I am a die-hard fan of Neil Simon. I've read/seen all of his plays (I think) and know his style and rhythms the way a drummer might know "Ina-Gadda-Da-Vida" (there's no way in hell I spelled that right, but after all, I'm a writer not a drummer). I have recently been severely disappointed by Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn in "The Out-Of-Towners" and didn't exactly have what you might call "high hopes" for the made-for-cable version of one of Neil's most touching screenplays. But, turning it on one Saturday evening, I was met with a pleasant surprise.
The script is largely unchanged (save for one or two "modernizations") from the original version and, though this dates it just a little, it retains its charm in this way. Jeff Daniels and Patricia Heaton (who, when I heard they were cast in this thing, I went "Wunhh?") are charming and their chemistry is, let's say, surprising. The strength is really Heaton, and at times Daniels seems a little out of his element, but both handle the Neil Simon patter admirably. And, I gotta say, he deserves praise for his performance in "Richard III." Not a lot of actors would've done that.
Okay, complaints: Halley "The Pepsi girl" Eisenberg as the daughter is thoroughly and amazingly mediocre when compared to the original actress (I know I'm getting these names wrong, but you're ON the IMDB, look it up yourself!) and Alan Cumming, one of the funniest people out there right now, is underused as the unconventional director of "Richard."
But, overall, it's worth a watch. If you have three hours to spare (that's about how long it plays with commercials) catch it on a rerun. Good though it is, for the true Simon-philes, like myself, stick to Dick Dreyfus.
And, for the short attention spans out there: 7 out of 10.
The script is largely unchanged (save for one or two "modernizations") from the original version and, though this dates it just a little, it retains its charm in this way. Jeff Daniels and Patricia Heaton (who, when I heard they were cast in this thing, I went "Wunhh?") are charming and their chemistry is, let's say, surprising. The strength is really Heaton, and at times Daniels seems a little out of his element, but both handle the Neil Simon patter admirably. And, I gotta say, he deserves praise for his performance in "Richard III." Not a lot of actors would've done that.
Okay, complaints: Halley "The Pepsi girl" Eisenberg as the daughter is thoroughly and amazingly mediocre when compared to the original actress (I know I'm getting these names wrong, but you're ON the IMDB, look it up yourself!) and Alan Cumming, one of the funniest people out there right now, is underused as the unconventional director of "Richard."
But, overall, it's worth a watch. If you have three hours to spare (that's about how long it plays with commercials) catch it on a rerun. Good though it is, for the true Simon-philes, like myself, stick to Dick Dreyfus.
And, for the short attention spans out there: 7 out of 10.