Separate Vacations

Michael Anderson, who capably directed AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS, LOGAN'S RUN and the well-crafted CONDUCT UNBECOMING, plainly abandons his basic standards when at the helm of this trivial Canadian-made sex farce comedy that lacks anything remotely sexy or humorous and is seemingly written by and for subnormal youths during the first throes of puberty. The plot, such as it is, relates of Richard (David Naughton) and Sarah (Jennifer Dale), happily married for 12 years with three foul mouthed young as product, having vacations apart due to Richard's desire to gain an outlet for his adulterous fantasies, and of trite libidinous adventures that engage each, Richard in Puerto Vallarta and Sarah at a skiing resort. Richard aggressively and in quite an inane manner pursues a throng of openly available females beneath the Mexican sun, while Sarah cannot manage to control herself when inveigled by a lodge lothario who also constitutes a romantic interest for Sarah's babysitter, played by Laurie Holden in an unpromising debut. It would be difficult to select a character from this movie with whom one may be sympathetic, due essentially to a screenplay that goes to great lengths to develop a plot and dialogue as hackneyed, predictable, and wanting in wit as can be imagined. Several female members of the cast doff their clothing, in each instance an unwise aesthetic decision, and the acting in general is second-rate throughout, even when one takes into consideration the vacuous lines supplied the cast by a script that focuses upon banal physical comedy as its cardinal component. Post-production shortcomings, in particular flawed sound mixing and dubbing, only add to the many deficiencies of this piece that also suffers from vapid scoring; the work is based upon a novel by Eric Weber, who additionally fabricated a book from which another bit of dross was produced: HOW TO PICK UP GIRLS.

Richard (David Naughton) and Sarah (Jennifer Dale) married for love, great love. But, now, ten years later, they have three children and all of the stress that goes with raising a family. The two sons and lone daughter make things difficult, picking fights over what to have for breakfast, among other mundane matters. Enter temptation. Richard, a businessman, learns that his colleague is having an extra-marital thing, "just sex and not an affair", and he is intrigued. A female co-worker also comes on to Richard in a big way. So, although Richard and Sarah have plans to visit a ski lodge with the family, Richard suggests that they take separate vacations to benefit from some time apart. Sarah is miffed, for she still has to keep three kids in tow. But, in the end, Richard heads to Mexico, with high hopes of some hanky panky, and Sarah hires a babysitter and travels to the ski slopes, where a handsome young ski instructor looks her way. Can anything good come out of this scenario? This film, made some time ago, has two things going for it, Mr. Naughton and Ms. Dale. They are attractive, very comic performers who make the most of a mediocre (but sometimes funny) script and poor production values. Naughton, especially, is hilarious as the man on-the-hunt in Mexico who gets thwarted time and again. Don't look for great costumes or amenities here, as the film looks very dated. But, if you like nice-looking stars and/or have a hankering to see the entire list of available romantic comedies, its not a total waste of time.

Me and my friend saw this movie a long time ago, and quite frankly we think it was hilarious. The character Henry Gilbert had us literally brought to the floor in laughter. If you find this movie in a store and often finding yourself enjoying the comedies that no on else likes, then check it out.