and her new husband Brian (James Brolin) is still strained and his job as a jingle writer is in trouble. Disheveled and disillusioned, he tries to make the best of the situation.

The final blow comes, however, when Susan (Liane Balaban) announces she wants her stepfather to walk her down the aisle at the upcoming ceremony. Feeling pummeled from every angle, Harvey wanders into a Heathrow bar where he soothes his sadness with a couple of strong hits of liquor and a string of profanities. But his method for dealing with his troubles is challenged by Kate Walker (Emma Thompson), an airport employee, who is experiencing her own set of disappointments. Hobbled to her mother by means of a cell phone and recovering from a blind-date-gone-wrong, the unmarried Londoner is trying to lose herself in a good book and a glass of chardonnay. Though their initial interaction is rather prickly, the two unhappy adults are soon commiserating together over their gloomy situations.

The plot unfolds at a slow, meandering pace which, combined with the age of the actors, likely won’t have children and teens clamoring to see this film. Still, strong performances by the leading cast keep the story engaging in a quiet, unobtrusive way. And for any adult who’s suffered the detours and disappointments of life, the film offers a poignant reflection on reality.

While Harvey’s path in life might not follow the golden route he envisioned as a youth, Last Chance Harvey proposes that individuals can still find happiness and fulfillment—even when it feels like a last-ditch effort.

About author

Kerry Bennett

Last chance harvey rating & content info.

Why is Last Chance Harvey rated PG-13? Last Chance Harvey is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for brief strong language.

Several characters in this film turn to alcohol to deal with disappointment or fear. Drinks are also served at social events. A woman makes brief comments about her prescription drug use. Mild sexual innuendos and a reference to abortion are included in the script, along with several scatological expletives and some terms of Christian Deity.

Page last updated July 25, 2016

Last Chance Harvey Parents' Guide

How does Harvey’s regret and self-doubt over his past relationship with his ex-wife and daughter affect the way he feels about himself?

What chances do Harvey and Kate take during the film? Why is it important to be willing to move out of our comfort zones? How can change bring new opportunities?

The most recent home video release of Last Chance Harvey movie is May 5, 2009. Here are some details…

If you missed it in theaters, you can now catch Last Chance Harvey on home video. Available on either DVD or Blu-ray, the movie is presented in widescreen with an audio commentary and a behind-the-scenes featurette.

Related home video titles:

A couples’ planned reunion is interrupted when the woman is involved in an accident in An Affair to Remember . Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson also share the screen in a story about a man who discovers he is the subject of a narrative in Stranger Than Fiction .

Related news about Last Chance Harvey

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LAST CHANCE HARVEY

"bittersweet romance".

What You Need To Know:

(BB, Ro, LL, S, A, M) Strong moral worldview as man puts relationships above work and tries to heal old wounds and not hold grudges over the past, mixed with some Romantic elements; ten obscenities, two profanities; no violence; very minor discussion of sex during book reading; no nudity; drinking of alcohol; no smoking or drugs; and, bitterness over past, broken relationships.

More Detail:

LAST CHANCE HARVEY stars Dustin Hoffman as Harvey, a middle-aged man who has one more chance in life to value relationships instead of work.

The story takes place over a long weekend in London as Harvey arrives to attend his daughter’s wedding. Divorced years ago, Harvey is shunned by his ex-wife. In fact, his daughter asks her new stepfather to walk her down the aisle instead of Harvey.

When Harvey gets a phone call that he has been fired, Harvey’s life comes crashing down. He strikes up a conversation with Kate, a stranger at a coffee shop who has equal relationship problems. Together, they spend a day getting to know each other and discovering a last chance at happiness.

Harvey is a rumpled man who feels outdated at work by younger competition and has never seen his dream of being a jazz pianist come to pass. When he comes to his daughter’s wedding, it is awkward and painful for him. He leaves, meets Kate and then returns with her to the wedding reception and respectfully takes his place in giving the toast from the father. He speaks up for himself but expresses regret over the past. This heals the wounds with his daughter, though his ex-wife doesn’t seem to forgive him.

Harvey and Kate discover each other, and Kate is finally able to risk the potential pain of another relationship. Harvey gets a chance to get his old job back, but instead chooses to stay in London to be with Kate.

LAST CHANCE HARVEY is bittersweet, humorous and charming. The centerpiece is the chemistry between Hoffman and Emma Thompson, who plays Kate. The couple seems both oddly matched, but also oddly paired. They work well together, and the story, while a bit predictable, moves along at a good pace. This is a small movie about a couple of days in the lives of two people who get a last chance at relationship.

The movie has some minor foul language, but no nudity, sexual scenes or other negative elements which often populate romance movies. There is a Romantic element in that the meaning in their lives seems to be found in the other, though this theme is not underscored heavily. There is, however, no mention of God or any spiritual aspect to life.

Harvey gets another chance at love and another chance to make things right with his daughter, choosing to not hold the grudge that his wife holds.

LAST CHANCE HARVEY needs some discernment for the language and Romantic element, but otherwise is a positive movie.

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Two young people's bond leads to marital infidelity and ultimately crime. Two young people's bond leads to marital infidelity and ultimately crime. Two young people's bond leads to marital infidelity and ultimately crime.

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The Last Horror Movie With A Perfect Rotten Tomatoes Score Came Out Four Years Ago

"Late Night With the Devil" might just be one of the buzziest horror flicks in recent memory. It's a 2024 movie, and it's blowing everyone away  so far, currently standing at an impressive 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes , with 52 reviews being counted. It's always possible some other critic will come along to bring that score down, but it's outstanding all the same. For now, the film has made some impressive company and achieved a feat that hasn't been done since 2020. 

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What makes Late Night With the Devil so good?

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