L.A. Story (1991)

Steve Martin can be very funny. Sometimes. Here I did not find him funny. In fact I found this film to be a bit of a waste of a supreme cast lists talents.I can see why people like it though. it's easy enough viewing, it's funny in places, but it's not that great a comedy and in some parts is slow.I can only compare it to another Martin film 'A simple twist of fate' which again had a decent enough premise and cast, yet failed to deliver.I was disappointed with this film, and cannot recommended it.

This might not be the most laugh out loud funny of Steve Martin's films but it is my favourite. Martin plays LA weatherman Harris Telemacher; he thinks he is happy but really he is depressed; everything about his life is a cliché; his girlfriend Trudi clearly holds him in contempt, the people he associates with are all the same and even the weather he forecasts is always 72° and sunny. Then one day he meets Sarah, an English journalist writing a piece about Los Angeles… after that his life won't be the same again. Of course it won't be simple; he is still with Trudi and Sarah is giving her ex one last chance. Soon strange things start to happen; he breaks down in front of a freeway sign and it starts to address him; he finds himself single and dating SanDeE*; a girl who will be twenty seven in four years time… still he dreams of Sarah.L.A. Story is one of those films that make me smile from start to finish; it is funny, it is surreal and it is packed with little things that make it charming. Highlights include the way he keeps (mis)quoting Shakespeare as though he was referring to Los Angeles, his attempts to book a table at a fancy restaurant and his long and detailed description of how a painting is almost erotic then we see it just a canvas painted in various shades of red. Martin is on top form as he gives this love song to LA while simultaneously gently mocking it. He is ably supported by Victoria Tennant, Richard E, Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker as well as some well known actors in cameo roles. The film is accompanied by a selection of music that fits perfectly including 'La Mer', 'Do Wad Diddy, Diddy' and even 'Amazing Grace' performed by the road sign. If you are a fan of Steve Martin or like the city of Los Angeles then I think this is a must see.

The way this movie is put together, with all the little things ( like he drives to work in that Chrysler with the Garfield doll on the rear window? Or the famous one liners? If I was a woman, I would stay home and play with my brests all day! Hilarious! I still use it to date.The music of Enya makes the romance complete. At the end, that song gives me goose bumps...I think this is the best one Steve has ever made.I wish I could tell it to him some day.There is just something about this movie that you just can not grasp.......it's sheer magic!

I didn't know anything about this film's plot or story, but for the leading comedy star, and being rated four stars, I gave it a chance, from director Mick Jackson (The Bodyguard, Volcano). Basically "Wacky Weather" reporter Harris K. Telemacher (Steve Martin, also writing and producing) is undergoing a mild mid-life crisis and needs to find something meaningful in the insane chaos that is Los Angeles. One night driving on the freeway he pulls over, and a lit-up sign starts talking to him, and it gives him a riddle he must solve to change his life. Soon after Harris meets visiting British journalist Sara McDowel (Victoria Tennant), and it is apparent that they are falling for each other, and the sign could see this coming, and in the end she helps him solve the riddle. Also starring Richard E. Grant as Roland Mackey, Marilu Henner as Trudi, Sarah Jessica Parker as SanDeE*, Susan Forristal as Ariel, A Few Good Men's Kevin Pollak as Frank Swan, Sam McMurray as Morris Frost and Patrick Stewart as Mr. Perdue - Maitre D' at L'Idiot, with cameos by Chevy Chase as Carlo Christopher, Woody Harrelson as Harris' Boss, Terry Jones as Sara's Mother, Rick Moranis as Gravedigger and Star Trek: Voyager's Robert Picardo as Voicephone. I may not have paid full attention at times, but there were some amusing moments that really satirise life in Los Angeles, accompanied with some scripting, a likable romantic comedy. Good!