In the Spirit

I keep hoping that it will be released on DVD. I have a VHS copy (my 2nd actually, because I wore out the first) but I no longer have a VCR. What to do, what to do...

This film is a subtle, brilliant gem.

I was once in a bar in NYC and I realized it was the setting for the bar scene with Melanie Griffith. I got very excited - and tried to quiz the bartender about it. But she had no idea what I was talking about.

In any event, this is one of my all time favorite movies. So witty, so clever, so underplayed. Someday I will screen it for a huge audience. And show them. What is funny.

Few films have touched my life like this one. How can a person not laugh when a prostitute is accidentally killed when she's standing on the frame of a waterbed and it gives way and the mattress rolls over on her? Marlo Thomas, as new age health food store owner, Reeva Prosky gives the performance of a lifetime. She and Elaine May (Maryann Flan) not only share the same darma - they are the most humerous on-screen comedy duo in the history of film. The supporting cast is flawless - Peter Falk ("Why don't you come over and have some kelp?"); Melanie Griffith ("You mean like 'Finger-Licking Good' or 'Twenty Laps'?"); and Olympia Dukakis ("I have a husband with a heart condition and two children on drugs!") all bring new meaning to the word brilliant. The true star of the movie is Jeannie Berlin, who plays double duty as both the co- screenplay writer and the prostitute Crytsal. Not since William Shakespeare has there been such a story written for stage or screen. This movie changed my life.

It taught me the important life lesson that sometimes "the wise may act foolishly, the fool may act wisely, and the hunter may become the pray."

This is one of those movies I have to go back and watch every now and again. It's like very dark chocolate -- it doesn't cloy, and has enough of a bite to keep it interesting. It's funny, managing to skewer New Yorkers, Californians, New Agers, and middle-age crises, all on the same shishkabob; it has great cameos, snappy dialogue, and a pace that keeps it moving right along, with none of the non-nutritive filler that bloats so many films. As the crystal-waving, aura-reading proto-Feng-Shui "decorator," Marlo Thomas is such a NICE person that you just want to smack her. Fortunately, the movie is in on this angle, and Jeannie Berlin expresses the viewer's exasperation very well. Give it a shot as a rental, and you'll probably end up buying a copy.

It is important to pay close attention to the first part of the movie, or you miss a lot, as it lays a foundation for the rest of the movie. This movie had me in stitches, and I love to watch it whenever I can use a good belly laugh. Ditzy New Age follower, Marlo Thomas has advice for everyone she meets. She crosses paths with Elaine May and Peter Falk, and that sets off a series of events leading to Marlo Thomas and Elaine May being hunted by murderous criminals...they hide away in a New Age camp, and plant booby traps for their hunters. This was the funniest part of the movie, to me, and some of the dialogue is hilarious, if you listen closely. Strangely, no one seems to know of it, and I just happened upon it years ago. I have two VHS tapes, and wouldn't get rid of my VCR, because I need them to watch this movie and a couple others I have. This one is a real gem, and anyone who hasn't seen it is missing out on some great comedy.

I only wish it would come out on DVD! I've been an Elaine May fan forever and this is typical of her off-beat humor. Love this film so much, I actually suffer watching it on VHS. It's about two women who are extremely different. One (the Elaine May character) is a materialistic princess who is married to Peter Falk. The other, Marlo Thomas, is a ditsy new-ager. Somehow their paths cross and they must combine forces against the evils of the New York streets. Marlo Thomas plays her silly, idealistic part to the hilt. Don't over-analyze it - just enjoy! This is screwball comedy at its finest!

And if anyone knows where I can find the DVD, please let me know!