Enter Laughing

This is a poignant, funny, coming of age film, based loosely on Carl Reiner's introduction to show business during the depression. Teenage David decides to become an actor to the dismay of his mother, played superbly by Shelley Winters, as an ever-suffering Jewish Mom ("Whatever makes you happy"). There are great performances by Jack Gilford as David's old-world boss, worried that he may be mixed up with an Italian girl ("Wanda, I think", he tells David when she calls). Mel Ferrer and Reni Santoni have a hilarious scene, on which the title is based, where David is given the stage direction "Enter Laughing", and does his best to comply, with no success. It brought tears to my eyes. Elaine May sets up punch lines like a pro, and Janet Margolin is adorable as the girlfriend, and Don Rickles has a nice, small role, that suits him well.

The screenplay sounds like it was written by Neil Simon. It should have gotten more recognition. Well Worth seeing.

I first saw the last three quarters of this movie on TV in the early 70's. I couldn't stop laughing. I purchased the video several years ago, and after having seen the movie at least 3 or 4 time since, I still can't stop laughing. It's easily the funniest movie I've ever seen, and it didn't get nearly the recognition it should have /I guess the Viet Nam war numbed our funny bones back in 1967/. This movie should be brought back in an updated, digitized format. If anyone goes to see it - prepare to laugh. Also, besides being a very funny movie, it's also a very cute movie than everyone will enjoy. It's hard to believe that this movie was made almost 40 years ago. It just goes to show that real humor is ageless. Many would think that comedian Don Rickles would be the funny one in this film, but it turns out that Jose Ferrer and Jack Gilford are the real funny men. I could go on and on about this film - get a copy of it and enjoy. You'll see what I mean.

The first few minutes of this movie were nearly perfection. And while the level of humor couldn't be sustained all the way through, since there had to be more dramatic and romantic moments in the middle, there is some truly great material here. The play within a play was the funniest I had seen since "Noises Off"--David may have entered, but we were the ones laughing.

All of the leading performers did such a good job it's hard to single anyone out. One exception is the actors in the play, but then they were supposed to be bad, which means they were good. The first actor to speak in in the play, however, did an excellent job.

Because of my familiarity with these people, I felt Don Rickles and Jack Gilford stood out. I actually did not know Jack Gilford for years except as the man in the Cracker Jack commercials, but I think he did a fine job here. Don Rickles only had two scenes, but his performance in one of them was one of the best of the movie. Hilarious. And he and David set up one of the best quotes.

Jose Ferrer also made an impact. Yes, he had good reason to yell half the time.He did it very well. Overall, his may have been the standout performance.

I didn't recognize Rob Reiner, son of director Carl, and forgot to look for him until I saw the closing credits. Fortunately, this was on my TiVo. He was one of those auditioning for the role David got. Only a couple of lines, but he was pretty good. No sign he would become great, but looking at him a second time, he could have done more.

This movie had lots of great music, like so many of the era. People just don't know everything Quincy Jones was capable of.

This was a real winner.

I've seen this movie several times over the years. There are a lot of good, dependable familiar-face comic actors in this. I never heard of the lead, Reni Santori, before or after, but he was quite OK. Shelley Winters plays his mother. Mr. Santori wants to become a Great Actor and attends a joke of an acting school headed by Jose Ferrer and his not-quite-young daughter, Elaine May, and they provide the funniest parts. Poor Former Great Actor Jose Ferrer is a cynical, washed up, bitter drunken individual who, faced with his paying client, looks on aghast while he auditions (under the name of 'Don Coleman'). And he sips from a straw from a pocket flask and mutters, 'AND THEY WONDER WHY I DRINK!'. Supposedly set in the 30's (in no way that I can detect) because it is based on Carl Reiner's memoirs from that time. The opening night performance is equally hilarious. Otherwise, the in-between parts, the mundane romance bits, kind of drag on, but when it's funny, it is FUNNY. Well worth a look.

"Hello......you."

A terrific movie whose human and humorous story is enlivened by an ensemble company of great character actors at the top of their form: Shelley Winters as the archetypal manipulative mom, Jack Gilford as the tough but sympathetic boss, Ferrer and May, Richard Deacon as the long-suffering stage manager, Michael G. Pollard as the best friend, and Don Rickles as the put-upon Harry Hamburger.

But Ferrer gets two of my favorite lines in all of cinema. Walking by as Rickles and Santoni exchange pants -- don't ask -- he says, "We don't GO for that sort of thing." And, forced to complement Santoni after a disastrous performance, he mutters to himself, "Thank God I'm an alcoholic!"