Stars and Bars - Der ganz normale amerikanische Wahnsinn

The cast includes Daniel Day Lewis and Joan Cusack, who one thinks could turn out stunning performances with the worst scripts. This isn't the case.

The main reason I actually wanted to watch this movie twice is because of the in-jokes that only Southerners, and Atlantans especially, would get.

In one scene at an Atlanta hotel, the Marriott Marquis was transformed into a parody of another major hotel which once had a "lake" in its lobby, and a long-standing restaurant with an overworked Civil War theme.

I highly recommend seeing this movie at least once if you lived in Atlanta in the 80's. It's also good, I would think, if you've had experience with stubborn patriarchs and traveling art buyers, but that's probably a smaller group.

William Boyd's "Stars and Bars" - the book - stands in the great tradition of the English comic novel (Evelyn Waugh being one of Boyd's masters and inspirators). Now, I've seen the film only in German language... That's a pity because of the resulting demi-lack of Englishman-in-New-York-effects. As you can image, the German translation cannot be that perfect. I guess that the linguistical misunderstandings between the "hero" (Day Lewis) and the bizarre Georgian family with Anglophobic slursare are ten times funnier in the original version (as they are in the book). Anyway, I liked the film immediately and I'm happy to have taped it. Great cast! Unforgettable: Maury Chaykin as Elvis-like Freeborn.

I remember standing in a long line to see this in Manhattan, and thinking that the New York parts were a perfect representation of the city at that moment in time. It's a weird vehicle for Daniel Day-Lewis, apart from his ability to play a perfect British upper class twit - I don't think he's done a comedy since (and certainly not before). The use of Joan Cusack as leading lady and love object is bizarre, too - up until this point she'd been relegated to kooky sidekick/friend of the heroine roles (Broadcast News springs immediately to mind), something she went back to almost immediately after this film. It's strange all around, but also a funny time capsule of sorts. I too wish it was out on DVD.

This fish out of water film has Daniel Day Lewis, uptight Englishman, thrown into a dysfunctional family of Southern hillbillies lead by Harry Dean Stanton. Not unlike Stanton's similar misfire movie "Twister", the story is slight, but not as stretched as "Twister". Both movies have offbeat characters on parade. "Stars and Bars" begins with a rather unflattering view of New York City, and then relies on Georgia backwoods stereotypes for both dark and slapstick humor. This film would certainly have to be classified as an acquired taste, and there are plenty of dead spots throughout. Nevertheless, the quirky characters, played by some good character actors, is enough to recommend for admirers of the strange. - MERK

I stumbled across this film on HBO years ago, and am so glad I recorded it, as I could never find it on DVD. I have always been a big Daniel Day Lewis fan, and this is unlike anything else I have ever seen him do. It is hard to believe this is the same year he appeared in "The Unbearable Lightness of Being;" what a contrast! It truly demonstrates his range and willingness to completely inhabit any role he takes on. Make no mistake- it is a really quirky film, but there are hilarious moments, and the supporting cast contribute to the overall effect. Just go with the flow!