Week-end chez Bernie

This movie is best viewed in the summer when it's in the high 90s and the air conditioner is on full blast-all the water,sand and surf you need is right here. It's a carefree,breezy film,completely absorbed in its one intention-to make you laugh.

Greetings Bernie fans...

Yep. I love this film...and, I love the sequel, too. I guess it helps that I am a big fan of both Andrew McCarthy and Jonathan Silverman...their chemistry throughout the two films is priceless, a great comedy duo. Terry Kiser couldn't be better as Bernie, given a role in which he really doesn't have to do anything...nonetheless, he gives us a hilarious performance. And, you also gotta love Catherine Mary Stewart...she's just great, and Don Calfa is also brilliant. The writer, Robert Klane (he co-wrote "NATIONAL LAMPOON'S EUROPEAN VACATION, previously) creates a wonderful story and atmosphere...and, he eventually helmed the direction on this film's sequel in 1993. Don't listen to that other airhead who reviewed this, with his "set your alarm clock" crap...what the hell does he know, anyway? Yes, this film is "stupid-comedy"...and, that's why the film works. A great summer movie. Recommended dosage: Repetitious viewings, ad nauseum.

Take care!

In New York, Larry Wilson (Andrew McCarthy) and Richard Parker (Jonathan Silverman) are ambitious employees of an insurance company. While implementing a computer system, they find a two-million dollar embezzlement and immediately report to their boss, the bon-vivant Bernie Lomax (Terry Kiser). In return, Larry invites them to spend the weekend at his beach house in Hamptons Island. However, Bernie is the responsible for the theft and he asks his partner, the mobster Vito (Louis Giambalvo), to kill Larry and Richard. Vito assigns the hit man Paulie (Don Calfa) to kill Bernie instead since he is too greedy and is causing many troubles with the mafia and his girlfriend. Paulie kills Bernie with an overdose of heroin and when Larry and Richard arrive, they find their boss dead. But soon there is a party at his house and the guests do not notice that Bernie is dead. Among the guests, Jonathan sees his crush, the intern Gwen Saunders (Catherine Mary Stewart), and flirts with her. What will Larry and Jonathan do next?

"Weekend at Bernie's" is a silly but funny black comedy. The joke is always the same, the film is stupid but most of the situations are gross and hilarious and in the end the viewer will certainly laugh a lot. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Um Morto Muito Louco" ("A Very Crazy Dead")

Maybe I'm just stupid, but I love this movie. I still remember when it came out and maybe it's just nostalgia because I watched it so many times when I was nine years old, but I still enjoy watching it. It does a pretty good job at catching the look and feel of the late 80s. All the hairstyles and clothing are pretty dated but to me, that's all part of the fun.

It all starts when our guys, Richard and Larry, discover a $2 million insurance fraud scam in their company. When they report it to their boss, Bernie (Terry Kiser) he seems grateful and invites them to his beach house for labor day weekend. As it turns out, Bernie is the one doing the scamming and has hired a mob hitman to take them out. Little does Bernie know, that the mob has decided that Bernie has been a little too careless and they have decided to take him out instead. So, by the time Richard and Larry reach the island, they discover that Bernie is dead from what looks like a drug-overdose. Instead of calling the cops, the less than bright Larry, decides it better to pretend that he didn't die. This will work since all of the island partyers are pretty self-absorbed and clueless. This is where it starts getting funny.

Since the hitman is still on the island, he keeps seeing Bernie, who he thought he killed and keeps re-killing him. It's hilarious, because the boys really don't have a clue that the hitman is even around. Watching them lug a dead corpse around, making him look alive, is one of the highlights. The fact that all of the islanders believe he's alive is even funnier. One of my favorite parts of the movie was Andrew McCarthy's performance as Larry. His slacker part killed me and he has some really funny lines. What ever happened to him? Jonathan Silverman also does a great job with an underwritten part. He plays the ulcer-bound Richard who SO tries to be the moral center of the situation. Terry Kiser is incredible, as always and he plays a dead guy VERY well. Some of the stuff that he has to do, I really can't see anyone else pulling off as well. My favorite scenes came when Bernie was alive. The guy is such an unbelievable jerk, he's actually fun to hate.

Ignore the other comments on here, and go get this one. It's great for some laughs and I STILL get a lot out of it everytime I watch it. A great semi-black comedy. Go pick it up and look for the sequel. I enjoyed it as well, although not quite as much.

Lotta fun with McCarthy and Silverman as two guys who uncover a scam in the office. They present the info to their boss who's so grateful he invites them to his kick ass house for Labor Day weekend. When they show up they find him dead and decide it would benefit both of them to let the parties go on with everyone thinking Kiser is still kickin'. Contrary to what most say, the core of this film is not the dead body antics. The real attraction here is the rappor between McCarthy and Silverman, who play very well off each other because their characters are such opposites. And occasionally Kiser is thrown into the mix and the three make one of the more odder comdey teams. When they do drag him along, its pretty good stuff, with them trying to fake everyone out that hes walking or waving. And then the battering of the body, which is hard to not laugh at. When Bernies being dragged or bounced or dropped its perfectly silly. Even before the main action starts, theres some good stuff in the beginning dealing with Silvermans love life and McCarthys constant annoyance of him about it. So at almost every point in the film theres usually something to laugh at.