P.S. Your Cat Is Dead!

Steve Guttenberg has always exuded a certain likeability which he carried through many money making mediocrities. It's always intriguing when a performer takes a surprising direction in his career especially when that direction is clearly a more meaningful one.

It was with a lot of goodwill that I approached "P.S. Your Cat Is Dead" which Guttenberg not only stars in but directs as well. However, as the movie progressed so did this goodwill fast begin to fade.

The cardinal mistake for Guttenberg was in taking on the role of director. As an actor he acquits himself fairly well, but his directorial ineptitude pretty much sinks this project. The cast of fairly unknown actors have moments of embarrassing amateurism. Even the much experienced Shirley Knight, in a small role, seems terribly ill at ease.

It's a great pity, for in the hands of an accomplished director this could have been an entertaining and even moving film, which unfortunately it remains very far from being.

Funny stuff. I laughed my ass off. I went in on a whim and I was glad that I did. It was a real emotional roller coaster. I couldn't make up my mind with what they were trying to say with the ending, but aside from that it was fun.

Jimmy is still getting over the death of his best friend. His one-man show gets the axe. He's being evicted from his apartment. His girlfriend leaves him for another guy, and his cat dies. He's been burglarized 2--now almost 3 times--this month. Eddie the divorced father turned gay burgler picked the wrong day to mess with Jimmy.

After having wrecked my car this week, enduring some rotten weather, and a handful of other minor complaints, I watched this movie. I realized, like Jimmy, that it could be much worse, but everything works out for the best in the end. This isn't the best (or worst) movie, but it is worth the warm, fuzzy feeling you get at the end.

This is a small film dealing with people going through breakdowns of various relationships. The main character is on the verge of being evicted from his apartment, having his girl-friend leaving him for another man, learning that his feline companion has died from a urinary infection at the vet's, and being burgled for a second time in two day's.

Steve Guttenberg does a super job as Jimmy, the main character. In fact, the entire cast does excellent work, especially, Ms Watrous, as the Jimmy's girl friend, and Lombardy, the young actor who plays the burglar.

The sense of outrage and loss which Jimmy feels comes across powerfully, as he takes his frustration out on the captured burglar who is bound and strapped semi-nude over the kitchen sink. What could have become ludicrous becomes very touching as each of them slowly realizes that they have much more in common than they could ever have realized. They are each others salvation! (Actually, it seems that the core of this awareness has been edited out because things happen a little too quickly! Several lines don't make sense)

I would say that the film does not go far enough in conveying the emotion that is developing between Jimmy and the burglar. There is a holding back which does not seem realistic. Even on the special feature section of the DVD the cast was responding to the final scenes and began shouting out comments as to the lack of physical expression between the two men.

Just saw a screening of this at Outfest. Despite it being based on one of my favorite novels (Kirkwood also wrote A Chorus Line) I was a bit disturbed to see 80's cheeseball actor Steve Guttenberg (he of Police Academy fame) as the director and star. Let me be the first to say I was pleasantly surprised. Not only was the film wonderful but Guttenberg's against type portrayal of a down-on-his luck actor who begins to doubt his heterosexuality in the face of tragedy managed to completely make me reevaluate his acting prowess. His hissy fit in the scene where he finds out his girlfriend is leaving him for another man is absolutely hilarious as are his comic interactions with his burglar/prisoner (Lombardo Boyar) which are both touching and funny. All in all a very good adaption of a very good book...one of the better independent films of the year from Steve Guttenberg of all people...who would have thought it?

Howard Stern fans keep on the lookout for one-time Howard sidekick/E! Scandals host/NY Gossip Columnist AJ Benza in a over-the-top turn as a gay hairdresser who tries to rape Guttenberg...LOL... hilarious!