I think that writer Neil Simon and actor Jack Lemmon have always made for a great combination, but this film starts out strongly yet somehow loses steam as it goes along. Which is not to say that it isn't still funny a good deal of the time as we watch Lemmon play another sourpuss sort of middle-aged man who gets sore at the world and undergoes a nervous breakdown; it's just that this time the hysteria doesn't seem to lead anywhere.
Mel Edison (Lemmon) is 48 and lives with his wife Edna (Anne Bancroft) way up on the 14th floor of their noisy Manhattan apartment. Lately Mel has become more and more detached from reality as he becomes fed up with his loud neighbors, the sweltering summer heat, and the fact that he's just lost his job after 22 years of being with the company. Despite his encouraging wife's support, Mel deteriorates and turns into an unhinged bundle of nerves. Lemmon and Bancroft make a splendid team together here, but unfortunately are let down by a script that only works part of the time before painting them into a corner. **1/2 out of ****
Mel Edison (Lemmon) is 48 and lives with his wife Edna (Anne Bancroft) way up on the 14th floor of their noisy Manhattan apartment. Lately Mel has become more and more detached from reality as he becomes fed up with his loud neighbors, the sweltering summer heat, and the fact that he's just lost his job after 22 years of being with the company. Despite his encouraging wife's support, Mel deteriorates and turns into an unhinged bundle of nerves. Lemmon and Bancroft make a splendid team together here, but unfortunately are let down by a script that only works part of the time before painting them into a corner. **1/2 out of ****