Overboard (2018)

 

Overboard tells the story about Kate Sullivan, who is raising three girls on her own after her husband has died. She works a series of part time jobs while studying to become a nurse so she can support her kids better. Her mother has promised to help, but decides to follow her dream and go on tour with an elderly acting company instead. Things seem to hit rock bottom when Kate goes on a cleaning job to a yacht owned by a spoiled heir to a company that makes building supplies. He fires her and refuses to pay her for the work she has done, and pushes her off the yacht as it pulls away from the dock. To add insult to injury, he throws her equipment in the water after her.

Leo, the rich jerk, is something of a playboy. Later while entertaining a woman he discovers he is out of condoms. He goes out in search of protection and ends up falling overboard. His sister, his companion for the evening, and even his faithful butler are oblivious to his plight. He washes ashore at the town he just left with complete amnesia. His sister sees this as her chance to get control of the company which she feels rightfully should be hers, and leaves him in the hospital. When Kate discovers what has happened to him, her friend convinces her to get some payback by claiming the amnesiac man as her lost husband.

Kate takes Leo home and immediately puts him to work. He is put in charge of house work, and is given a job with the husband of Kate's mastermind friend doing construction. To avoid the situation becoming too creepy, Kate makes Leo sleep in the garage, claiming he is a recovering alcoholic and that they have a deal that when he falls off the wagon he loses bedroom privileges. She also does not let him be around her girls alone. While he struggles with his chores and his unfamiliar role as a working man, he ends up bonding with the girls and with Kate.

He eventually becomes good at his chores and even starts to do okay in his construction job. Meanwhile his sister has told his family that he was eaten by a shark. Her younger sister is suspicious and decides to investigate the situation. Meanwhile Leo and Kate have actually fallen for each other, and the girls have come to depend on him and enjoy having him around. His co-workers, who nickname him lady hands, even come to like and respect him. He takes satisfaction in the work he does. He has no idea that his family is looking for him, much less that they will soon arrive to take him back to his old life.

The movie is almost a note for note remake of the original 1987 movie starring Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn. I honestly expected to hate it, because I didn't see how it could stand up to the original which I really like. It doesn't stand up really, but it is better than I expected. Sure, almost every story point is the same, but slightly altered due to the gender swap in roles. Instead of panties, for instance, Leo finds the condoms he washed ashore with in Kate's glove box. There is even a quick nod to the original movie when Leo's doctor mentions there was one other case of amnesia involving a woman in that town about 30 years ago.

The movie definitely has flaws other than being unoriginal. Leo seems to take to his household chores very quickly for someone who has never done that sort of thing. He spills the spaghetti the first night, but right after that he is cooking like a pro for the family. He bonds very quickly with the kids too, teaching the youngest to ride a bike without training wheels the first time he ends up home alone with them die to work being cancelled. But the movie has it's good points as well. Leo's co-workers are very likable and fun to watch. While Anna Faris and Eugenio Derbez (Kate and Leo) don't have the same chemistry as Kurt and Goldie (who had a real life romance) their chemistry isn't bad. The movie is fun and touching, if not as much so as the original. It does look a little like a made for television movie, which lends to the impression that it will be badly done. All in all, you should watch the original version of Overboard. But if you have to watch this version, things could be worse.