Funny About Love

Last updated

Funny About Love
Funny About Love.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Leonard Nimoy
Written by Norman Steinberg
David Frankel
Based on"Convention of the Love Goddesses" [1] in Esquire Magazine by Bob Greene
Produced by Jon Avnet
Jordan Kerner
Starring
Cinematography Fred Murphy
Edited by Peter E. Berger
Music by Miles Goodman
Production
companies
Duffy Films
Avnet/Kerner Productions
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
Release date
  • September 21, 1990 (1990-09-21)
Running time
101 minutes [2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$8.1 million [3]
Searchtool.svg Farrah Fawcett, "Funny About Love", publicity still [4]
Searchtool.svg Gene Wilder, Farrah Fawcett, "Funny About Love", publicity still [5]
Searchtool.svg Mary Stuart Masterson, Gene Wilder, Christine Lahti and Farrah Fawcett. "Funny About Love", publicity still [6]
Searchtool.svg Gene Wilder, Farrah Fawcett, "Funny About Love", publicity still [7]

Funny About Love is a 1990 American romantic comedy film directed by Leonard Nimoy and starring Gene Wilder in his first romantic lead. [8] With a screenplay by Norman Steinberg and David Frankel, the film is based on the article "Convention of the Love Goddesses" [1] in Esquire Magazine by Bob Greene. [9]

Contents

Plot

New York cartoonist Duffy Bergman marries gourmet chef Meg Lloyd. [10] Meg wants to have a baby. Duffy agrees, but after unsuccessful attempts, Duffy encourages her to focus on her career and come back to the child issue later. After his mother's death, however, Duffy becomes fixated on wanting to have a child. Meg no longer sees this as a priority, as she's trying to open her own restaurant. The two start to have marital problems, leading to a separation.

Duffy travels to Arizona to speak at a Delta Gamma sorority convention. He explains that the Delta Gammas have always been his dream girls—his Love Goddesses. There he meets the much younger Daphne Delillo, and when she moves to New York to work as a network sports reporter, their attraction develops into a relationship. Daphne becomes pregnant. Duffy is happy to father a child, but uncomfortable with how fast this relationship is progressing. When she has a miscarriage, Daphne breaks up with him, believing that they were really staying in the relationship for the baby.

At his father's wedding, Duffy hears news about Meg and decides to go to her restaurant. He tries to reconcile with her, insisting that he doesn't care if they remain childless as long as he can be with her. Duffy discovers that Meg has adopted a baby boy.

Cast

Post Production

The film was originally produced with Gene Wilder's character having three love interests - Christine Lahti, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Farrah Fawcett. After test screenings, a decision was made to cut all of Fawcett's scenes and re-edit. [11] [12] These edits were late in the production process, and it is believed that some promotional material was distributed with incorrect information. [13] Fawcett is not credited in the movie.

Release

Box office

Funny About Love opened in 1,213 theaters on September 21, 1990 and grossed $3,036,352 in its opening weekend, landing at #5, behind Goodfellas , Postcards from the Edge 's second weekend, Ghost 's eleventh, and Narrow Margin . [14] The film would eventually gross $8,141,292 in the domestic box office. [3]

Critical reception

The film was panned by critics. [15] Based on 7 reviews, the film has a 0% rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. [16]

Janet Maslin of the New York Times gave the film a mixed review.

Infertility, divorce and loneliness shape the rambling plot, but they somehow do little to make the film substantial...... Once the film settles down to follow Duffy and Meg in their eager efforts to conceive a baby, it develops at least some recognizable emotional content. [17]

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times had nothing but disdain for the film, giving it only a half of a star rating out of the four stars scale he utilized.

Funny About Love provides an opportunity to spend 101 minutes in the presence of the most cloying, inane and annoying dialogue I've heard in many a moon, punctuated only by occasional lapses into startling bad manners. [18]

Gene Siskel was also scathing in his review on Siskel and Ebert’s show At the Movies, remarking that unusually for him, during the screening of the film he stood up in horror at one scene taking place at a sporting event, and said to Ebert: “I’ve seen it all.”

Related Research Articles

<i>Ordinary People</i> 1980 film by Robert Redford

Ordinary People is a 1980 American drama film directed by Robert Redford in his feature directorial debut. The screenplay by Alvin Sargent is based on the 1976 novel of the same name by Judith Guest. The film follows the disintegration of a wealthy family in Lake Forest, Illinois, following the accidental death of one of their two sons and the attempted suicide of the other. It stars Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore, Judd Hirsch, and Timothy Hutton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan O'Neal</span> American actor (born 1941)

Charles Patrick Ryan O'Neal is an American actor and former boxer. He trained as an amateur boxer before beginning his career in acting in 1960. In 1964, he landed the role of Rodney Harrington on the ABC nighttime soap opera Peyton Place. It was an instant hit and boosted O'Neal's career. He later found success in films, most notably in the romantic drama Love Story (1970), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama, Peter Bogdanovich's What's Up, Doc? (1972) and Paper Moon (1973), which earned him a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon (1975), Richard Attenborough's A Bridge Too Far (1977), and Walter Hill's The Driver (1978). From 2005 to 2017, he had a recurring role in the Fox television series Bones as Max, the father of the show's protagonist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farrah Fawcett</span> American actress (1947–2009)

Farrah Leni Fawcett was an American actress. A four-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee and six-time Golden Globe Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she played a starring role in the first season of the television series Charlie's Angels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gene Siskel</span> American film critic (1946–1999)

Eugene Kal Siskel was an American film critic and journalist for the Chicago Tribune. He is best known for co-hosting various movie review television series with colleague Roger Ebert.

<i>Day for Night</i> (film) 1973 film by François Truffaut

Day for Night is a 1973 romantic comedy-drama film co-written and directed by François Truffaut, starring Jacqueline Bisset, Jean-Pierre Léaud and Truffaut himself. The original French title, La Nuit américaine, refers to the French name for the filmmaking process whereby sequences filmed outdoors in daylight are shot with a filter over the camera lens or also using film stock balanced for tungsten (indoor) light and underexposed to appear as if they are taking place at night. In English, the technique is called day for night.

<i>Dr. T & the Women</i> 2000 American film

Dr. T & The Women is a 2000 American romantic comedy film directed by Robert Altman, featuring an ensemble cast including Richard Gere as wealthy gynecologist Dr. Sullivan Travis and Helen Hunt, Farrah Fawcett, Laura Dern, Shelley Long, Tara Reid, Kate Hudson, and Liv Tyler as the various women that he encounters in his everyday life. The movie was primarily filmed in Dallas, Texas, and was released in US theaters on October 13, 2000. The film's music was composed by American composer and alternative country singer Lyle Lovett, who released an album of his score in September 2000.

<i>Gross Anatomy</i> (film) 1989 film by Thom Eberhardt

Gross Anatomy is a 1989 American drama film directed by Thom Eberhardt and starring Matthew Modine, Daphne Zuniga, and Christine Lahti. It was released by Touchstone Pictures.

<i>King Ralph</i> 1991 US comedy film by David S. Ward

King Ralph is a 1991 American comedy film written and directed by David S. Ward and starring John Goodman, Peter O'Toole, and John Hurt. The film is about an American who becomes the unlikely King of the United Kingdom after an electrical accident wipes out the British Royal Family.

<i>Funny Lady</i> 1975 musical film directed by Herbert Ross

Funny Lady is a 1975 American biographical musical comedy-drama film and the sequel to the 1968 film Funny Girl. The film stars Barbra Streisand, James Caan, Omar Sharif, Roddy McDowall and Ben Vereen.

<i>Heist</i> (2001 film) 2001 film by David Mamet

Heist is a 2001 American heist film written and directed by David Mamet and starring Gene Hackman, Danny DeVito and Delroy Lindo, with Rebecca Pidgeon, Ricky Jay and Sam Rockwell in supporting roles.

<i>Saturn 3</i> 1980 British science fiction film by Stanley Donen

Saturn 3 is a 1980 British science fiction film produced and directed by Stanley Donen, and starring Farrah Fawcett, Kirk Douglas and Harvey Keitel. The screenplay was written by Martin Amis, from a story by John Barry. Though a British production, made by Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment and shot at Shepperton Studios, the film has an American cast and director.

<i>Scenes from a Mall</i> 1991 film by Paul Mazursky

Scenes from a Mall is a 1991 American comedy film directed by Paul Mazursky, written by Mazursky and Roger L. Simon, and starring Bette Midler and Woody Allen. The title is a play on Ingmar Bergman's Scenes from a Marriage, and the film itself features similar themes of marital disintegration.

<i>Extremities</i> (film) 1986 film by Robert M. Young

Extremities is a 1986 American dark drama film directed by Robert M. Young and written by William Mastrosimone, based on his 1982 off-Broadway play of the same name. The film stars Farrah Fawcett, Alfre Woodard, Diana Scarwid, and James Russo.

<i>Look Whos Talking Now</i> American comedy film

Look Who's Talking Now is a 1993 American romantic comedy film, and the third and final installment in the film series that began with Look Who's Talking in 1989. It finds John Travolta and Kirstie Alley reprising their roles as James and Mollie Ubriacco, respectively, and introducing the newly extended family members to it.

<i>Easy Money</i> (1983 film) 1983 film by James Signorelli

Easy Money is a 1983 American comedy film starring Rodney Dangerfield, Joe Pesci, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Candice Azzara, and Jennifer Jason Leigh. It was directed by James Signorelli and written by Dangerfield, Michael Endler, P. J. O'Rourke and Dennis Blair. The original music score was composed by Laurence Rosenthal. Billy Joel performed the theme song "Easy Money" from his album An Innocent Man.

<i>Sunburn</i> (1979 film) 1979 film by Richard C. Sarafian

Sunburn is a 1979 British-American comedy detective film directed by Richard C. Sarafian and written by James Booth, John Daly and Stephen Oliver. It is based on the novel The Bind by Stanley Ellin. The film stars Farrah Fawcett, Charles Grodin, Art Carney, Joan Collins, William Daniels and John Hillerman. The film was released on August 10, 1979, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>Funny Farm</i> (film) 1988 film by George Roy Hill

Funny Farm is a 1988 American comedy film starring Chevy Chase and Madolyn Smith. The film was adapted from a 1985 comedic novel of the same name by Jay Cronley. The movie was filmed on location in Vermont, mostly in Townshend, Vermont. It was the final film directed by George Roy Hill.

Love Is a Funny Thing is a 1969 French romantic drama film directed by Claude Lelouch.

<i>See You in the Morning</i> (film) 1989 film

See You in the Morning is a 1989 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Alan J. Pakula, and starring Jeff Bridges, Alice Krige and Farrah Fawcett. It features music by Nat King Cole and Cherri Red. The film's music was composed by Michael Small.

<i>The Substitute Wife</i> (1994 film)

The Substitute Wife is a 1994 television film written by Stan Daniels, directed by Peter Werner and starring Farrah Fawcett, along with Lea Thompson and Peter Weller.

References

  1. 1 2
    • Greene, Bob (October 1986). "Convention of the Love Goddesses". Esquire Archive . Archived from the original on October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
    • Greene, Bob (October 1986). "Print Article: Convention of the Love Goddesses". Esquire Archive . Archived from the original on October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  2. ↑ "Funny About Love". United International Pictures . British Board of Film Classification. October 26, 1990. Archived from the original on May 31, 2014. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  3. 1 2 "Funny About Love (1990)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved September 7, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Farrah Fawcett's Hair Evolution". L'Officiel USA. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  5. ↑ "A decade in pictures: Iconic stories, photos and covers of the 1990s". New York Daily News . Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  6. ↑ "Funny About Love (1990) RARE ORIG 2 1/2 X 3 TRANS". worthpoint. Archived from the original on October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  7. ↑ "FUNNY ABOUT LOVE - ORIG. STILL". worthpoint. Archived from the original on October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  8. ↑ Wallace, David (September 22, 1990). "Gene Wilder on his first turn as a romantic lead in 'Funny About Love'". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved April 30, 2018.
  9. ↑ Bekman, Stas. "564 Funny About Love (1990)". stason.org. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  10. ↑ "Funny About Love". FulvueDrive-In.com. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  11. ↑ Greene, Bob. "Commentary: Farrah in the morning". CNN. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
  12. ↑ "Farrah Gets a Cut". Los Angeles Times . September 23, 1990. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  13. ↑ "Tanglewood Mall Cinema". The Roanoke Times. No. File 1990. February 7, 2020. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
  14. ↑ "Weekend Box Office Results for September 21–23, 1990". Box Office Mojo. June 9, 2010. Retrieved September 7, 2010.
  15. ↑ Keenan, Dorothy. "Review: 'Funny About Love' Is Just That A Warm, Witty Romance, Despite The Narrow Plot". Buffalo News . Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Funny About Love". Rotten Tomatoes . Flixster . Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  17. ↑ Maslin, Janet (September 21, 1990). "Funny About Love :: nytimes.com :: Reviews". nytimes.com. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  18. ↑ "Funny About Love :: Reviews". Rogerebert.com. September 21, 1990. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.