A História não Autorizada de Mork e Mindy

I just watched this movie on it's premier night out of curiosity and sheer nostalgia. I liked (not loved) "Mork & Mindy" as a kid, mostly for Robin William's zany energetic performance. This movie made me remember why. Was the original show great? Not really, but Robin certainly was. Which brings me to this movie.

I was pleasantly surprised, expecting nothing more than a paint by numbers chronological retelling of the show (which in a way it was). But, of course, the real focus was on Robin. It was interesting to see Robin's journey from struggling street jester to national t.v star, and how such a drastic difference affected him and his long suffering wife. And my hat is off to star Chris Diamantopoulos as he portrayed Mr. Williams with integrity, sensitivity, and heart; not just a cute impression, although it was even dead-on. (On an unrelated note, I noticed that Robin's struggles were in some ways similar to Andy Kaufman, who was under-appreciated by network t.v. and held back creatively, but that's the "Taxi" behind the scenes biopic.)

All in all, this was a very enjoyable flick, in which I felt I got to know a little more of the man behind the Orkan. The acting was solid by all- never melodramatic like I suspected- and the story moved along well. Performances that were particularly good were by those who played Garry Marshall and John Belushi (the scene in which Belushi heckles Robin was a hoot!). Not a great masterpiece by any means (I would have liked to have seen a tad more about Pam Dawber), but definitely watchable, especially for those Robin Williams and "Mork & Mindy" fans out there. Nanoo, nanoo!

I don't now know where this kid came from who played Robin Williams but he was channeling. It was astounding at times. The writing was as good as it could get for someone trying to capture Robin's crazy improv in a script. And I gotta tell you, it made me cry. I really felt empathy with Robin and Valerie. When Robin walked away from his crippling vice and into the best years of his marriage and fatherhood and a mostly sparkling movie career, I was moved to tears.

Sometimes, these insider TV movies can be terribly cheesy. This one benefited greatly by the lead performance and Daniel Roebuck's loving turn as Garry Marshall. These people are heroes of mine and I came out of this movie with even more admiration for them than ever before.

My wife and I attended the same High School as Chris and my wife, Karen H. appeared in Man of La Mancha with Chris. We knew he was destined for great things then, and the performance we saw last night proved that right. We were told of his role minutes before the movie aired and was very glad that we got the call. Chris did a fantastic job as Robin, we were both very impressed. Daniel Roebuck was excellent as Gary Marshall. I understand that with every "unauthorized" biopic there is always some artistic license taken, I always watch these movies with some apprehension. But thanks to the terrific performances by the cast, it was more entertainment, than educational.

Great job Chris! Karen H. East York Collegiatge and myself are all proud of you.

Diamontopolous and Roebuck had the voices and mannerisms of their characters dead on. It was either great casting or great performances.

The rest of the show was pretty average for behind-the-scenes-of-a-TV-show kind of stuff. But it wasn't camped up like a couple of them have been. Ironically, they made references to Gilligans' Island within the show, but this movie felt a lot like that behind the scenes movie.

Surprisingly, it was interesting most of the time. There was a decent mixture of things commonly recognized and a few things not known so readily.

I have to agree with the first reviewer, the actor who played Robin Williams was amazing. If I wasn't looking at the screen, I would have sworn it was really him talking. But his performance was more than just an imitation of Robin Williams; he also showed a lot of the same skills that Robin Williams has. Skills like the ability to mimic others and the ability to switch characters practically mid-breath. I can't imagine that many people could capture so much of his character and personality. That performance alone made it a worthwhile watch.

The actors chosen to play other actors were good choices as well, they looked enough like the originals that it was easy to see who they were supposed to be.

I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would.