Art Carney is a delight in his Oscar-winning performance as aged New Yorker Harry, a retired teacher. He's forced out of his longtime apartment when it's slated for demolition; he spends some time with his son Burt (Philip Bruns) and his family before realizing that his presence stirs up a little too much tension. So, ultimately, he hits the road, with his faithful cat Tonto as companion.
The script by Josh Greenfeld and director Paul Mazursky is episodic, but effective in the way that it shows the affable Harry reacting to and interacting with the various people whom he meets on his journey. Harry can be stubborn and argumentative, but is basically a very good man who's led an interesting life. And Harry adjusts to changes in the American popular culture quite well, enjoying the time that he spends with a teen-aged hitchhiker named Ginger (Melanie Mayron).
Through it all, Carney remains endearing, creating a character who can bring us from one encounter & episode after another with grace and earnestness. He's surrounded by reliable, familiar actors & actresses: Ellen Burstyn (whose role is actually rather brief), Larry Hagman, Chief Dan George, Rene Enriquez, Herbert Berghof, Avon Long, Cliff De Young, Josh Mostel, Louis Guss, Mike Nussbaum, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Arthur Hunnicutt, Barbara Rhoades, and Andre Philippe. The sequence with Chief Dan George is particularly fun, as the old medicine man gives some assistance to Carney as they share a jail cell.
A likeable fable that doesn't go overboard on the sentimentality, "Harry and Tonto" will certainly strike a chord with viewers, doing so in a subtle and memorable way.
Seven out of 10.
The script by Josh Greenfeld and director Paul Mazursky is episodic, but effective in the way that it shows the affable Harry reacting to and interacting with the various people whom he meets on his journey. Harry can be stubborn and argumentative, but is basically a very good man who's led an interesting life. And Harry adjusts to changes in the American popular culture quite well, enjoying the time that he spends with a teen-aged hitchhiker named Ginger (Melanie Mayron).
Through it all, Carney remains endearing, creating a character who can bring us from one encounter & episode after another with grace and earnestness. He's surrounded by reliable, familiar actors & actresses: Ellen Burstyn (whose role is actually rather brief), Larry Hagman, Chief Dan George, Rene Enriquez, Herbert Berghof, Avon Long, Cliff De Young, Josh Mostel, Louis Guss, Mike Nussbaum, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Arthur Hunnicutt, Barbara Rhoades, and Andre Philippe. The sequence with Chief Dan George is particularly fun, as the old medicine man gives some assistance to Carney as they share a jail cell.
A likeable fable that doesn't go overboard on the sentimentality, "Harry and Tonto" will certainly strike a chord with viewers, doing so in a subtle and memorable way.
Seven out of 10.