The Intern (2015) is based on a simple script and that makes the film enjoyable. Robert De Niro who has starred in many films including Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas (1990) is a happily retired widow by the name of Ben Whittaker. He is healthy and wealthy enough to lead a comfortable rest of his life, to spend the time he looks to do something useful; for unexplained reasons a startup commerce company led by Jules Ostin (Anna Hathaway) advertises for a senior citizens internship program. Ben lands the job and gets assigned to work as an assistant to the fashion eCommerce company’s CEO Jules. Initially, Jules discounts having an assistant but grows to trust and depend on Ben for both work and her personal issues with a father-daughter relationship developing between them.
In otherwise a smooth running screenplay the idea of showing Jules’ husband to be having an affair felt unnecessary. I liked the scenes where Jules helps Ben set up a Facebook profile, where Ben shares to Jules that the warehouse which is the office of the eCommerce company used to be his previous employer – a yellow pages director company which he used to head. Though it’s told with humour the idea of tapping into the vast experience of seniors through a programme like an Internship is an idea to be considered seriously by young startups.
The Intern (2015)