The Intern

Writer-director Nancy Meyers' The Intern stars Robert De Niro as 70-year-old Brooklyn widower Ben Whittaker, a man at loose ends after his retirement. Ben begins every morning with coffee at Starbucks and a tai chi class, but the rest of his day (and night) is lonely. Then he spies an ad for “senior interns” at About the Fit, a thriving e-commerce clothing start-up that is located in a nearby converted factory. Acing the interview, Ben is assigned to the company's founder: 30-ish entrepreneur Jules Ostin (Anne Hathaway). Stylish and a stickler for detail, frantic Jules is overworked and overwhelmed by the conflicting demands of job and family. Jules' husband Matt (Anders Holm) is a stay-at-home dad, caring for their precocious young daughter, Paige (JoJo Kushner), but he's obviously becoming restless. At the same time, Jules' investors are strongly suggesting that she hire an experienced CEO to run the company. While briefcase-toting Ben amiably adjusts to the new technology and an entirely different workplace environment, his younger millennial cohorts (Adam DeVine, Christina Scherer, Zack Pearlman, Jason Orley, Nat Wolff) learn what they can from his respectful, avuncular wisdom and patient dedication. And on a nuanced romantic level, Ben responds to the company's massage therapist (Rene Russo), who he takes on a unique first date. A sweetly accessible and charming comedy, this is recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a “Learning from Experience” (5 min.) behind-the-scenes segment, and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are the production featurettes “Designs on Life” (6 min.) and “The Three Interns” (6 min.), and bonus DVD and UltraViolet copies of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for an engaging comedy.] (S. Granger)