Back in 1979-- that’s almost four decades ago, for those who are counting-- the original GOING IN STYLE was released. The stars are three then, and still, legendary actors. George Burns, Lee Strasberg, and Art Carney play elderly working class retirees who, as much to break the dreary routine of their lives, decide to pull off a bank heist. This GOING IN STYLE is not just a zany tale of novice if elderly Clyde Barrows, or even a message film about how the aged are shunted aside by society once they no longer are workers or consumers. It also reflects on the reality that, even if one might come into a million dollars-- today, that figure would be more like 10 or 20 million dollars-- one will be unable to buy a cure for old age.
I reviewed the original GOING IN STYLE in the Leonard Maltin Movie Guide. I called it an “unexpected gem” that “is predictably funny but unpredictably moving, with (George) Burns standing out in a terrific cast.” Well, a remake of GOING IN STYLE recently came to theaters and Burns, Strasberg, and Carney have been replaced by a trio of senior actors of the present day. They are Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and Alan Arkin, all popular and talented Oscar-winning movie stars, and the remake is worth a look if only for their welcome presences. But that is the extent of it. The new GOING IN STYLE too often meanders. At its best, it is slightly funny. At its worst, its humor is downright silly. At its very worst, it features a supporting character who is yet another senior citizen who seems to be suffering from dementia. But he is onscreen solely for the purpose of cut-rate comic relief, and his one-note stupidity is a real turn-off.
However, to its credit, the new GOING IN STYLE touches on issues that individuals of a certain age surely can relate to in 2017. It offers a portrait of a mechanized world that is as foreign to its heroes as the musical guests who appear on Saturday Night Live. It is a world in which mortgage rates may inexplicably triple while pension plans are frozen or dissolved. If there is one villain here, it is an ever-so-typical all-American bank, whose officers are callous and cruel. Plus, there is no sense of compassion for senior citizens because, well, they are senior citizens. To quote a line from WAR DOGS, the Jonah Hill-Miles Teller film from last year: “No one really cares about old people.”
Taken as a whole, the three central characters in the new GOING IN STYLE are decent men who are likable and even enviable. Two of them show great compassion for children, while the third is pursued romantically and sexually by a fellow senior. And if you are old enough, you should recognize the actress who plays her. That would be Ann-Margret and, in this regard, this GOING IN STYLE is a fantasy come to life.
Finally, in the original, the bank that is robbed is located in Manhattan. But here, it is in Brooklyn, which is where the trio reside-- and it is understandable that Brooklyn is the setting. Back in 1979, the borough was collectively uncool. Today, it is ever-so chic. Still, the original GOING IN STYLE, which is long-available on DVD, is yet one more original that far-outclasses its remake.
Rob Edelman has authored or edited several dozen books on film, television, and baseball. He has taught film history courses at several universities and his writing has appeared in many newspapers, magazines, and journals. His frequent collaborator is his wife, fellow WAMC film commentator Audrey Kupferberg.
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