Yes, everyone has different comedic tastes. But for me, I absolutely love this film. A top favorite of mine. So many classic lines that still make me laugh! Dry humor and smart comedy at it's finest.
'Shut up, Brad.' 'Your song stunk, your suit stinks and I can hurt you.'
It's a favorite of mine too. I didn't even get it on dvd because I burned myself out on my vhs copy. Surely I've watched it at least fifty times.
Too bad nobody wants to talk about it. I can hardly look at eggs without thinking "you have things on toast."
Marianne
I loved this film when it first came out, but I hadn't seen it since about 1986 or so, and didn't remember much about it. I went to the video store the other day and rented it only to find that the town that they got lost in is the same rotten place I live in today. The worst thing is that my wife went thru the same crap he did! Before we moved to Phoenix in '92 so I could work on my PhD, she made $35K per yer in Los Angeles. She didn't make as much in Phoenix, but when I started teaching at the local college here, she couldn't find a job worth more than 20K! We thought she'd EASILY find a decent job with her resume. At least she isn't a crossing guard! I think Brooks and his co-author must have traveled thru Safford before making the film to know what this town is like. It was accurately portrayed in that film....
shareYou definately have to be of a certain mindset to appreciate the genius of this film. Cynical, sarcastic types (like me) will love this film and I do. It's the littel elements in the movie that make it work like the silly almost throw away shot of Brooks walking up the stairs to the Casino manager's office in his pj's. This is Brooks at his finest. After this, though, he crapped out with "Broadcast News" when he got his "feelings". I liked parts of "Defending Your Life" but Brooks' need to add feelings to his work watered the whole thing down.
shareHe just acted in Broadcast News, he didn't direct or write it.
As far as Lost in America, you are right- this is a great and hilarious movie. That whole scene with Gary Marshall is a gem.
the scene with gary marshall and the later one of him applying for a job in that crappy town are great.
sharehow about at Hoover Dam?
something like:
"OutSIDE? This is our home! The concrete. You better get used to it, because this is where we're going to spend a lot of time."
Hilarious movie.
In the top five of my list of all-time favorite comedies. The scene with Brooks trying to convince the casino manager(Gary Marshall) to return his nest egg has got to be one of the funniest ever put on film.
shareAlbert Brooks...genius imho. I've never seen him in anything I did not like but Lost in America is terrific.
share"My feet are tired, let's live here."
That about sums it up. Life, that is.
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Yeah! For me the first big laugh was when he got punched in the face. What a mean spirited jackass! I was disappointed that fugitive didn't show up later in the film and finish the job. Because of my heritage, I have to add that this performance was a disappointment to Jews! Two thumbs down.
shareHuh? How is it a disappointment to our tribe? None of the characters were supposed to be Jewish! (Brooks wrote the main character with the hope that Bill Murray would play the role).
shareI totally agree. Same with Modern Romance.
shareYes...I've turned many people at various jobs on to this film. And, it is SO quotable....I think it's his best, but I love Modern Romance as well. And, I love the overall premise of Defending Your Life (life sucks so much, and you have to defend yourself at the end just to prove you're worthy of "moving on"...hopefully off Earth).
Anyway, some of my favorite quotes from "Lost"...
Hans: "You want leather? I'll put a pair of shoes in it."
"She likes 22"
"You have things over easy. And birds live in a round stick."
"I've seen the future, and this is it!"
"Don't have lunch with these people!"
"You're much too clever to be Senior Vice President. I need you creatively. I'm making Phil Chibano SVP."
"Now let's end this charade, call in Alan Lunt, and make me Sr. VP."
"Our hairpeace secret is off."
"He's calling the cops now. You don't have to. I leave on my own free will."
"I hate your suit, Brad."
"I have no one to quit to."
"I thought that we were going to touch Indians. This place represents everything we hate."
"The Desert Inn has heart. The Desert Inn has heart. Ooo, I get chills just thinking about it."
"As the BOLDEST experiment in advertising....you give them their money back."
"You didn't touch the travelers' checks! Ahhh...the CORE of the nest egg."
"Do you have a box of higher-paying jobs?"
reply; "Oh, you mean the $100,000 box? You couldn't change your life on $100,000 a year?"
"Brillo head."
"Kill the child!"
"Skippy"
"You've got a good wife."
"That's why I married her."
"That's why I hired her."
Assistant Manager at the Der Wienerschnitzel.
There are so many more.....this movie is the best movie to quote. Give it to everyone you know and let the bonding begin.
I love the scene at the employment agency...."Oh! You must mean the hundred thousand dollar box".
shareI like when Brooks had a fit at the advertising agency when they wouldnt give him the VP job. "Give me back these last eight years!!, Better yet, im going to start taking things home with me!!!, I want that clock behind you!!".
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"If I wanted a transfer I'd go to the bus stop!"
share
"Your dead pal."
"I'm dead pal."
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"Blow it ouchyer ear, Reiger..!" Louie De Palma
"Coffee is for closers." Blake
Good to see so many other people enjoyed this film, I haven’t seen it for years but remember it being well observed, very funny and some brilliantly underplayed acting.
Characters that come to mind include the slightly sinister casino owner, the drippy bell boy, his Ad agency rival who purchased the Sinatra song and his wife’s teenage boss from the fast food shop.
Head and shoulders above most of the puerile rubbish that passed for 80s US film comedy and I’m sure its held up very well.
Those are all very memorable characters, to which I would ad the small-town employment counselor who keeps ribbing him for quitting his $100,000-a-year job, plus the motorcycle cop with the "Easy Rider" fascination.
I saw this film in the theaters when it was released, and it holds up very well as an indictment of yuppie values and pretense in the "me" decade. It's also an excellent travelogue. Someday, I'll take the "Lost in America" tour.
I'd say this is tied with "Real Life" as Albert Brooks' best film – but he set the bar quite high.
Allen Funt, not Alan Lunt!
Great lines.
Love this movie! Just a few other lines that made me laugh:
"I don't think a man with a motor home would work for this job. I was thinking more of a teenage kid with a Rabbit."
"If you pick up a Keno card, I'll kill you. I will kill you."
"And we looked at it in the light, and we noticed that the French Fries were, like still frozen in the middle. Whoa! And she noticed this little detail on her first day."
"And I eat sh*t? My plan, too!"
I thought this movie was OK, gave it a 5. The funniest part was the whole argument at the Hoover Dam, where he says "they had cocaine, honey" in regards to easy rider. The other funny part was where the biker flips him off.
The other part that was cool was the shots of NYC in 1984, overcast, steam billowing from buildings, just looked classic.
This movie is a gem. Albert Brooks is an excellent comic. I love your quotes but another one I like is when he asks the employement agent if he would be a crossing guard at a school and replies, "I didn't know if there were other kinds." Just another example of his great dry sense of humor. I also loved Julie Hagerty in this movie. How she just kind of goes along with everything and so willingly takes the job as assistant manager at Der Weinerschnitzel. ( know I spelled that wrong). Comedy at its best.
share"I've seen the future! and it's a bald man!"
i about died.
"I've seen the future! and it's a bald man!"
It's just after he gets fired, and he's walking down the hall on his way out of the building (or back to his office to pack up): "I've seen the future! It's a bald man from New York!" (talking about Brad).
shareI have to disagree with you there fellas. Maybe the humor in this film is an all-American or something but I didn't laugh once over this film. Am I crazy or are all of you just joking around saying this is a great movie???
I was bored, but mostly annoyed during the whole movie.
It all comes down to personal taste, so you are not an Albert Brooks fan, life goes on for everyone. I personally find lines/rants like "life isn't fair but that's okay, he will buy that stupid boat [..] he will crash in Catalina and die and seals will eat him!" or "it's time to get out... we have to touch indians, we have to see mountains and priaries and the whole rest of that song!"
shareI saw this on TCM the other night, highly anticipated because I had heard so much about it. The opening commentary from Robert Osbourne and Drew Barrymore had me believing I was in for a real treat watching this movie. Well, about the only good thing I can say about it is it was over pretty quickly. I did not laugh once or find it even mildly entertaining. Everyone has different tastes so I guess I'm just not an Albert Brooks fan. Always appreciated Julie Haggerty and I thought she was great in "Airplane!" Shirley I must be kidding... and I did call you 'Shirley.'
shareDecent movie, one of the last in my DVD queue, just cleaning house before I go all streaming. I was expecting a total flop but it turned out to be alright. The only thing I found really sad/funny is them ending up in NY. I'm tired of LA as well but NYC is probably one of the last places on Earth I'd want to end up........
If you don't believe in Jesus Christ and are 100% proud of it, put this in your sig.
Two movies that I sat there like a lump when watching the first time and now scream with laughter upon reviewings.
"The Jerk" and "Lost in America".
To those who wondered what is was all about, try "Lost in America" again.
Now that you know that "nothing happens", you can just lay back and listen to the dialog and start chuckling because you know what's coming.
Like I say...a real hoot the second time around.