Forasteiros em Nova Iorque

Now that I'm retired I do a bit of traveling now and I make itineraries that I like to stick to. What happens to Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis is every traveler's nightmare in between all the laughs.

Starting with the circling around the airport, I remember once circling an hour and a half at Newark Airport because flights were backed up and that's after an hour delay from Rochester. That was 20 years ago and I haven't had anything like that happen to me recently. It can be incredibly nerve wracking and I well sympathize with what was happening.

That would normally be enough. But Mr.&Mrs. Kellerman go exponential Murphy on this trip. Everything that can go wrong does, every single solitary thing from lost luggage to canceled hotel reservations to spending a night on the ground at Central Park and plenty more besides. All this on a nice dreamed of vacation in New York for this middle America Ohio couple who are combining business and pleasure as Lemmon is also in town for a job interview.

Jack Lemmon is a perfect fit for his American everyman character and Sandy Dennis provides an interesting brand of quirkiness as the wife. Although there are some talented players in the cast including a rising Billy Dee Williams in the role of a ticket agent, they're fairly one dimensional as the film for about 90% of the time focuses on Lemmon and Dennis and their travails in the Big Apple.

Do they get out of all their woes. Well I can say is, think about that musical number that Bing Crosby and Olga San Juan did in Blue Skies.

I didn't appreciate this film until I saw the updated version. This film starring Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis as Ohio visitors to New York City. The trip is nearly disastrous from the moment that they get off the airplane. Of course, this film is one of Neil Simon's better works. The couple lose their luggage, get robbed, and don't have a clue about the way that the city works. George is here for a job interview and has high hopes of moving to the city with his wife, kids, and dogs. He has a romanticized notion of New York City that he sees in the films and television shows. Being there is different from just the movies, I think the ending speaks for itself. New York City is not for everyone but it's how they came to the realization of how tough it is to be New Yorker and even the ending is something that could have generated a sequel.

The real fascinating thing about cinema,is that no matter how many movies you might have seen,there are always going to be films that you have missed and are great ,to say the least.This is the case with the "Out of Towners". I saw a few years ago the remake with Steve Martin and as a big fan of Steve's i liked the film.Actually i didn't know back then ,that there was an original with Jack Lemmon.Anyway i have bought the DVD and just put it in a box to watch it sometime. I never thought, that this was an absolutely hilarious comedy ,with Jack Lemmon, for me ,being even better than "the odd couple". His character is similar to the one he played alongside Matthau ,but we are talking about an amazing performance here.I'm really surprised that he wasn't even nominated for an Oscar(he was nominated though for a Golden Globe). A couple (Sandy Dennis plays the wife)starts a journey to N.Y ,because Lemmon has planned an interview for his new job.He has a strict schedule that includes dinner at the "4 Seasons" restaurant and spending the night with his wife at his luxury hotel. I really can't describe what's happening after the boarding on the plane.EVERYTHING THAT COULD GO WRONG WENT WRONG. But the real magic of the film is that at no point in the film ,you can accuse the writers that they overdid it with the story.And Lemmon has a big part to do with that, because he plays amazingly. Sandy Dennis also plays her part extremely well and has a fine chemistry with Lemmon. A classic in my collection ,with out a doubt in the top-5 of all the comedies i have ever watched. Watch it and enjoy yourselves.

Control freak Jack Lemmon from Ohio has gotten a new prestigeous job offer in New York. He only has to get there by 9 am the folowing morning. Will he or wont he get there on time? Everything was planned to the tee, but what can go wrong, will go hilariously wrong, cumulating in numerous aggrevating disasters that keep raining down on this man from out of town, who is completely unaware of the dangers of New York.

If you like Jack Lemmon's nervous ticks and worrying antics then you will surely like "The Out of Towners", which is filled with more disasters then a shipwreck movie. "After Hours" by Martin Scorsese and "Plain, trains and automobiles" with John Candy and Steve Martin must have been inspired by this story, because it has got so many resemblances. Steve Martin did a remake of "The Out of Towners" but it has got none of the fantastic nervous antics that Jack Lemmon specializes in. This movie could also be called "Die Hard for Travellers", because at the end of his journey Jack Lemmon looks like Bruce Willis having been shot to pieces.

Especially recommended for tourists who are planning to visit New York!

I sat down at my computer, intent on writing a brief review of 'The Out of Towners (1970).' I figured it would take about thirty minutes to complete the review, and so planned my night accordingly. At first everything went to plan, and I remained on schedule; then – with a dull droning sound, like that of a whimpering animal – my computer suddenly took it upon itself to shut down for no apparent reason. With a light curse, I leaned across and rebooted it, and this time we got as far as the Windows welcome screen. Then the lights flickered brightly, and I was suddenly plunged into darkness; the power was out. Reflecting that perhaps it was only a problem with my own fusebox, I stepped out and circled around to the back of the house, where I fumbled somewhat pathetically with a few of the electrical dials. Just as I was heading inside, the power clicked back on, something in the fusebox sparked, and, before long, my entire home was ablaze… and nary a firetruck in sight.

'The Out of Towners (1970)' might just be the most frustrating film I've ever seen. Whatever can go wrong will go wrong, and at the worst possible time, in the worst possible way. For a cocky businessman (Jack Lemmon) and his neglected wife (Sandy Dennis), a meticulously-planned trip to New York City is first disrupted by a seemingly-minor delay, which gradually blossoms into a fully-fledged urban disaster. With an important business interview scheduled for 9:00AM the following morning, George Kellerman must endure every difficulty known to Mankind, including the input of mousy wife, Gwen, with whom he is forced to form a shaky alliance. Flight delays, lost baggage, monsoon weather, muggings, kidnappings, city-wide transit strikes, vicious dogs, gas explosions – nothing is neglected, and George shouts himself hoarse throughout the proceedings, declaring his intentions to sue everybody whom he perceives as having contributed to his awful string of bad luck. Even God has seemingly neglected the pair, who are unceremoniously dismissed from a church by an unapologetic news camera crew.

Lemmon and Dennis are very entertaining in the main roles, and the various supporting performances complement the story perfectly. It's interesting to note how the husband-and-wife relationship shifts constantly as they are confronted by each new setback: at first, George is rather dismissive of his wife, using her primarily to "verify" facts to be later used in the courtroom. Though she subsequently commits some rather foolish acts, such as handing over George's $200 watch to a strange caped man, the couple do eventually acquire a mutual respect towards each other. Neil Simon's story might also be interpreted as a critique of modern society, in which citizens in the bustling metropolises are unwilling to offer help to those in need of their assistance. Burdened by his own hefty share of difficulties, George is quickly consumed by the selfishness of the city and comes to care only for his own wellbeing. Gwen, however, retains her sense of moral rectitude and pauses to care for a lost boy in Central Park. Remind me never to go to New York.