Ma femme est dingue

This romantic comedy from 1974 features Barbra Streisand as she was reaching her stride as an acting and comedy talent. Her husband is 1970's star Michael Sarazzin as the tall, long-haired, bell bottomed jeans taxi driver who fills the role as the romantic interest. The other talent on display is Estelle Parsons as the social climbing sister-in-law who delivers a long list of catty remarks aimed at putting the couple down; no doubt resulting from jealousy over their hot sex life. The 1970's produced a lot of great movies, including comedies, and this is certainly one of them. It is full of belly laughs from start to finish. Streisand is the harried housewife trying to make ends meet in the inflationary 1970's. Her interactions with her friends and business people in her Brooklyn neighbourhood will delight viewers. When she gets involved in a crazy scheme to raise money for her husband's foray in the futures market, the gags come in rapid succession. Lots of fun, it's a look back at the 1970's with anxieties that now seem somewhat homespun by today's standards. I saw it when it first came out and seeing it again was well worth the time.

The first 30 minutes or so of "For Pete's Sake" are amusingly on-target: Brooklyn housewife Barbra Streisand drops her husband off at work on their motorcycle and then pops a wheelie; she proceeds to forge a battle of the bills with the grocery store cashier, the insurance company, the banker, and the telephone company exec (Anne Ramsey, pre-"Throw Momma From The Train"). All this time, Streisand is in terrific comedic form, her expressions more and more incredulous. A dinner with her husband's relatives is equally funny, but "Pete" starts to give out somewhere after this. Barbra can't pay back loan sharks and has to work as a prostitute, a bomb deliverer and a cattle rustler. This last job gives the movie its big slapstick scene, which was a groaner even in 1974. Clearly a rip-off of Streisand's "What's Up, Doc?", it features a stampede of cows down the Columbia backlot accompanied by some of the silliest "country" music I've ever heard. If the filmmakers had kept the movie on a grounded level--and kept Streisand as the perfect Everywoman--this might have been a dead-on satire of the ailing economy. As it is, it's passable fluff. **1/2 from ****

Struggling financially, a young couple needs quick cash to invest in pork bellies, prompting the wife to concoct a series of wild schemes to raise the cash. This is basically a vehicle for Streisand to engage in some zaniness, trying to duplicate the success of "What's Up, Doc?" a couple of years earlier. Unlike the latter film, however, this one does not have a particularly inspired script. Babs tries hard, but is unable to raise the material beyond a level of mild amusement. To pay off loan sharks, she goes through a series of jobs, including prostitution (taken rather lightly), each meant to setup hilarious situations but the payoff isn't there.

This is one of the funniest comedies that Barbara Streisand ever made. To me this is an updated version of "I Love Lucy" only updated to fit the 1970's. Also, the assortment of mobsters, madames and underworld types makes this film even more funny. Also, Estelle Parsons role as Pete's bitchy sister in law is a scream. Too bad Henrietta didn't just pop her one.

Although this one got left out by the Steisand fans, but it's really an okay movie. Streisend as a the wife of the decade, that would do anything for her depressed cab driver husband, even if it means driving a herd of cattle throughout New York city. Streisand sure has an eye for comedy, and she's doing her best in this film. Not hilariously funny but a pleasant 90 minute flick