Un bel pasticcio!

The 1980s weren't favorable to a lot of veteran directors. With some exceptions, William Friedkin, Paul Mazursky, Robert Altman, Mel Brooks and many others suffered in this decade while trying too hard to make commercial hits. Blake Edwards is another name that comes to mind, and "A Fine Mess" is Exhibit A. The plot is superfluous. It has something to do with a doped-up racehorse, two schnooks being chased by two more schnooks, a limping Godfather and his cheating Mafia wife, a $10K player piano, and enough car chases and crashes to put "The Great Race" to shame. Why Edwards felt the need to work with TV talent like Ted Danson and Howie Mandel is beyond me, but he gets nothing out of his regulars this time, either. Is there anything worse than a stupid comedy? How about a comedy that wears its flagrant stupidity like a badge of honor? Edwards even speeds up the film to give the proceedings a live-action cartoon effect, but you can't cover up flop sweat. Blake's daughter, Jennifer Edwards, gives a nicely modulated performance as an auction house employee, though her facial expression when date Mandel eats too much spicy food in a restaurant and begins shrieking just about sums up the whole of "A Fine Mess". * from ****

My heart sinks when I see a 3.8 User Rating for this hilarious comedy. You got Danson and Mandel in their prime and Edwards behind the camera. OK, it should have been better, but there's still some of Blake's trademark slapstick we all know and love from classics like A Shot in the Dark and The Party. Richard Mulligan is a standout as a dopey hood who places his shotgun in front of his crotch before firing. The plot, if you want to call it that, has more holes than a swiss cheese convention but I was laughing so hard I didn't care.

A definite "check your brain at the door" comedy, one of the most plot less films ever, but manages some good characters and situations. Danson, pigeon-holed as his "Cheers" character Sam Malone, plays another womanizer here, this time an actor. While shooting a film at a racetrack, he overhears the doping of a philly, and though seen, decides to bet the horse the next day. Two movie-type hit men dingbats spend the next twenty minutes chasing him by foot and car all over the place. Along for the ride is Danson's buddy Mandel, who gets swept up in the madness. There's also an auctioneer, a Mob wife, her grumbling husband, two cops on the trail, and a disgruntled brother in law. Edwards attempt at an all-out comedy comes off here and there, but the film has no real direction. A bunch of gags are clustered along the business of Danson and Mandel avoiding a bullet from the two hitguys. But for whatever reason, I let it slide and just enjoyed what was given. Danson at about 40 and Mandel in his 20s, though never explained how they know each other, had a great chemistry. Seemed like they had been buddies a while, and clicked on-screen. Throw in some Mandel bits like voices or eating soap, and you can't help but laugh. Especially his moment in an Indian restaurant where he disregards the diners and lets loose after eating....something. Danson milks being slapped in the face and chasing women, and an odd boon to the film is the up-beat soundtrack. From the Temptations to Mr. Mister, it came off energetic. In fact, I don't recall any scenes of score used in the film. It all culminates in a chaotic finish involving a piano and another chase, so it may be worth a shot if you're into stretching your funnybone.

You can't blame Blake Edwards for making this kind of movie.

For years, he depended on the kind of pratfalls that course through "A Fine Mess" as his bread and butter, so to speak. They served the "Pink Panther" series well, and made Inspector Clouseau a world-wide reference point for the ultimate in clumsiness.

But for a movie that basically features two losers crossing the mob in a horse race then moving a piano to a rich lady's house, this film is all over the place. So many people introduced then forgotten, plot lines that go nowhere, laughs that are fun for the moment but have no context.

Shocking, really, this coming as it does from Blake Edwards, who once personified classy comedy with such works as the aforementioned "Panther" films, not to mention classics like "10", "Micki + Maude" and the under-appreciated "S.O.B.".

And with the calibre of talent, you'd expect great things; the manic Mandel, lecherous Danson, luxuriant Alonzo, and wackos like Mulligan and Margolin as mob flunkies all have the fire, but there's just nothing here to stoke the furnace.

There were separate moments here and there that gave me a smile but, like the movie itself, it just lives for the moment, then is gone.

TIDBIT - The idea for this movie actually came from a Laurel and Hardy short where Stan and Ollie try to move a huge piano up innumerable flights of stairs. Hence, the name.

It still is fitting: this movie is definitely a "Mess", if not a "Fine" one.

Three stars. Saved but for the virtue of Mulligan in the cast and a bit part for pre-"NYPD Blue" Franz.

Give him credit, filmmaker Blake Edwards was still trying to create the kind of frantic farce and slapstick that had served him so well in such features as the "Pink Panther" series. The trouble is, his material this time is weak, and simply not funny too much of the time (at least, in this viewers' humble opinion). It's not that the cast doesn't try to create that madcap feel. They really give this dud better performances than it deserves.

Ted Danson is typically amusing in a very Sam Malone-type part, as an insatiable struggling actor named Spence. He overhears a plot to fix a horse race by drugging one of the animals, and tries to capitalize on this knowledge. Unfortunately, the mob finds out that he knows, and utterly brainless goons 'Turnip' (Richard Mulligan) and 'Binky' (Stuart Margolin) spend the balance of the movie trying to silence them, with spectacular lack of success. Meanwhile, Spences' buddy Dennis (Howie Mandel), a carhop with aspirations of being a chef, inadvertently purchases a player piano at an auction, only for a super sexy lady named Claudia (smoldering Maria Conchita Alonso) - whose identity is not hard to figure out - to buy it from him.

Edwards, who also gives his actress daughter Jennifer a key role as auction house employee Ellen, does give "A Fine Mess" energy to spare. The audience will note how quickly it moves along. And the stunts certainly are impressive. Some familiar faces in the supporting cast help matters a little. Paul Sorvino doesn't exactly stretch himself as the head mafioso. Mulligan and Margolin, especially Mulligan, mug for the camera like crazy. Also appearing are Rick Ducommun, Keye Luke (whose role is really much too small), Tawny Moyer, Rick Overton, Teddy Wilson, Larry Storch, Frederick Coffin, Vic Polizos, James Cromwell, and Dennis Franz. But as hard as these actors try, the laughs just aren't there most of the time.

At the least, it's enjoyable to see Danson looking like he's having the time of his life.

Four out of 10.