Trading Places (1983) Is it nature or is it nurture? John Landis directed Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy in this comedic fairy tale where a bankrupted broker and a street hustler take revenge on the Duke Brothers [Ralph Bellamy and Don Ameche] for upsetting their lives just to wage a bet. The commodities market of … More Trading Places (1983)
The Shaggy Dog (1959) A favorite film from my childhood, this surreal comedy traps Tommy Kirk inside the body of a Old English Sheepdog, to the bewildered consternation of his father Fred MacMurray, a mailman with an allergy to dogs. It makes perfect sense, however, since Anette Funicello could turn any male teenager into a … More The Shaggy Dog (1959)
Clockwise (1986) For those who have ever resented the alarm clock, or feared missing a deadline, this Michal Frayn comedy is for you. The impeccably punctual headmaster of Thomas Tompion Comprehensive School, played with obsessive-compulsive vigor by John Cleese, is about to receive an award to chair the annual meeting of Headmasters – if only … More Clockwise (1986)
A-Haunting We Will Go (1942) Unfortunately it is not a ghost story. Fox Studios were still trying to figure out how to use their newest acquisitions, Laurel and Hardy, when they stuck the boys into this mishmash of plots, and the director Alfred Werker tried to figure out if it was a crime drama, a romance, … More A-Haunting We Will Go (1942)
The Cameraman (1928) Criterion’s new release of this picture may be the best that can be done after MGM’s contemptuous neglect of Buster Keaton’s work and talent. The original negative was lost in a studio fire, and this restoration arises from “Cineteca di Bologna, the Criterion Collection, and Warner Bros.” With Marceline Day as the … More The Cameraman (1928)
Best in Show (2000) Christopher Guest’s mocumentary about pretentious dog shows nevertheless becomes tender-hearted toward owners for whom a dog is a prize companion that everyone should adore. Five dogs and their comedians were encouraged to improvise dialogue: Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara with their Norwich Terrier Winky; Parker Posey and Michael Hitchcock with their … More Best in Show (2000)
The Terminal (2004) All who think “Shelter-At-Home” creates too much isolation, need to re-watch this cult comedy of romance and dislocation. Viktor Navorski [Tom Hanks] is stranded at Kennedy International Airport because his homeland has undergone a coup d’etat and his passport consequently is no longer valid. “The film is partially inspired by the 18-year … More The Terminal (2004)
Monkey Business (1931) There were FOUR Marx Brothers? S. J. Perelman and Will B. Johnstone were excited to be writing a script for the Marx Brothers. They would have been lucky to find one line of their dialogue in the finished film after five months of rewriting by over twelve gagmen and anybody who might … More Monkey Business (1931)
Topper (1937) This remains one of my favorite ghost stories, largely because of the performances of Roland Young as the respectable Cosmo Topper enduring the hysterical outrage of his nit-picking wife Clara (Billie Burke). Of course having Cary Grant and Constance Bennett in supporting roles as the ghosts doesn’t detract from the hilarity. Having killed … More Topper (1937)
Way Out West (1937) Laurel and Hardy add song and dance to this Hal Roach spoof of Westerns. Sent to deliver the deed to a gold mine, they deliver it to the wrong person, and then have to get it back. Squinty James Finlayson provides especially memorable comic support as the villain. Stan Laurel was … More Way Out West (1937)
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