I really liked the writing and the casting and Wilder is a favorite director for me but something wasn't working with this. There seemed to be an undercurrent of discomfort in the acting of Matthau, Burnett and Gardenia. Like maybe they were arguing off camera and were just fulfilling their contractual obligations.
shareIt's missing a spark that, for me, is present in all of Wilder and writing partner I.A.L Diamond's movies together. Maybe it's that, of all the stories they adapted together, this one stayed closest to the source material - but there's a real lack of the usual Wilder/Diamond inventiveness. The dialogue doesn't pop and there are no characters that would really qualify as Wilder-esque. While not a bad movie by any means, it's suffers from being completely ordinary.
The standout scene for me is one of the press room scenes toward the end, where Matthau and Susan Sarandon subtly vie for possession of Lemmon, himself possessed at the typewriter, and Sarandon quietly concedes. It's a wonderful scene - the heart of the movie, basically - but it has little to support it; so even something as well-done as that ultimately falls flat. As a whole, the movie just never breaks.
I tend to agree with you. I think the movie really only comes alive in the last half hour or so, when Walter arrives at the press room. For much of the movie, the pairing of Lemmon and Matthau simply doesn't occur because either or both characters are off camera. To be sure this is no reflection on the supporting cast which is excellent, (I personally loved Harold Gould's conniving governor and a young Susan Sarandon is sweet)but possibly the audiences were expecting to see more of a Lemmon and Matthau teaming.
I only recently saw the film for the first time and was surprised how stagey it was, perhaps reflecting its origins. Apart from the credits sequences at the beginning and the comic keystone chase scenes, it played out like filmed theatre.
As stated above though I did find the third act quite funny.
One of my favourite movies.Carol Burnett had nothing to be ashamed of.
shareI too enjoyed this film. I haven't seen the originals, so have nothing to compare it with - although there is a common consensus that "His Girl Friday" is far superior. But for me, this film stands on its own merits - yes its very stagey, and probably doesn't have the familiar spark between Lemmon/Matthau as say "The Odd Couple".
The supporting cast were good - especially Charles Durning, Vincent Gardenia & Harold Gould as the Mayor. But the direction by Wilder did seem rather lackluster & staid; and the second act dragged.
But for all that, it was a fun 105 minutes: nothing outstanding, nothing really bad - just good!
"One must first get behind someone, in order to stab them in the back!"
the constant shouting and phone ringing along with the 'crazy' fast-talking athmosphere detract from what litle comedy the film has to offer.
sharethe constant shouting and phone ringing along with the 'crazy' fast-talking athmosphere detract from what litle comedy the film has to offer
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I agree. It seemed everyone shouted their lines at the top of their lungs from start to finish. No variation or subtlety at all. It was like listening to a bunch of meth heads arguing for ninety minutes.