The April Fools

Worth it just for the look at the sixties beautiful people. But on top of that, excellent love story coupled with hilarious comedy. Plus it has one of our last looks at the sexiest actress of all time - Myrna Loy. This should be hailed as a classic. Shame on the stupid critics.

You have to watch this one a few times to get its rhythm. If you don't, you'll miss some gems. Jack Lemmon plays a man who finds himself disconnected from the world. No one wants to listen to him – his wife, son, boss, lawyer friend, even the family dog.

The movie lacks punch. And one reason is the real absence of romantic chemistry between Lemmon and Deneuve. Jack Lemmon, as an actor, needs a lively romantic love interest to better match his manic style. Deneuve comes off as beautiful, wooden and lethargic. But Lemmon's acting power is undeniable. So again we're treated to the brilliant, sad clown.

Harvey Korman and Jack Weston serve up a hilarious train ride and domestic scene. Charles Boyer's energy and wonderful voice entertain. Sally Kellerman does well epitomizing the Lemmon character's plight.

It's a late Sixties period piece and manages to capture some of that.

I have always loved this movie, and, in many ways, relate to the Howard Brubaker character. Is it a great movie? Absolutely not. But it is romantic, humorous, and touching in many ways. This was my first glimpse of Catherine Deneuve outside of a pilfered Playboy, and she was nearly enough to make me forget Diana Rigg. I have always thought that Jack Lemmon was great, and being an old movie buff, I was very happy to see Myrna Loy and Charles Boyer.

In many ways this film can be considered silly. Boyer's chasing of Lemmon, the total detachment of Sally Kellerman's character, the locker room style boasting of Brubaker's friends, and finally the hasty courtship and decision to flee made by Lemmon and Deneuve. But, somehow it works. The touching love of Boyer and Loy is the perfect counterpoint to the blossoming relationship of Lemmon and Deneuve. And the similar ways in which Catherine and Howard are objectified by their respective spouses (Brubaker's wife considers him a source of funding for her projects while Guenther thinks of his wife as his greatest acquisition) insures fertile ground for anything resembling true warmth and emotion.

Don't think of this as some throwaway romantic comedy. Think of this, instead, as an Everyman's Romantic Fantasy. In reality we think not only of sex at the drop of a hat (not present in this movie), but also of meeting a beautiful woman who immediately recognizes the real man within and is willing to drop all for the love of that man.

I love this movie.

I remember Rex Reed saying that this was a horrible mess and that Catherine Deneuve should never make anything without English subtitles. Well, Deneuve has gone on to become one of the world's respected actresses in any language, and Reed's greatest claim to fame was appearing in Myra Breckinridge.

Don't be afraid to give this movie a chance.

I saw this film years and years ago, but was listening to a "best of"

CD the other day and heard Dionne Warwick singing the title tune

of "The April Fools" - I remembered how much I loved this film. The

truth to the performances of Jack Lemmon and Catherine

Deneuvre, along with great performances from Peter Lawford and

Sally Kellerman, makes this film a classic of the late sixties in the

vein of Breakfast At Tiffanys. There is something pure, haunting

and deeply bittersweet about this movie - well worth a viewing.

Lemmon and Deneuve star in this lovely romantic-comedy about two unhappy people who fall in love, trying to escape their past and live for the future. Dogged by many critics, Lemmon and Deneuve are a great pair, along with the comic hijinks of Jack Weston and Harvey Korman, both wonderful towards the end of the film. This was also Lawford's best film performance. Only problem: Both Boyer and Loy are wasted. Quick pace. Great chemistry and also a nice title song by Dionne Warwick.