Over the last few years, it seems like Dustin Hoffman’s acting has become increasing shtick-y, heavy on mannerisms and affectations but light on recognizable characterization. So it’s nice to see him actually setting down here with Last Chance Harvey, which affords him an honest-to-goodness leading role again. The film itself looks pretty standard-issue, with the hapless title character hitting bottom before taking a chance with a beautiful stranger. But the casting of Hoffman, and of Emma Thompson as his leading lady, gives me hope that this might be pretty good. Thompson’s career path since her early-nineties heyday has been interesting, to say the least, but when she is actually given a meaty role to play, few actresses are more sympathetic or compelling. In a way, it’s good that the storyline of this is mostly formulaic- I’d hate for it to upstage these two actors, as it did in Stranger Than Fiction. Last Chance Harvey wasn’t really on my radar before, but this trailer has convinced me to keep an eye out for it.