Oscar - Un fidanzato per due figlie

I would never have dreamed that Sylvester Stallone would appear in a film that has its basis in a French farce. But Oscar is exactly that.

Taken from a play by Claude Magnier with the same title, the action is transferred to 1931 Chicago where gangster Angelo 'Snaps' Provolone is looking to go legitimate because of a promise he made to his dying father. The father is played by Kirk Douglas and Douglas's death scene opens the film and it's hilarious.

Sly Stallone looked like he was having one great old time spoofing his own image. The rest of the film is a day in his life dealing with bankers he's coming in with, an embezzling employee, a rival mob, a daughter looking to break loose from the family, and the police.

It's all done at a pace that rivals Billy Wilder's classic, One Two Three. In fact Oscar would have been a classic if they'd somehow persuaded Billy Wilder to direct it. It just needed that extra something from a comedy master.

Still Stallone gets good support from several generations of Hollywood players who range from Don Ameche as a priest to Marisa Tomei in her film debut as Stallone's daughter.

Catch this one if it's broadcast, especially you Stallone fans.

Why does everyone think Sylvester Stallone is terrible at comedy? I never saw "Rhinestone" as that is considered one of the worst movies ever made and while I thought "Stop! or my mom will shoot" was illogical and hokey at times it was mostly entertaining. But "Oscar" out of all his attempts at comedy is Sylvester Stallone's best attempt at comedy and it remains a mystery to me why this did so terrible critically and financially. Maybe critics and audiences had trouble accepting Stallone as a gangster doing something different from "Rocky" or "Rambo". I mean yes like "Stop! or my mom will shoot" this one is very illogical and confusing at times. But if you put your full mind into the movie and think about it you will realize it is very funny. While Stallone is terrific I think some of the best scenes in this film belong to Tim Curry. Some of his scenes made me want to laugh out loud! I cannot really summarize the film because many parts are confusing but I can certainly say that critics and audiences need to stop putting it down and give it another try because they don't know what their missing. Sure it's no "Godfather" or "Goodfellas" but it is a very funny little gangster comedy that has the intelligence one misses in comedies. All in all "Oscar" is no masterpiece but it is very funny and enjoyable and that's enough for me to recommend it. It also proves that Sylvester Stallone is not a terrible comedy movie star.

I don't know why this movie is rated so low. This is a good old fashioned farce that is done very well and most the actors, especially Chaz Palmenteri (I don't know how to spell that name).

People must have knocked it because they can't accept Stallone in anything other than action films. This is one of the funniest films I have ever seen.

7/10

I am very selective about the movies I buy for my personal library, and this one passed. The whole movie takes place between 8:30 a.m. and 12:00 noon, and the twists and complications never stop. It's packed with memorable one-liners and hilarious images: former hit-men being butlers and making fruit salad, a linguist (Tim Curry) whose unsolicited grammar corrections keep getting misunderstood, the melodramatic daughter (Marisa Tomei) of a gangster named after a cheese.

Few movies carry this many successive gut laughs. It's quite an ab workout. It's also comparitively clean—five or six swear words and some allusions to premarital pregnancy and activities. I highly recommend it.

If you love Sly, if you love comedy, if you love gangster films, then this one's for you! It's got all that & more! Marisa Tomei playing Sly's daughter?? It works! The beautiful Italian import, Ornella Muti playing Sly's wife? It works! Chazz Palminteri playing a hood yet once again? That always works! Whatcha got here is 1 Mob Boss (the ever-elegant Sly) tryin' to go straight 'cuz he promised his dying father (Kirk Douglas's cameo), cops who just won't buy it, bankers who can't stand it, a mix-up with "a little black bag", a search for a husband for Sly's daughter, an annoying accountant who skims $$$ off the top to marry Sly's "other daughter, the one that's not Lisa", & this all happens in ONE MORNING!! Ya gotta feel sorry for the guy! How can he cope? He does it - just as Sly as he can be, too!

Buy this one if you can still find it. It's a comedy of 'great ethnic proportions'!