Saturday morning television is not so great. Every now and then TBS or TNT will show a watchable movie, usually something like "You've Got Mail". I liked YGM the first 2,000 times I saw it. I'm kinda over it now. It was on last night....two times in a row.
This morning, TNT is running The Goodbye Girl. Not the original movie with Richard Dreyfuss and Marsha Mason, but, the remake with Patricia Heaton and Jeff Daniels. The original movie is one of my all time favorites. I videotaped it off of cable in about 1985. Bad quality and all, I still have that video. Such a great play/screenplay by Neil Simon...a wonderful story with some great lines.
One, why did they feel like a remake of this was necessary? The dialogue is exactly the same as the 1977 one. Nothing has really been updated, nor did it need to be.
Two, I love Heaton and Daniels. Both are very capable actors, but, I almost feel sorry for them, especially him, recreating a role done so absolutely perfect by Dreyfuss. You can almost see it in Jeff's face..."Why am I doing this?" It's not that he's not any good. Had I not seen the first one and seen this, I would've thought "This is a good movie." I just can't escape the memory of Richard and Marsha.
Even the kid they used in this remake....Hallie Kate Eisenberg doesn't have the brilliant bite and sarcasm like Quinn Cummings did in the first one. I think Quinn got nominated for an Oscar for her performance.
I sound more and more like Mr. Smiff who is always saying that certain movies should not be allowed to be remade. This one definitely falls in that category.
I think I'm going to go dig out my old video and see the original. I'm also going to get caught up with Quinn Cummings, via her blog.
4 comments:
I don't like the panties hanging on the rod!
Why do they remake anything...becuase they can. If it was successful once, it will be the next seventy-seven times....
Paula...upon opening the door to find Elliott playing his guitar, naked: I thought you said you were decent.
Elliott: I am decent. I also happen to be naked.
When the thing first popped on TNT, a large billboard on Nolensville Road right by my office featured a skirted Heaton standing in the mandatory demure-yet-sexy-brainy-girl pose (hip cocked out, arms folded, feet crossed, bemused but sexily vulnerable look on her face, eyes cut up and to the right (indicating a visual communicator). And with God as my witness, every time I drove by, I tried to see up her enormous 13-foot wide skirt. No luck though. And I never did watch the movie.
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