SYNOPSIS: DreamWorks Pictures’ “Delivery Man” stars Vince Vaughn as affable underachiever David Wozniak, whose anonymous donations to a fertility clinic 20 years earlier resulted in 533 children. David must now embark on a journey that leads him to discover not only his true self but also the father that he could become.

REVIEW: Writer/Director Ken Scott creates this remarkable remake of the original Starbuck (2011), initially penned with Writer Martin Petit. Having seen the original years earlier, in Europe, I have to confess that I approached this latest effort with lots of apprehension. Who can blame me? Hollywood tends to not be very good at remaking foreign films, in my humble opinion. That being said, it’s a bit rare and a little weird for a director to get to remake his own movie, but Scott pulls it off quite smoothly, introducing this update with a similar balance of absurdity and heartfelt honesty. The biggest adjustment seems to not just be in simply recreating the movie in English, but in reframing it within the context of mainstream American cinema. I guess Scott/Petit, et al have had time to perfect it for the American taste-buds because this film has been remade in several different countries and languages over the years, including Canada and Germany. And according to sources there are remakes continuing to happen currently, including a “Bollywood” version. Go figure!

What’s notable and quite interesting is how Vince Vaughn brings a more toned-down sense of humor to this Hollywood release, stepping into the role of bumbling man-child David Wozniak, who just can’t get his act together, despite having all those that know him, simply fall in love with him and his big heart. His lovable character tends to draw the audience’s attention in such subtle ways that in no time one can only empathize with him and his situation, instead of being totally “weirded-out” and disgusted by the act that got him in the situation in the first place.

Though this film seems very similar to the original from the outside, differences emerge during the 103 minute runtime. The original flick was driven by a wacky, haphazard series of misfortunes that seemed at times to be a big stretch on reality; However, Delivery Man kinda’ moves along at a pace that is both comfortable and heartwarming. It has a nice mix of laugh-out-loud amusement, drama and family oriented struggles that most can relate to (despite the film’s obvious weird scenario). It drives home the idea that complete strangers seeking connections, can find them in each other. Plus, Vaughn is great and nails the role as the unlucky guy who wants to prove to his family that he can be the person they need him to be.

Overall, this Hollywood release is a very good effort that’s worth checking out. It could be either a nice date movie at the theaters or simply a DVD worth cuddling up to because it is holiday-centric, in a sense. It deserves four out of five stars for quality storytelling and meaningful messages worth conveying. Great acting and very touching plot! 

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