Scenes From A Class Struggle in Beverly Hills is probably the classiest film on Paul Bartel's resume, but don't let that deter you. The script is just as uproarious and irreverent as many of his other films, but it has a professional gloss that many of his other films don't have.
It stars Jaqueline Bisset as Clare, a washed up former sitcom star whose husband has just died from autoerotic strangulation, leaving her feeling like she needs to make a big change in her life. Everything boils over during a fateful weekend at her mansion where her friends and family expose their own failings, kinks, and desires.
With a colorful cast including Ed Begley, Jr, Wallace Shawn, Mary Woronov, Robert Beltran, Ray Sharkey, and Bartel himself, it's hard not to enjoy this film. Each character has their moment to shine and a few funny bits to land. If there's any flaw, it's that the film feels a little overlong in places.
It stars Jaqueline Bisset as Clare, a washed up former sitcom star whose husband has just died from autoerotic strangulation, leaving her feeling like she needs to make a big change in her life. Everything boils over during a fateful weekend at her mansion where her friends and family expose their own failings, kinks, and desires.
With a colorful cast including Ed Begley, Jr, Wallace Shawn, Mary Woronov, Robert Beltran, Ray Sharkey, and Bartel himself, it's hard not to enjoy this film. Each character has their moment to shine and a few funny bits to land. If there's any flaw, it's that the film feels a little overlong in places.