The film’s timely theme is just sort of abandoned about halfway through.

What a shame. There’s a timely theme to be explored here, about the older generation learning to function within the current technological landscape of the business world, and the possible value their own experience has for the younger generation, that the film just sort of abandons about halfway through.

The Intern starts off telling its story gently and sweetly enough, with a surprising amount of nuance (particularly for Nancy Meyers, the writer/director of such matinée froth as It’s Complicated and, erm, What Women Want… but then, she did write Baby Boom… but then… actually, never mind). However, ultimately – and I’d believe it was due to studio interference – the film quickly resorts to generic, lighthearted hollywood devices of “comedy” (zany heist) and melodrama (romantic infidelity).

De Niro‘s performance is understated and charming, and Anne Hathaway‘s character is way more likeable than the startup clichés usually presented in this kind of movie – which makes it all the more disappointing when this movie just becomes about nothing at all for too long and significant a stretch, before barely bringing it back at the end, which makes this movie overall “okay” instead of “good”. The Intern is a movie I could watch it with my mum, but not be be surprised if in the end she found it a bit “meh”.