Mixed Nuts (1994)

"Mixed Nuts" is a remake of a French comedy that I'm sure is better, even though the cast here is fantastic: Steve Martin, Juliette Lewis, Adam Sandler, Madeline Kahn, Rita Wilson, Parker Posey, Liev Schreiber, Anthony LaPaglia, and Robert Klein. The producers certainly didn't scrimp on names.But they really should have sent the Nora and Delia Ephron script back for another rewrite. There are some very funny parts of this film, but it isn't quite the wacky comedy they were going for. Steve Martin as Philip runs a crisis hotline in Venice Beach, California. But the crisis at the office is bigger than what people are calling in about. The office is about to be evicted, which means that his two employees, Mrs. Munchnik (Kahn) and Catherine (Wilson) will be out of jobs. He can't bear to tell them. Plus, all three of them are miserable, especially Catherine, who thinks she will never find love. Meanwhile, someone calls and browbeats Philip into giving the office address, which is strictly forbidden. When the person shows, it's Liev Schreiber dressed as a woman.Ultimately the group meet Gracie and Felix (Lewis and LaPaglia), a pregnant couple with no money who are fighting. Their neighbor is Louis, a songwriter with a Tiny Tim-type voice. It's near Christmas, but no one feels very Christmas-like with a serial killer on the loose. Then Mrs. Munchnik comes up against an elevator, a fruitcake is passed back and forth and finally tossed, a gun goes off - - what's next?I might have been able to buy this as a TV movie if the cast hadn't been so prestigious. And as such, it might have made it. But I expected more from this group. It just doesn't hold together.The best part of the movie for me was Shreiber dancing with Martin and a couple of the late Kahn's big scenes.Disappointing. Most of these good people didn't have enough to do.

It's the Christmas season in LA. Philip (Steve Martin) runs a crisis hotline LifeSavers with Catherine (Rita Wilson) and Mrs Munchnik (Madeline Kahn). Stanley Tennenbaum (Garry Shandling) is evicting them for being 3 months behind on the rent. There is a serial killer on the loose called the Seaside Strangler. Felix (Anthony LaPaglia) is the loser father of pregnant Gracie (Juliette Lewis)'s unborn baby. Susan (Joely Fisher) breaks up with Philip. Chris (Liev Schreiber) is a transvestite. Louie (Adam Sandler) lives in the building. Mr. Lobel (Robert Klein) hates Munchnik. Dr. Kinsky (Rob Reiner) is an animal vet. Parker Posey and Jon Stewart are a couple of rollerbladers who keeps trying to bring a Christmas tree home. Who knew either were rollerbladers.I don't understand what the Ephron sisters think is funny in this movie. It's a chaotic mess. It's a great cast of terrific comedic actors doing slightly weird and quirky things without actually being funny. There are some sad attempts at slapsticks. Everybody in the movie is trying so hard to be quirky that they stumble over each other. The central premise of the suicide hotline is like a dare from a comedian to laugh. This movie mostly left me scratching my head at all the slightly annoying people.

First of all - this is a remake, a remake of what may be the most funny and most viewed comedies by french people (I wouldn't be surprised if half the french population could recite the entire movie lines by heart).But where the original version was outrageous, provocative, disrespectful, politically incorrect etc... it has been watered down to nothing in the Steve Martin version. Everything that was funny is just blended down to a family viewing version which loose all appeal and originality. A total disaster and a shame.

I hate to say it, but this is a Steve Martin superdud. I saw it in the theater amidst a sparse crowd, none of whom was laughing either. I've seen it in video stores since then, Steve Martin all over the cover. That makes sense because he's the only possible selling point; nobody you know is likely to recommend you watch it. Come to think of it, that's why I went to see it. I like most of Martin's stuff.The first few minutes (poking fun at SoCal Christmas) was the funniest part of the film...mildly funny. From there it just got worse -- incoherent, disjointed, at times just disturbing. It's one of the few movies I walked out of halfway through.Go ahead and watch this flick if: You've seen every other movie ever made and need to complete your record. You like Steve Martin so much that can't recognize when one of his movies sucks. Uhh...I can't think of another reason.