MartinHafer
This is the film version of Neil Simon's play "The Sunshine Boys". According to IMDb, they originally wanted to cast Jack Benny in the film but he couldn't do it due to bad health. It sure might have been a very different movie had they been able to go with this original casting decision.The film begins with a young agent, Ben (Richard Benjamin), waiting for his Uncle Willie (Walter Matthau) to meet him at a tryout for a commercial. But, the elderly Willie has not shown--much of this due to his senility. When he does show, an hour late, he is totally unprepared and totally botches the ad. Yet, despite Willie being completely uncooperative and hard to like, Ben keeps trying again and again to help his uncle find work. Eventually, Ben comes up with an absolutely insane idea--reunite Willie with his old Vaudeville partner, Al (George Burns). The problem with this notion is that Willie and Al hate each other with an intensity that dwarfs the hatred between Lincoln and Booth! To make things worse, both are extremely senile and difficult--and seem to delight in tormenting each other. Can these two super-annoying men manage to put aside their animosity in order to make a reunion appearance on TV?While George Burns received an Oscar for his performance, he was clearly not the leading man in the film--hence his Best Supporting Actor award. The film's pivotal character was Willie--with Matthau clearly throwing himself into the bigger-than-life role. While significantly younger than his character, he managed to do a great job playing perhaps the most crotchety old man in history. While there were very, very few scenes of Burns without Matthau in the film, Matthau was in practically every minute of the film...and made the most of it.The film is a must-see for fans of classic comedy and Vaudeville. However, some viewers might be a tad put off by the film's 1970s sensibilities--with lots of cursing. However, the language was true to the characters--they were really nasty old #^$!(!!s. Excellent acting, script and also a lot of fun.By the way, Neil Simon and the rest really did a good job of re-creating the whole look and style of the comedy duo. So much of it was reminiscent of the act of Smith and Dale. Plus, I loved such snippets as the visit to the deli and the bag from Zabar's Jewish market--nice little New York touches.
jonjopowers
For any who are interested in learning the art of acting in comedy, this is the film to watch. And the performances almost didn't happen.Certainly, there is the Academy Award winning performance of George Burns. As many know, the role of Al Lewis became his after the death of his best friend, Jack Benny. Benny was set to start filming when he was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Burns struggled with his decision, but finally chose to do it as a tribute to Benny. Remarkably, his performance makes you wonder how anyone else could have been considered. Sans his usual toupee and cigar, Burns essays a deft performance as the quieter, more retiring half of the vaudeville act. His opening scene opposite Richard Benjamin is beautifully played, as he tries to shake off his befuddlement. His final scene demonstrates his very legitimate abilities as an actor. But his greatest accomplishment is not being overshadowed by a greater performance.Walter Matthau's Willy Clark is one of the greatest performances by an actor in a comic role ever captured on film. This is not a performance by a comedian. This is acting in comedy, something much harder. It is complete, filled with nuance, subtleties, and bombast all at once, but never losing its reality. The heat was with Jack Nicholson that year, and his performance in "One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest." Unfortunately, that meant that perhaps the greatest opportunity for the Academy to reward acting in comedy was lost. And the performance itself nearly didn't happen.A few years prior, Matthau received an Oscar nomination for playing an old man, the title character in "Kotch," directed by his friend and frequent co-star, Jack Lemmon. He asked Neil Simon to be considered for "The Sunshine Boys." Older actors, such as James Cagney, Phil Silvers, and even Bob Hope (as part of a Hope-Crosby pairing) were considered. Finally, Matthau and Benny were chosen. Ultimately, it became Matthau and Burns, a blessing for moviegoers.Matthau accomplishes a most rare and difficult feat for an actor: Making an unpleasant character sympathetic and even lovable. He often said he based the character on his mother, who was a very dour person. And Willy is ferociously - and hysterically - unpleasant. He is the quintessential show business has-been, a guy who had some fame, and can't accept that he's lost it. From the opening scene, where he asked by an old acquaintance what he's doing in Time Square and barks back, "I'm working! What the hell are you doing?" to his berating the Japanese for the failure of his television, to the all-out warfare with his former partner, Matthau is the most hysterical bully in film history. He is all posturing and poses, refusing to give up his only love: Show business. If he doesn't get enough laughs with his tantrums, he has plenty of low-and-inside lines. Matthau runs the complete range of delivery, never overplaying, never reaching for comic effect, but keeping it a real acting performance.Richard Benjamin has long held the reputation of being a great utility guy in the business, not only as an actor, but as a director as well - he helmed the superb "My Favorite Year." He does a serviceable job as Willy's nephew/agent, hitting the right notes of exasperation, dedication, and love along the way. And he has the great taste not to try and top his two co-stars. He wasn't the first choice, either.For years, George Burns told a story in his stand-up act about working on "The Sunshine Boys." He said that the director, Herb Ross, told the actor playing the nephew that, at a certain point, he would go into the bathroom."Why?" the actor asked."Whaddya mean 'why?'" Ross replied."Well, if I'm going into the bathroom, I need to know what my motivation is." "You just had lunch." "What did I have?" "What did you have? Why does it matter what you had?" "Well, I need to know how long to stay in there." "I've changed my mind," said Ross. "Don't go into the bathroom." "Why not?" says the actor.Ross replied, "There won't be any room. The actor replacing you will be in there." Burns buttons the story by saying: "From then on, whenever Herb Ross looked at me, I went to the bathroom." George never said who the actor was, but Harvey Keitel was originally cast as the nephew. He was replaced by Richard Benjamin, who apparently never asked why he was going to the bathroom.The key ingredient to it all, of course, it Neil Simon's screenplay. This is the best of Simon, the guy who gave us the Great American Comedy, "The Odd Couple," the Brighton Beach trilogy, the original Heartbreak Kid, and "Lost in Yonkers." He is firing on all cylinders here and doesn't miss an opportunity for a great, memorable line. He once said this was his favorite film of any of his plays. His cast and Herb Ross's firm direction are good reasons for that accolade. But, he had to have known that it was some of his best writing, as well.With every new comedian, television show, or movie being hailed as "Comic Genius," "The Sunshine Boys" provides an example of the real thing.
moonspinner55
There's not a drop of sunshine in "The Sunshine Boys", which makes the title of this alleged comedy Neil Simon's sole ironic moment. Simon, who adapted the script from his play (which goes uncredited), equates old age with irrational behavior--and, worse, clumsy, galumphing, mean-spirited irrational behavior. Walter Matthau is merciless on us playing an aged vaudeville performer talked into reuniting with former comedy partner George Burns for a television special (it's said they were a team for 43 years, which begs the question "how long did vaudeville last, anyway?"). Burns, who won a Supporting Oscar, has the misfortune of coming to the film some thirty minutes in, after which time Matthau has already blasted the material to hell and back. The noisier the movie gets, the less tolerable and watchable it is. Director Herbert Ross only did solid work when he wasn't coupled with one of Neil Simon's screenplays; here, Ross sets up gags like a thudding amateur, hammering away at belligerent routines which fail to pay off (such as semi-incoherent Matthau showing up at a mechanic's garage to audition for a TV commercial). At this point, Matthau was still too young for this role, and he over-compensates by slouching and hollering. It was up to Ross and Simon to tone down the character, to nuance his temperament to give "The Sunshine Boys" some sunniness, yet Walter continues to project as if we'd all gone deaf. The picture looks terribly drab and crawls along at a spiritless pace; one loses hope for it early on. *1/2 from ****
