Tag Archives: Review

Goodbye, Columbus (1969)

Posted on May 11, 2014 | 1 comment

goodbye columbus 2

By Richard Winters

My Rating: 8 out of 10

4-Word Review: Dating a rich girl.

One day while at a pool party Neil (Richard Benjamin) becomes infatuated with beautiful Brenda (Ali MacGraw) and proceeds to begin a relationship with her. He has just recently graduated from college and still not quite sure what direction he wants to take in life. He doesn’t want to fully ‘drop-out’, but isn’t so excited about diving in to the corporate business world where making a lot of money is the only focus. Brenda on the other hand is from a rich Jewish family who enjoys her privileged lifestyle, but not always the pretension that comes with it.  She continues to date Neil simply out of spite to her mother (Nan Martin) who doesn’t approve, but as things progress their differences and values become more pronounced and sends the relationship teetering on the brink.

Director Larry Peerce did some high quality films during the sixties and it is unfortunate that by the seventies his output dropped off. I think overall this is his most complete work and a wonderful compliment to the Philip Roth novella from which it is based. The location shooting is outstanding and one of the main things that gives the film a personality. The giant suburban house in which Brenda’s family lives makes one of the biggest impressions not only with its large exterior, but interior as well where every room is wallpapered with its own distinct color and design. The library where Neil works is also visually impressive especially with its large marble columns and painted cathedral ceilings.

The film is filled with a lot of memorable and amusing scenes. Neil’s interactions with Brenda’s ten-year-old younger sister Julie (Lori Shelle) is entertaining not only with a game of hoops that the play, but most especially their ping pong contest that they play later. Neil’s attempted conversation with a deaf man while inside the library is funny as is seeing Neil sneaking into Brenda’s bedroom each night when the parents are asleep. You also got to love Neil’s shocked response when he finds out Brenda has not been taking the pill and the scenes at the wedding reception of Brenda’s brother is filled with a lot of keen observations. If you look closely you will be able to spot Bette Midler, Michael Nouri, Jacklyn Smith and Susan Lucci as wedding guests.

MacGraw has never looked more beautiful and Peerce spends several minutes lovingly photographing her swimming in the pool, which isn’t bad. Her performance as a spoiled rich girl going through fits of rebellion, but not quite ready to completely break from her soft lifestyle is on-target and proves that she is not just a pretty face, but an excellent actress as well. Although already 30 at the time she plays a 20-year-old quite convincingly.

Michael Meyers as Brenda’s older brother Ron is a scene stealer not only with his empty ‘discussions’ with Neil, but also with the way he orders around the other workers as a supervisor at a job he wouldn’t have had, had he not been the owner’s son. This proved to be his one and only movie appearance. He eventually became a physician in real-life and wrote an autobiography entitled ‘Goodbye Columbus, Hello Medicine’.

In some ways I saw a lot of similarities to this film and The Graduate and consider it to be just as much of a classic. I enjoyed the way the film explores the different stages of the relationship and the final argument the two have is quite revealing.

My Rating: 8 out of 10

Released: April 3, 1969

Runtime: 1Hour 41Minutes

Rated R

Director: Larry Peerce

Studio: Paramount

Available: VHS, DVD, Laser disc, Amazon Instant Video, YouTube

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Posted in 60's Movies, Drama, Dry Humor, Movies Based on Novels, Movies with Nudity, Romance

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Rabbit Test (1978)

Posted on May 9, 2014 | 1 comment

rabbit test 2

By Richard Winters

My Rating: 2 out of 10

4-Word Review: The first pregnant man.

Lionel (Billy Crystal) is a lonely young man of 24 who lives next to his obtrusive mother (Doris Roberts) and has never been with a woman. When his friend Danny (Alex Rocco) comes home from the service they go out to a war veteran’s social where he has sex with actress Sheree North on top of a bowling pinball machine and inexplicably becomes pregnant. This creates an uproar in both the media and medical world and turns Lionel into an unwanted celebrity.

This was the one and only movie directed by Joan Rivers. Like with her personality it can be mildly funny at times, but is mostly abrasive and crass. The film lacks any cinematic style and was originally shot on video. The plot is limp and the whole thing seems more like a gag reel than a movie. Her attempts at recreating the comic style of Mel Brooks, Woody Allen or even John Waters fails miserably and the viewer is left with one big amateurish mess.

Ninety-nine percent of the humor is crude and stupid and deals heavily in racial stereotypes making one almost thankful for political correctness. Some of the worst bits include the portrayal of Lionel’s Mexican-American students as being utterly infantile and the only way to get rid of them is to yell ‘immigration’. There is also a segment where Lionel travels to Africa and watches a ventriloquist act where a black man has a dummy on his lap that is played by midget actor Billy Barty in blackface. The film also takes potshots at elderly people, fat people, people with disabilities and even Jews. None of the jokes are funny and are often cruel and in the poorest of taste.

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Crystal in his film debut is the only good thing about the movie and is likable enough to help elevate it to some degree. Paul Lynde is amusing as a gynecologist and had he had more screen time it would have helped. Roberts score a few points in the caricature of a meddlesome mother as does George Gobel as the hick president. Michael Keaton also makes his film debut here, but it is in a non-speaking role as a sailor and if you blink you’ll miss him.

There is also never any explanation for exactly how Lionel becomes pregnant nor do we see the delivery or what type of baby it is which is annoying and dumb. It is almost like a bunch of twelve-year-olds got together to write the script and in many ways I think they could have done better. The film’s posters are funnier than anything you’ll see in the actual movie.

My Rating: 2 out of 10

Released: April 9, 1978

Runtime: 1Hour 26Minutes

Rated PG

Director: Joan Rivers

Studio: AVCO Embassy Pictures

Available: VHS

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Posted in 70's Movies, Crude Comedy, Obscure Movies

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The Boys in the Band (1970)

Posted on May 7, 2014 | 7 comments

boys in the band 1

By Richard Winters

My Rating: 9 out of 10

4-Word Review: This party turns sour.

A group of gay men get together for an intended night of food and laughs as they celebrate Harold’s (Leonard Frey) birthday. Things begin to unravel when Alan (Peter White) appears who was an old college roommate of party host Michael (Kenneth Nelson). He insists that he is not gay, but Michael and the rest of the group intend to prove otherwise, which leads to many harsh and interesting revelations.

This film packs a wallop and is as relevant and daring now as it ever was back then. Director William Friedkin does a terrific job of making this story, which was originally an off-Broadway production seem cinematic. I loved the capturing of the apartment, which makes you feel like you are right there.

The performances are outstanding and all are the original cast from the stage production. Cliff Gorman as the flaming gay personality is a particular standout. The script by Mart Crowley is captivating from beginning to end as it brings out all the different personalities and myriad issues that make up the gay community and the whole thing is a tour-de-force on all levels.

My only complaint would be the character of the Cowboy played by actor Robert La Tourneaux who is the dim-witted, but good looking ‘gift’ giving to Harold for his birthday. I realize the intention is to make him a bit dumb, but it gets overdone. It’s one thing to be an ‘airhead’, but a complete other thing to sound so stupid it’s like he is from another planet. His character is the only one that does not get fleshed out at all and his utterly inane comments come off as hollow and annoying. Ironically La Tourneaux was unable to find many acting parts afterwards and became a gay prostitute in real-life by the late 70’s in order to make ends meet.

The characters are believable and the dialogue moving. It’s a compelling study of those feeling isolated from society and sometimes even themselves.  Even if you are not gay the film can still have a great impact and its quality viewing either way.

My Rating: 9 out of 10

Released: March 17, 1970

Runtime: 1Hour 58Minutes

Rated R

Director: William Friedkin

Studio: National General Pictures

Available: VHS, DVD

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Posted in 70's Movies, Drama, Gay/Lesbian, Movies Based on Stageplays, Movies that take place in the Big Apple, Psychological

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Shadey (1985)

Posted on May 5, 2014 | Leave a comment

shadey

By Richard Winters

My Rating: 6 out of 10

4-Word Review: His thoughts onto film.

Oliver Sher (Anthony Sher) finds out that he has an amazing ability. Not only can read other people’s minds, but he can also transfer those thoughts onto film. He tells his secret to Cyril (Patrick Macnee) a wealthy businessman hoping he can use his unique ability for some purpose and thus pay him enough money for a sex change operation, which is his ultimate goal. His only condition is that his ability not be used for military purposes. Unfortunately Cyril disregards this and strikes a deal with Doctor Cloud (Billie Whitelaw) who does experiments for the military and sees Oliver as her next guinea pig. Soon Oliver finds himself and his ability being exploited, but gets his revenge by taking advantage of Cyril’s emotionally fragile wife Constance (Katherine Helmond) in a weird and interesting way.

This film is quite original and manages to hold up all the way through. Some of the caricatures are a bit predictable mainly in the way it portrays the older brass businessman and military, but otherwise it defies all genres. It has a nice cerebral quality to it as it moves between being sad and dehumanizing to sharp and satirical sometimes in the very same scene. The humor is laced with drool, dry British wit that makes it engaging and fun.

The old British pros really help here. Macnee with his perpetually stern expression and terse delivery is fantastic. Whitelaw is also good as always as she plays her cold business-like character perfectly.

The best performance though goes to Helmond. She is best known for play Jessica Tate on the 70’s sitcom ‘Soap’ as well as co-starring in the 80’s TV-show ‘Who’s the Boss?’ yet her appearance here may be her career highlight. She has always had a wonderful ability at conveying child-like qualities in adult characters and here that comes to great use. Her facial expressions are both touching, unnerving as well as humorous and the scene where she eats coal from a fireplace while crouching on the ground is unforgettable.

The script could have gone further with its intriguing premise, but manages to be provocative nonetheless. The points it makes are good as it shows how those that are exploited will eventually do the same to others and how you never really know or understand someone no matter how much you think you get inside their head as well as examining how the image can sometimes take on more importance than the reality. The interesting chase that takes place at the end where Shadey continuously rides an elevator from the top of a building to the bottom while the bad guys busily run up and down the stairs to catch him is just one of the many unique scenes in this movie that makes it worth catching for those with an offbeat frame of mind.

My Rating: 6 out of 10

Released: November 18, 1985

Runtime: 1Hour 30Minutes

Rated PG-13

Director: Philip Saville

Studio: Skouras Pictures

Available: VHS

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Posted in 80's Movies, Black Comedy, British Movies, Dry Humor, Foreign Films, Gay/Lesbian, Obscure Movies, Spy/Espionage, Surreal/Fantasy

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Lover Come Back (1961)

Posted on May 4, 2014 | 1 comment

lover come back

By Richard Winters

My Rating: 6 out of 10

4-Word Review: They all want VIP.

Jerry Webster (Rock Hudson) steals clients from other ad agencies by throwing them parties filled with a lot of liquor and loose women. When Carol Templeton (Doris Day) who works at a competing ad agency finds out about this she goes on the offensive by getting Rebel (Edie Adams) a woman who attended one of Jerry’s wild parties to testify against him at the ad council board, which she hopes will get Jerry severely reprimanded. Jerry though gets Rebel to soften her testimony by promising her that she will be involved in the advertising campaign for a new product called VIP. The problem is that there is no such product, but Carol thinks there is, which leads to a lot of confusion including having Carol start a relationship with Jerry under the misguided notion that he is the chemist working on the new product.

The film is fast and fun for the most part although there isn’t as much physical comedy as in some of Day’s other vehicles, but makes up for it with some sharp dialogue. Although Day’s films have always been considered family friendly the film probably has just as much sexual references and innuendoes as any other movie.  There is even a scene where Day takes the Hudson character out to a strip club and has a stripper shed her pasties right on him. Even more amazing is the scene where the Day character actually considers having sex with Hudson before she is married to him. She ultimately doesn’t go through with it, but the fact that she was about to and even takes out a revealing nightie to wear seemed shocking enough.

Day’s costumes, which were designed by Irene Lentz who just a year after this film came out jumped to her death from a 14-story window, are chic and heighten the film’s visual appeal. I especially liked the variety of hats that she wears some of which go humorously over-the-top. I also got a kick out of Hudson’s garish suit that looks like it got splattered by twelve different cans of paint. My only complaint here is the absurdity of Day going to work looking like she is dressed for an elegant dinner party.

Day is gorgeous as ever, but her performance seems a bit one-note and amounts to nothing more than a collection of exasperated and perturbed reactions. It is actually Hudson who is typically a weak actor that steals it. The cocky way his character tries to finagle his way out of everything and his interactions with Tony Randall are the best.

The film ends with the two characters getting married, which I am sure fans of Day’s movies like and expect, but it really doesn’t make a lot of sense and seems quite contrived and formulaic. The script’s original ending had the two characters getting drunk and then checking into a hotel room, but Day insisted the characters get married instead even though it is unlikely any judge or minister would marry two people in a drunken state. The Hudson character was a raging playboy who could get attractive women whenever he wanted and clearly viewed sex as a conquest. It is most likely that after a few years of marriage he would get the itch to fool around again, which would culminate in an ugly divorce and make this ‘happy ending’ not so happy after all.

My Rating: 6 out of 10

Released: December 20, 1961

Runtime: 1Hour 46Minutes

Not Rated

Director: Delbert Mann

Studio: Universal

Available: VHS, DVD, Amazon Instant Video

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Posted in 60's Movies, Comedy, Movies that take place in the Big Apple, Romance

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The Mind of Mr. Soames (1970)

Posted on April 30, 2014 | Leave a comment

the mind of mr soames 1

By Richard Winters

My Rating: 6 out of 10

4-Word Review: Man child faces world.

Due to a complication at birth a man (Terence Stamp) is born into a coma and for thirty years he has stayed that way. Now due to medical advancement they can stimulate the part of the brain that is asleep, thus allowing him to awaken into consciousness. The problem is that he will be a virtual infant and have to taught at a much quicker pace than a normal child.

Outside of a few implausibility’s the story is handled in an overall realistic manner. The pacing is tight and compact and the cinematography by Billy Williams is outstanding with excellent framing. Stamp plays the part with conviction and overall makes a believable grown up baby.

The story itself is much more complex than it initially looks as it takes a good examination into the science approach vs the humanistic one. It shows how truly complicated the human being is and the great balance it takes to successfully raise one. It also takes a few good potshots at the obtrusiveness of the media.

The stories most interesting angle though comes when the adult child escapes and goes out into the real world where we see what a tight inner fabric society is and the complete inability that the ‘pure’ human, with no prior connections to it would have.

However, in the end this movie is a disappointment as it gives us no conclusion and we never see the end result. Was this man child successfully raised? Which approach was the best and did he ever fully adapt to the world around him? We never know because it never tells us. The whole idea for the film looks to have been made only to bring up certain issues with no attempt at a complete story.

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My Rating: 6 out of 10

Released: October 12, 1970

Runtime: 1Hour 32Minutes

Rated GP

Director: Alan Cooke

Studio: Columbia Pictures

Available: DVD-R

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Posted in 70's Movies, British Movies, Foreign Films, Movies Based on Novels, Movies with a Hospital setting, Obscure Movies, Psychological, Sci-Fi

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Cocktail (1988)

Posted on April 28, 2014 | Leave a comment

cocktail

By Richard Winters

My Rating: 4 out of 10

4-Word Review: Chasing the American dream.

Brian Flanagan (Tom Cruise) is an ambitious young man looking to somehow make it big in the business world. He reads all sorts of books detailing strategies to become rich, but finds that without a college degree his options are limited. After numerous rejections he finally gets a job as a bartender where he becomes friends with Doug (Bryan Brown). The two make a good team behind the counter and get promoted to a ritzy nightclub, but they end up having a falling out and Brian starts up a bar in Jamaica as well as a romance with Jordan (Elisabeth Shue) only to have Doug reappear years later with a tempting job offer that Brian isn’t so sure he can refuse.

Although Cruise is engaging and does quite well in the role I couldn’t help but feel that he has played this same type of cocky, ambitious type of character in just about all the movies that he has been in. It would be nice to see him play some sort of timid, shy introvert once just to prove that he has some actual acting range.

Brown is good in support and I liked their contrasting ages. Shue is always beautiful and solid and Kelly Lynch who plays Doug’s wife Kerry gets points simply for looking really hot in a thong bikini.

The story has a great start and I thoroughly enjoyed the first half. I’ve worked as a bartender and felt that the film captures both the bar and club atmosphere accurately as well as the hectic demands of the position. In fact the on-location shooting is splendid both in the scenes done in New York as well as the islands and the interior and exterior backdrops give the film a nice added texture.

There are also some really amusing scenes here including Brian’s many futile job interviews and his dealings with an arrogant college professor that is played perfectly on cue by the late Paul Benedict. I had high hopes for the film and felt it had a great foundation for a modern day rags-to-riches story, which is where it should’ve stayed. Unfortunately the second half devolves too much into the romantic and relationship angle. To some degree I went with it, but it ends up taking over the whole plot making it generic and losing the nice gritty edge that it had at the beginning. The final thirty minutes are filled with a lot of over-the-top dramatic twists that turns the whole things into a corny soap opera that ultimately overshadows the good points.

My Rating: 4 out of 10

Released: July 29, 1988

Runtime: 1Hour 44Minutes

Rated R

Director: Roger Donaldson

Studio: Buena Vista Pictures

Available: VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, Amazon Instant Video

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Posted in 80's Movies, Cold Climate/Wintertime Movies, Drama, Movies that take place in the Big Apple, Romance

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Up the Sandbox (1972)

Posted on April 26, 2014 | Leave a comment

up the sandbox 2

By Richard Winters

My Rating: 7 out of 10

4-Word Review: Housewife has secret fantasies.

Margaret (Barbra Streisand) is a neglected housewife taking care of her two children while her husband Paul (David Selby) busily works on his novel and thesis. She lives in a rundown New York apartment that seems to have bugs crawling from everywhere. Her nagging mother (Jane Hoffman) pressures her to move back with them to the suburbs, but she enjoys the excitement and independence of city life over lily white suburbia, so she resists. Now she finds that she is pregnant with her third child and this along with the other stresses causes her to slip into secret fantasies that become more and more outlandish.

This film didn’t do well upon its initial release and is a bit forgotten, but deserves a look simply for its unique and memorable fantasy segments. The scene where she joins a black militant group that gets inside the Statue of Liberty and wires it with explosives is pretty good as is the part at a party where her stomach suddenly balloons out as if she is pregnant and when she pushes it in it makes her breasts larger. The scene where she meets a Fidel Castro-like dictator who takes off his shirt to expose that he has female breasts is funny and the finale that takes place inside an abortion clinic is interesting. The best though is when she is captured by an African tribe of topless women. The shot of their grossly overweight leader whose gigantic, sagging breasts seem to overlap her entire body ends up being the film’s most lasting image.

Hoffman is hilarious and a perfect caricature of a meddling mother of adult children. The part where Margaret fantasies about stuffing her mother’s face into an anniversary cake and then the two roll around on the floor where Margaret then punches her in the face had me laughing-out-loud.

Paul Zindel’s script nicely balances the fantasy with the gritty reality of urban living. It also envelopes the feminist issues with the social upheaval of the times and the speech that Margaret gives about women needing to be less like men and more like themselves is excellent.

Director Irvin Kerschner makes fine use of the New York locales giving the viewer an eclectic taste of its crowded neighborhoods and street culture as well as its epic skyline. I loved the cinema vertite style that has a sophisticated and trendy feel.

Streisand herself seems to be having a lot of fun and purportedly this is her favorite out of all the films that she has done. This was just before she went through her frizzy hair phase and the long straight style that she has here I feel makes her look sexy.

The pace is unusual especially for a comedy in that it isn’t frantic and does not have any quick edits. Instead the set-ups are quite slow and seem at times to be almost dramatic before throwing in a surprise punchline. Personally I liked this approach, but the unconventional style might have proved confusing to certain audience members who didn’t know what genre to place it in and may have been the reason for the poor box office returns, which is shame as the production overall is excellent and intriguing.

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My Rating: 7 out of 10

Released: December 21, 1972

Runtime: 1Hour 37Minutes

Rated R

Director: Irvin Kerschner

Studio: National General Pictures

Available: VHS, DVD

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Posted in 70's Movies, Black Comedy, Movies Based on Novels, Movies that take place in the Big Apple, Movies with Nudity, Surreal/Fantasy

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Funny Girl (1968)

Posted on April 24, 2014 | 2 comments

funny girl

By Richard Winters

My Rating: 6 out of 10

4-Word Review: Fanny’s rise to stardom.

Barbra Streisand, in her film debut, plays Fanny Brice in this loose biography about the Jewish comedian’s rise to stardom in the Ziegfield Follies during the 20’s and 30’s. The story examines how she uses her homely looks to her advantage by honing in her comedic skills to allow her to stand-out. The second half of the film examines her romance and eventual marriage to professional gambler Nick Arnstein (Omar Sharif).

Streisand recreates her Broadway role in grand style and deserved her Oscar win in which she famously tied Katherine Hepburn that year for Best Actress. I’ve always liked her best when she is doing comedy and she has always shown a good knack for timing and delivery. Although stories abound how she was very difficult during the production and showed a tremendous ego, which culminated in the film going through two directors and cinematographers she still plays the very insecure Brice effectively and it’s this appealing ingredient the carries the film and character.

William Wyler’s direction is also outstanding and helps make up for a story that at times seems pretty light. He replaced Sidney Lumet early on and gives the film an added flair with lavish sets. I loved the French-style restaurant and expansive old fashioned New York train station. There is some excellent dance numbers in which Wyler takes full advantage of the visual element including a nifty ballet segment. The recreation of the period is authentic and there are even a few moments of dazzling camera work including the shot showing Fanny singing on top of a tugboat all alone in the New York harbor while the camera circles above her and then careens down.

Kay Medford adds good support as Fanny’s mother and it earned her an Academy Award nomination for supporting actress. Sharif is always solid, but the character seemed poorly fleshed-out and more of a personal background needed to be explored to help explain why he was so infatuated with the extremely insecure and awkward Brice when he could have easily attracted any girl. Walter Pidgeon lacks the commanding presence needed in the part of Florenz Ziegfield and instead comes off as a tired old man getting badly upstaged by Streisand in every scene he has with her.

The songs are pleasing and you may find yourself humming some of them for days afterwards, but I was surprised how few of them there really were with long dramatic intervals in-between. The story itself is placid as Brice’s rise to the top happens too quickly and too much time is spent on the romantic angle making the film seem unbalanced but it manages to be entertaining anyways due mainly to the high production values.

My Rating: 6 out of 10

Released: September 18, 1968

Runtime: 2Hours 30Minutes

Rated G

Director: William Wyler

Studio: Columbia Pictures

Available: VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, Amazon Instant Video

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Posted in 60's Movies, Academy Award Winners for Best Actress, Movies Based on Actual Events, Movies Based on Stageplays, Movies that take place in the Big Apple, Musical, Romance

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Nuts (1987)

Posted on April 21, 2014 | 4 comments

nuts

By Richard Winters

My Rating: 7 out of 10

4-Word Review: Fighting for her sanity.

In celebration of Barbra Streisand turning 72 on April 24th we will be reviewing three of her films, one from each decade during the week. This one is based on the Broadway play by Tom Topor dealing with a high priced call girl named Claudia Draper (Barbra Streisand) who murders one of her customers (Leslie Nielson) in self-defense and is arrested. Her mother (Maureen Stapleton) and step father (Karl Malden) think she should be diagnosed as incompetent to stand trial and sent to a mental institution, but she with the help of her lawyer (Richard Dreyfuss) fight for her right to stand trial.

The story and characters evolve in layers, which I liked, but Streisand doesn’t seem right for the part. Her presence makes it seem too much like a star vehicle instead of the character driven story that it should be. Her cantankerous outbursts become a bit excessive and self-destructive making it hard at times to cheer for her or empathize. In the Broadway play the character was played by a woman in her twenties, which made more sense and would’ve worked better instead of casting someone who was already 45.

Seeing her in provocative poises in snapshots that her lawyer obtains is a bit weird but fun as a novelty as is the scene where she spreads her legs without the benefit of any underwear for Dreyfuss, but having her constantly shown with a bright spotlight around her seems disconcerting. It gives her a ghostly appearance and makes her stand out in the wrong way.

The veteran supporting cast comes off better since they wisely underplay it as opposed to her overplaying. Stapleton is quite good especially the moving scenes showing her crying as she listens to her daughter’s testimony. James Whitmore is solid as the thoughtful judge, but it’s Dreyfuss who carries it as the feisty and sometimes exasperated counsel.

This film is also a milestone as it is the last time Leslie Neilson performed in a non-comedic role. He is surprisingly chilling as the psychotic attacker who was apparently so convincing that it scared Streisand during the filming of the scene.

There are times when it gets a bit too theatrical. The judge advises Claudia to quit disrupting the proceedings, but then she continues to do so anyways, which would have gotten most people thrown out of the courtroom. The scene where she sits on the witness stand and describes being a hooker in a very sensual and seductive way seemed over-the-top in a court of law as is the part where she is allowed to wander around the courtroom going on a long rant while everyone else just sits there and passively listens.

Still on the whole I found most of it to be quite riveting and as a drama its first- rate. I just felt Striesand’s presence didn’t help it. She can be quite good in certain other roles just not here. The part was originally intended for Debra Winger who I feel would have fared better.

My Rating: 7 out of 10

Released: November 20, 1987

Runtime: 1Hour 56Minutes

Rated R

Director: Martin Ritt

Studio: Warner Brothers

Available: VHS, DVD, Amazon Instant Video

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Posted in 80's Movies, Court Drama, Movies Based on Stageplays, Movies that take place in the Big Apple, Movies with a Hospital setting, Psychological

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