If any two names are synonymous with both critical and commercial success in Hollywood, it's Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts.
Together the two of them have earned eight Academy Award nominations and grossed about $6.5 billion at the box office, according to tallies from Box Office Mojo.
They can sell a movie with their names alone (a la Roberts' dismally reviewed Eat Pray Love, which grossed $80.6 million), and they aren't often plastered across tabloid headlines, save Roberts' love-life escapades, which have become few and far between since her marriage in 2002.
Now the duo is pairing up again for the July release Larry Crowne, about a middle-aged man (Hanks) who returns to college after being laid off and forms an intimate bond with his professor (Roberts). Given their individual star power and respectability, the movie could be pegged as a surefire hit — even potential Oscar bait — if it weren't plagued with the unpredictability associated with the romantic-comedy genre.
The two received generally positive reviews, along with Golden Globe nominations, when they first joined forces in 2008's Charlie Wilson's War, but that was a political dramedy complemented with historical underpinnings. Now, the two will venture back into the genre that has provided each with massive hits and major flops. Let's see if Larry Crowne will serve either of their careers based on the trajectories we've seen so far.
Roberts
The leading lady of the '90s, Roberts was pegged as the rom-com queen with entry after entry (Pretty Woman, My Best Friend's Wedding, Runaway Bride, Notting Hill) receiving generally favorable reviews, some even earning her award noms (most notably Woman, which nabbed her a second Oscar shout-out and 1988's girl-power flick Steel Magnolias).
But Roberts took on more serious fare in the 2000s, and her first major foray into pure drama (2000's Erin Brockovitch) garnered her her first Academy Award. Roberts' rom-com chops have ostensibly dwindled since that victory, with America's Sweethearts and The Mexican, both of which boasted strong ensemble casts, being generally panned by critics. The movies racked in decent box-office figures, but Roberts must have noticed the reviews because she spent the rest of the decade making more serious films like Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Mona Lisa Smile and Closer.
To further Roberts' questionable status as rom-com queen, her only two major ventures back into romance films came via Valentine's Day and Eat Pray Love, both released in 2010 to reviews that ranged from mixed to scathing. Rolling Stone's Peter Travers went so far as to call Valentine's Day "a date movie from hell."
So should she have left her crown in the doorway of the new millennium? Perhaps Oscar bait is the only way for Roberts to go nowadays?
Hanks
Generally regarded as one of the best working actors today, Hanks has had fewer critical bombs, and it seems as if a clause is written into his contract saying all his movies must gross at least $100 million.
Partnering with Meg Ryan for Sleepless in Seattle and You've Got Mail, his two most straightforward romantic comedies, has proven successful, and while he doesn't really have any significant bombs on his filmography, his more lighthearted entries of the 2000s (The Terminal, The Ladykillers, The Polar Express) received mixed reviews.
It's apparent — a no-brainer even — that Hanks can drive a strong drama to success. The list of critical and commercial victories seems endless, and he is on a small list of actors who can simultaneously drive the masses of the box office and wow the critics (Saving Private Ryan and Cast Away both took in more than $200 million and earned him Oscar noms).
But is a romantic comedy an irrefutable victory for Hanks? Is he guaranteed to receive glowing reviews for Larry Crowne, which he also wrote and directed?
The verdicts
Given the film's subject matter, it's hard to say.
Larry Crowne isn't particularly youthful, but the high-profile actors will lead enough devoted fans to the box office for the film to earn around $100 million.
As for the reviews? They'll be mixed. We already know Roberts and Hanks have chemistry, but the trailer makes the film look its a bit cliche-driven, and it often takes more than star power to overcome that burden. The film surely won't produce any Oscar attention, despite being among some shortlists of buzz-worthy films that will be released this year. Can Hanks serve as Roberts' Richard Gere and Roberts as Hanks' Meg Ryan?
Given their career histories and general likability factors, they'll probably be delightful in the film, but the magic of the 1990s romantic comedies the duo made individually will be lacking when this middle-aged film rolls around.
Despite Roberts' early stature amid lighthearted fare, she has proven lately — in large part thanks to her age — that she's now at the top of her game when she plays it a bit more straight than she will in Crowne. Plenty of critics will love her and Hanks because, well, they're them, and lots of diehard fans would flock to the theater to see them headline any film, but this entry will be lost among an overcrowded summer filled with high-end blockbusters that include new entries in series like Pirates of the Caribbean, The Hangover and Harry Potter. Larry Crowne will end up not being much more than a cute break from high-tech visual effects and a nice escape from the sweltering heat.
Check out the trailer below. Do you think it'll succeed for the duo?
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