Arthur - 1 smile

The biggest problem with “Arthur,” a remake of the Dudley Moore 1981 movie is its star, Russell Brand. If you’re not a Brand fan (and I’m not) it’s going to be hard to like this movie because, essentially, Brand is the movie. Either you have sympathy for his character and root for him to win or you don’t. And with Brand playing the alcoholic Arthur, it’s hard to like him at all. His Arthur is a whining, mean-spirited, immature drunk and Brand goes from being unfunny to down right irritating. Even Helen Mirren, in the role created by Sir John Gielgud, can’t salvage this mess. Granted, the original Arthur wasn’t that great, but compared to this version, it was a masterpiece. Don’t waste your time or money. 4/11/11