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A Fine Mess

4.5

317

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Original title

A Fine Mess

Year

1986

Running time

100 min.

Country

United States

Director

Blake Edwards

Screenwriter

Blake Edwards

Cast

Music

Henry Mancini

Cinematography

Harry Stradling Jr.

Producer

Columbia Pictures, Delphi V Productions

Genre

Comedy

Synopsis

That famous comedy team of Howie Mandel and Ted Danson stink up the joint in this bizarre attempt by Blake Edwards at re-creating the slapstick world of Laurel and Hardy. Initially envisioned as a partial remake of Laurel and Hardy's The Music Box, this degenerates into a witless plot involving racehorse fixing and a gangster's unfaithful wife. The cast, which includes Maria Conchita Alonso, Richard Mulligan, and Stuart Margolin, looks embarrassed at the helter-skelter attempts at slapstick, which barely rises to the level of schtick. Danson and Mandel both had hit TV shows at the time (Cheers and St. Elsewhere, respectively), but this movie misfire did nothing to ignite their cinematic careers. (from amazon.com)

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Critics' reviews

"It’s not really a bad movie (...) But it’s erratic, and often weightless or uncentered; the pieces keep flying apart."

Michael Wilmington: Los Angeles Times
"Nothing quite works as it should: the rhythms are subtly off, the pace is forced, the comedy overextended"

Pat Graham: Chicago Reader
"The gags in 'A Fine Mess' aren't particularly inspired (there's a lot of eye-gouging and groin-kicking), but Edwards' stylistic assurance often has enabled him to do a lot more with a lot less"

Dave Kehr: Chicago Tribune
"And in the leads, Danson and Mandel won't make anyone forget Laurel and Hardy, or Namath and Gifford, for that matter. Not that there's any time for them to develop any chemistry"

Paul Attanasio: The Washington Post
"Blake Edward’s obsession with the slapstick comedy genre has produced some all-time comedy classics and some best-forgotten clinkers. A Fine Mess belongs in the latter category."

Variety Staff: Variety
"Unless you're a constipated horse or a lover of truly tasteless cinema, 'A Fine Mess' is one you don't want to wander into"

Miami Herald
"Mr. Edwards piles on the pileups until you may suspect that he is trying to distract the audience from the absence of a diverting story or dialogue."

Walter Goodman: The New York Times
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A Fine Mess

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