O Maior Amante do Mundo

Back in April of this year I heard that The Worlds Greatest Lover was going to be on AMC and I was like yes I'm finally going to get to see this movie, I'm a big Gene Wilder fan so.....yeah, anyway the only problem was that it was going to come on at 3 in the morning on a Monday which was a school night for me so I asked my mom to record it for me, so when I came home from school I saw it and thought it was awesome, two or three months later I ordered the DVD off of Barnes and Nobles and I now have it on DVD what I had heard from this movie was that Gene not only stars in this movie but writes, directs, produces, and surprisingly wrote a song for the film as well, I think Gene's take on Rudolph Valentino was pretty cool and I think he came up with some clever ideas like "histerical laryngitis" and sticking your tongue out or twisting your words around whenever his character is nervous. I also thought Carol Kane was wonderful as Rudy's wife Annie and Dom Deluise was as funny as usual as movie mogul Adolph Zitz, one thing you probably found annoying was Gene Wilder's constant screaming and going into hysterics all the time but he does it brilliantly, plus the character of Rudy was very high-strung kinda like Leo Bloom right? so if you like slapstick comedy or if your a fan of Gene Wilder, I highly recommend this and I'd say its another one of Gene Wilder's forgotten films and its a great one to look out for, I'd give it a 7.5 out of 10.

Gene Wilder and Carol Kane make a wonderful couple in this very funny movie about a guy's romantic hubris and his journey to prove himself in silent movie Hollywood. It's silly and romantic and lots of run - wonderful music by John Morris (I'm lucky - I have the record!)... If you can find it, you should see it. I wish it would come out on DVD!

Interesting that 20th Century Fox gave Gene Wilder a second chance to develop his talents as a writer-director-star (and producer AND songwriter this time) after "The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother" left most critics indifferent. "Brother" wasn't terrible, and it reportedly grossed twenty million dollars, but as comic movie-making it was a botch (it had too much manic energy for one picture). Here, Wilder plays a Milwaukee schnook who travels to Los Angeles in the 1920's with his new bride to audition for Rainbow Pictures' answer to Rudolph Valentino. Wilder doesn't float gags around, he hammers away at them without much subtlety or finesse; he loves a good burlesque gag and he's fond of old-fashioned slapstick, but he needs more soft edges (the best scenes are the ones featuring Carol Kane, who is handled gingerly playing the wife). Lots of running jokes (bad ones, like Gene's character being named Rudy Valentine, that simply don't pay off), and too much of Dom DeLuise, bring the picture down. There are some laughs: Gene making eyes at a plain Jane on the train, an overflowing bathtub in a posh hotel. Wilder certainly has lots of ideas, but the results are more miss than hit. ** from ****

I personally thought the film was too long, and had too many belabored or slowly timed gags. They needed to be more crisply and unselfconsciously performed to work.

The Abalone character was great, and his give and take with people was one of the better points. Still, to have the A-Baloney bit pounded into the ground didn't improve the humor. Too much of a good thing is too much of a good thing.

Same is true for the 'sex by numbers' bit. Clever, but needed tightening up.

This said, I'm usually a big fan of Wilder's work. This one just fell a bit flat for me.

This production was built around the search for the next Rudolph Valentino. While this work has become dated, it was filmed as a pseudo-retrospective at the time, so it was already "dated" the day it was filmed.

This is a total Gene Wilder vehicle. He wrote the screenplay, directed the movie, and was the movie's sole credited producer. He is also THE star of the movie. He does share the limelight with Carol Kane (a pure delight, as usual), but this was one of Wilder's brightest moments. By this time, the world realized they had a comedic genius on their hands and after this work Wilder pretty much had the Midas Touch for a while.

Kane plays Annie Hickman, the world's greatest Valentino fan. Wilder portrays a Milwaukean baker who is at the end of his rope. His idiosyncrasies are so severe, he finds it impossible to maintain employment. Upon learning of a contest held by Rainbow Studios (NOT the #1 studio) to find the next Rudolph Valentino, Rudy Hickman just "knows" this is his ticket to a better life. His wife leaves him to go find Mr. Valentino. But once Hickman is in the middle of it all, he realizes his wife is what is most important to him and he sets the works in motion to woo her away from Rudolph Valentino. The formula makes for some of the best heart-warming entertainment that's hit the big screen. It's endearing and funny in its bittersweet malaise.

It also goes a long way towards showing what CAN be done with no effects and no locations beyond the Studio Backlot and a few, cheap but decent sets.

While it is frayed about the edges, this classic favorite is one ripe for a DVD restoration...perhaps even a 2-disk director's cut for those of us fans who have BEEN fans since the beginning.

It rates an 8.8/10 from...

the Fiend :.