Rating of
2.5/4
Could have been a lot funnier
The M.O.W. - wrote on 08/03/08
"Theeodore Pierce" (Gene Wilder, who also wrote the screenplay and served as the movie's director) is a happily married man who is entering his mid-life crisis. He begins of thinking of having an affair, especially after seeing a beautiful woman (Kelly LeBrock) dressed from head to toe in red.
He begins to pursue this mysterious woman, who eventually begins to work for the company he is employed by for an advertising campaign. However, while trying to avoid a secretary (Gilda Radner) who he accidentally makes a date with.
Believe it or not, this was the first ever movie rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Associated of America. However, the rating couldn't help this one.
I felt little to no chemistry between any of the cast. Wilder and Judith Ivey, who played his wife, had no chemistry that made it feel as if they were not just happily married, but married for a long time. I also felt that there was very little chemistry between Wilder and those who played his group of friends.
Sadly, Wilder and LeBrock only had a little chemistry. If you ask me, the weakness in the lead roles scenes together was Wilder. LeBrock, who appears in one of her two most famous movie roles in this movie, appears to be more relaxed than Wilder did. It was obvious that he played the character to be somewhat uncomfortable when around her, but it just didn't feel right to me for some reason.
Also, Radner was completely wrong for her role. She was a good comic, especially during her time in "Saturday Night Live", but she just was not that funny in this role. She couldn't even help set up jokes correctly.
I also felt the jokes were forced. During the "Blind Man" bit, you just knew what was going to happen just as the scene opens. There are other scenes where the jokes just fell flat.
One thing that was wonderful was the music, mainly performed by music legend Stevie Wonder. I remember two songs from the soundtrack, "Don't Drive Drunk", which was oddly placed in the movie since the scene had no drunk driving, and the Academy Award winner, "I Just Called to Say I Love You", which is still a great romantic song. If you ask me, the soundtrack is better than jokes.
You would think that there would be adventure in pursing an extra-marital affair that could have brought some laughs to this movie. However, that doesn't happen here.
I would say that the next time you go to the local video rental shop and can't find anything to watch, you could rent this one. But, I wouldn't put this on a "Must See" list.
