Noises Off (film)

Last updated

Noises Off
NoisesOffFilmPoster.jpg
Theatrical release poster by Al Hirschfeld
Directed by Peter Bogdanovich
Screenplay by Marty Kaplan
Based on Noises Off
by Michael Frayn
Produced by Frank Marshall
Starring
Cinematography Tim Suhrstedt
Edited byLisa Day
Production
companies
Distributed by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
Release date
  • March 20, 1992 (1992-03-20)
Running time
103 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$12 million
Box office$2 million

Noises Off is a 1992 American comedy film directed by Peter Bogdanovich, [1] with a screenplay by Marty Kaplan based on the 1982 play by Michael Frayn. [2] Its ensemble cast includes Michael Caine, Carol Burnett, Christopher Reeve, John Ritter, Marilu Henner, Nicollette Sheridan, Julie Hagerty and Mark Linn-Baker, [1] as well as featuring the last performance of Denholm Elliott, who died in October that year.

Contents

Plot

The film follows the rehearsal and performance of a dreadful farce called Nothing On, a hit British stage play that is preparing for its American debut in Des Moines, Iowa, with a second-rate, Broadway-bound theatrical troupe under the direction of Lloyd Fellowes. Among the cast members are fading star Dotty Otley, hot-tempered Garry Lejeune, insecure matinee heartthrob Frederick Dallas, myopic leading lady Brooke Ashton, bubbly Belinda Blair, and alcoholic character actor Selsdon Mowbray who is hard of hearing. Frantically working behind the scenes are Tim Allgood and Poppy Taylor, who also act as understudies.

The film opens with the final dress rehearsal before opening night, with an unfinished set and the cast still forgetting lines, missing cues, and mishandling props. Fellowes cajoles, yells, and pleads with them to get things right, sometimes causing more problems then he solves. Complicating matters are the personal problems and backstage relationships of the cast and crew, which are simmering under the surface during rehearsal but erupt into the open as the play works its way across the country en route to New York.

After the rehearsal, the film goes on to show two performances of the play, one a matinee in Florida in which the feuding cast are barely able to finish the first act, and another in Cleveland, which quickly degenerates into complete chaos and anarchy as none of the cast are able or willing to perform professionally.

However, against all odds, they manage to sort out their personal differences and pull together for the Broadway debut, and the show becomes a massive hit.

Cast

Production

According to original playwright Michael Frayn, he was asked by various British producers to adapt the stage play into a screenplay before the play opened in New York. "I was very eager to do it," he said, "but could not see any way for it to be done. In fact, (Bogdanovich's) movie is virtually the same as the play, with a new bit at the end and at the beginning. He's shot it with great bravura. Whether people will like it or not I don't know, but he's had a pretty good go at it." [3]

Frayn said he suggested the characters be changed to Americans. "It would be easier, I felt, for an American producer to set it up with the American cast, and it would be better if their struggles with British accents and style were part of the action. This policy seems to me to have paid off handsomely—the film is most perfectly cast, with quite superlative comic actors." [4]

Bodganovich originally offered the role played by Carol Burnett to Audrey Hepburn. [5] Annie Potts was meant to be in the film but was in a car accident and had to be replaced by Marilu Henner. [6] Filming began in May 1991. [7]

Bogdanovich said his "intention was to get the audience on a kind of ride and not stop. Somebody once wrote a book about silent films called Spellbound in Darkness. I like that phrase. That's the goal. When movies are at their best, they are spellbinding. They're like a dream. Orson Welles called them 'a ribbon of dreams.' And I think that's very accurate. If you can get everybody on your wavelength or on your dream, it's a wonderful feeling." [8]

Retrospectively, Bogdanovich said, "I purposely kept a lower profile on this picture because I didn't want people writing about me and my career. I didn't want anything to distract from this movie." [9] However, he added that the film was a personal project for him. " Texasville is about certain aspects of my life," he said. "But those characters are really Larry's characters. And I feel empathy and sympathy and interest in them as human beings. But I think I know the people in Noises Off better. They're more people I get along with -- the actors and the characters they play. They are people I've grown up with. I've been in show business since I was 15, and I really like actors. I like show people." [9]

Release

Box office

The film was not a box office success, earning less than $1 million in its opening week. [8]

Critical reception

The film received mixed reviews from critics. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 61% of 23 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.7/10. [10]

In his review in The New York Times , Vincent Canby noted, "There are a number of hefty laughs scattered throughout . . . this woozy film adaptation" and added, "Noises Off is a practically perfect stage piece, constructed with such delicacy that any opportunistic adjustment can destroy it, which is what happens here . . . It may not even be Mr. Bogdanovich's fault. He hasn't opened up the play in any foolish way. There are even times when the camera successfully catches the tempo of the lunatic action without being overwhelmed by it. Yet too often the action and the dialogue are so fuzzily understood that the laughs are lost. The film's problem is more basic: the attempt to Americanize a fine English farce about provincial seediness. It can't be done." [11]

Rita Kempley of The Washington Post observed, "The performers all seem to be relishing this sendup, but we're always aware that it is a vehicle better suited to the stage." [12]

In The New Yorker , Michael Sragow said, "Most of the time, Bogdanovich sticks to Frayn's gleefully proscenium-bound play without making it work for the movies. The result is roughly equivalent to the pan and scan TV version of a wide-screen spectacle. Bogdanovich has cast actors you want to see . . . in a production that grows increasingly impossible to watch." [13]

In his review of the video release, Lawrence O'Toole of Entertainment Weekly said, "Nothing is as murderous on a farce as film. Its mechanics can work beautifully from the distance of the stage . . . but the closeness of the home screen points up every flaw in Peter Bogdanovich's futile adaptation: anorectic visuals, bloated acting, broad timing, and often dull direction. The cast members . . . are all game, but it's exhausting watching actors try so hard." [14]

Time Out London says the film "undoubtedly has its moments, but will still disappoint those who laughed themselves silly at the original." [15]

Channel 4 notes, "Frayn's frenetic farce was always going to be a difficult act to pull off on the big screen, but Bogdanovich and an enthusiastic cast do their damnedest to sustain the mayhem and the momentum. Those who remember the original theatrical hit are bound to be disappointed by the lack of immediacy and the occasional sense of artifice, but this is perfectly serviceable." [16]

Siskel & Ebert gave the film two thumbs down. [17]

Filmink called it "a lovely movie, very well directed, a real Valentine to actors. No one went to see it but for me it’s one of Bogdanovich’s best later works." [18]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Bogdanovich</span> American film director (1939–2022)

Peter Bogdanovich was an American director, writer, actor, producer, critic, and film historian. He started out his career as a young actor studying under Stella Adler before working as a film critic for Film Culture and Esquire and finally becoming a prominent filmmaker of the New Hollywood movement. He received accolades including a BAFTA Award and Grammy Award, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards.

<i>Noises Off</i> 1982 play written by Michael Frayn

Noises Off is a 1982 farce by the English playwright Michael Frayn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dorothy Loudon</span> American actress, singer, performer (1925–2003)

Dorothy Loudon was an American actress and singer. She won the Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Musical in 1977 for her performance as Miss Hannigan in Annie. Loudon was also nominated for Tony Awards for her lead performances in the musicals The Fig Leaves Are Falling and Ballroom, as well as a Golden Globe award for her appearances on The Garry Moore Show.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Frayn</span> English playwright, novelist (born 1933)

Michael Frayn, FRSL is an English playwright and novelist. He is best known as the author of the farce Noises Off  and the dramas Copenhagen and Democracy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marilu Henner</span> American actress (born 1952)

Marilu Henner is an American actress. She began her career appearing in the original production of the musical Grease in 1971, before making her screen debut in the 1977 comedy-drama film Between the Lines. In 1978, Henner was cast in her breakthrough role as Elaine O'Connor Nardo in the ABC/NBC sitcom Taxi, a role she played until 1983 and for which she received five Golden Globe Award nominations.

Stephen Paul Schnetzer is an American actor. He is best known for playing the role of Cass Winthrop on Another World from 1982 to 1986, returning in 1987 until the show's cancellation in 1999. He won a Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Comic Actor in 1989 for his role on Another World and received a Daytime Emmy Award nomination in 1990 for Outstanding Lead Actor.

<i>Clockwise</i> (film) 1986 film by Christopher Morahan

Clockwise is a 1986 British comedy road film starring John Cleese, directed by Christopher Morahan, written by Michael Frayn and produced by Michael Codron. The film's music was composed by George Fenton.

<i>Nickelodeon</i> (film) 1976 film by Peter Bogdanovich

Nickelodeon is a 1976 American comedy film directed by Peter Bogdanovich, and stars Ryan O'Neal, Burt Reynolds and Tatum O'Neal. According to Bogdanovich, the film was based on true stories told to him by silent film directors Allan Dwan and Raoul Walsh. It was entered into the 27th Berlin International Film Festival.

<i>Chimes at Midnight</i> 1965 film by Orson Welles

Chimes at Midnight is a 1966 period comedy-drama film written, directed by, and starring Orson Welles. Its plot centers on William Shakespeare's recurring character Sir John Falstaff and his fatherly relationship with Prince Hal, who must choose loyalty to Falstaff or to his actual father, King Henry IV. The English-language film was an international co-production of Spain, France, and Switzerland.

<i>Texasville</i> 1990 American drama film by Peter Bogdanovich

Texasville is a 1990 American drama film written and directed by Peter Bogdanovich. Based on the 1987 novel Texasville by Larry McMurtry, it is a sequel to The Last Picture Show (1971), and features Jeff Bridges, Cybill Shepherd, Cloris Leachman, Timothy Bottoms, Randy Quaid, and Eileen Brennan reprising their roles from the original film.

<i>The Two of Us</i> (play) 1970 play written by Michael Frayn

The Two of Us is a 1970 play by British playwright Michael Frayn. It consists of four one-act plays for two actors and is Frayn's first published play. It was first performed at the Garrick Theatre by Richard Briers and Lynn Redgrave.

<i>The Thing Called Love</i> 1993 American film

The Thing Called Love is a 1993 American comedy-drama film directed by Peter Bogdanovich and starring Samantha Mathis as Miranda Presley, a young musician who tries to make it big in Nashville. River Phoenix, Dermot Mulroney and Sandra Bullock also star. While the film involves a love triangle and various complications in Miranda's route to success, it provides a sweetened glimpse at the lives of aspiring songwriters in Nashville. Its tagline is: "Stand by your dream".

Jamie Blair Glover is an English actor. He is best known for playing Andrew Treneman in the BBC One school-based drama series, Waterloo Road, returning to the role in 2023. He was also cast as Harry Potter in the second cast of the West-End production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in 2017, and starred as Roger Tramplemain in Michael Frayn's comical farce Noises Off at the Novello Theatre in 2012. He also appeared as William Russell in the Doctor Who docudrama, An Adventure in Space and Time (2013).

<i>This Is Orson Welles</i> Book by Orson Welles

This Is Orson Welles is a 1992 book by Orson Welles and Peter Bogdanovich that comprises conversations between the two filmmakers recorded over several years, beginning in 1969. The wide-ranging volume encompasses Welles's life and his own stage, radio, and film work as well as his insights on the work of others. The book was edited after Welles's death, at the request of Welles's longtime companion and professional collaborator, Oja Kodar. Jonathan Rosenbaum drew from several incomplete drafts of the manuscript and many reel-to-reel tapes, most of which had already been transcribed. Much of the dialogue, however, had been rewritten by Welles, often in several drafts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicollette Sheridan</span> British-American actress

Nicollette Sheridan is a British-born American actress. She began her career as a fashion model before landing a role in the short-lived ABC primetime soap opera Paper Dolls in 1984, as well as starring in the romantic comedy film The Sure Thing (1985). She rose to prominence as Paige Matheson on the CBS primetime soap opera Knots Landing (1986–1993), for which she received two Soap Opera Digest Awards. Thereafter, Sheridan appeared in lead roles in numerous television films and miniseries, including Lucky Chances (1990), Virus (1995), and The People Next Door (1996). She also appeared in the feature films Noises Off (1992), Spy Hard (1996), Beverly Hills Ninja (1997), and Code Name: The Cleaner (2007).

<i>Strike Me Lucky</i> 1934 Australian film

Strike Me Lucky is a 1934 Australian comedy musical film starring popular stage comic vaudevillian Roy Rene in his first and only film. It was the fourth feature film from Cinesound Productions but proved a box office disappointment. Director Ken G. Hall claimed it was the only one of his features not to go into profit within a few years of release, although the film eventually covered costs.

<i>Horse Eats Hat</i> 1936 farce play co-written and directed by Orson Welles

Horse Eats Hat is a 1936 farce play co-written and directed by Orson Welles and presented under the auspices of the Federal Theatre Project. It was Welles's second WPA production, after his highly successful Voodoo Macbeth. The script, by Edwin Denby and Welles, was an adaptation of the classic French farce The Italian Straw Hat by Eugène Marin Labiche and Marc-Michel.

<i>Rhinoceros</i> (Orson Welles production)

Rhinoceros was a 1960 production of Eugène Ionesco's surrealist play of the same name, which had been written the year before. It was the first English-language production of the play, starred future husband-and-wife team Laurence Olivier and Joan Plowright, and was directed by Orson Welles. Olivier also co-produced the play, which was Welles's last work as a theatre director.

Othello was a 1951 production of William Shakespeare's play of the same name, which was produced, directed by and starring Orson Welles in his first appearance on the London stage.

Hubert Burton is an English actor best known for his roles as Rusbridger in Living (2022), Gerald Middleton in Rivals (2024), Wyndham Best in Their Finest (2016) and his role in the premiere production of the acclaimed play The Inheritance (2018–2019).

References

  1. 1 2 "Noises Off". Turner Classic Movies . Atlanta: Turner Broadcasting System (Time Warner). Retrieved October 6, 2016.
  2. ↑ Frayn, Michael (1985). Noises Off. New York City: Samuel French, Inc. ISBN   978-0573619694.
  3. ↑ Creator of Noises Off writing novels again: [AM Edition] Vit Wagner Toronto Star. 18 Feb 1992: B1.
  4. ↑ Playing 'Noises Off' the American Way: [Home Edition] Frayn, Michael. Los Angeles Times 6 Apr 1992: 3.
  5. ↑ THEY ALL LAUGHED...AGAIN: [Final Edition] Glenn Lovell, Knight-Ridder. Calgary Herald 20 Mar 1993: A14.
  6. ↑ O'Malley & Collin INC.: [NORTH SPORTS FINAL, C Edition] Kathy O'Malley and Dorothy Collin. Chicago Tribune 8 May 1991: 28.
  7. ↑ On Stage, and Off Witchel, Alex. New York Times 12 Apr 1991: C.2.
  8. 1 2 RIBBON OF DREAMS SURVIVING PERSONAL NIGHTMARE HELPS DIRECTOR REGAIN FOCUS: [THIRD Edition] Longsdorf, Amy. Morning Call; Allentown, Pa. [Allentown, Pa]05 Apr 1992: F01.
  9. 1 2 ANOTHER BOGDANOVICH FILM IS HEADED FOR CULT STATUS: [THIRD Edition] Longsdorf, Amy. Morning Call; Allentown, Pa. [Allentown, Pa]13 Feb 1994: F01.
  10. ↑ "Noises Off". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved 2024-07-22. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  11. ↑ Canby, Vincent (March 20, 1992). "New York Times review". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 19, 2011.
  12. ↑ Kempley, Rita (March 20, 1992). "Washington Post review". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 20, 2010.
  13. ↑ The New Yorker review
  14. ↑ Entertainment Weekly review
  15. ↑ Time Out London review Archived 2011-06-07 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ↑ Channel 4 review
  17. ↑ Siskel & Ebert. "Review: Noises Off". At the Movies . Disney. Retrieved 2009-06-15.[ dead link ]
  18. ↑ Vagg, Stephen (2021). "Peter Bogdanovich: A Cinephile's Cinephile". Filmink.
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.