MovieChat Forums > Oliver's Story (1979) Discussion > No John Marley for Phil!

No John Marley for Phil!

posted 8 years ago by wordsatplaytoday
1 reply | jump to latest

Checked it out and then turned it off when I realized that guy was Phil.

They get away with it in TV all the time but here he just doesn't fit.

The previous Phil was more of the "Live and let live" type and wouldn't have tried to encourage Oliver to move on or go out on the town with him.
Would he have even come to NY or stayed in touch? Maybe, but he just seemed more like a mellow introverted homebody who just kept to himself.

[–] don-lockwood 8 years ago

This was one of the seemingly smaller issues that made this sequel lousy in the grand scheme of things. Sure, Edward Binns was a fine actor and injected some personality into the proceedings. But he was so far from the character. John Marley seemed so much more earthy and never belied the Cavalleris' poor finances. I also couldn't see Jenny's father staying that close with Oliver.