With a very good cast of comedians of the day, "Fire Sale" could be expected to be very funny and very good. Unfortunately, it is not. And that's mostly because of the screenplay and the characters of the cast. This is a film based entirely on ethnic humor with some otherwise funny antics. The plot is a good idea and it could have been a smashing comedy. It just needed to shed the ethnic stereotyping and put some wit and humor into the dialog.
Ethnic humor is usually oriented toward people of whatever group it happens to be about. It's comedy that they would understand, recognize and enjoy. It's the type of stories one tells within one's group. But when it is designed for larger audiences - especially people outside the group, it has to be done more carefully. First, so that a broader audience will recognize humor associated with the ethnic group that may not be in other groups. Second, so that it's genuinely funny to others as well. And, third, that it doesn't go overboard to the extent of stereotyping people.
I can recognize the ethnic comedy in this film, but it's no funnier that a smile or two. After that, it gets a little into stereotyping. But the biggest fault of the film is that it just lacks comedy. It isn't very funny. Where are the laughs in the script? The antics are the only thing this film has going, but they aren't very good. Rob Reiner's Russel Fikus isn't even funny with his first asthma attack brought on by fear of his dad. After that, his prolonged gasping and noise-making is tedious and boring.
I hadn't seen this film in the theater, and just watched it on DVD. After watching it, I reflected on how audiences expect movies with comedians in the lead roles to be very funny. But, so often, such films are little better than average, and sometimes they are terrible. Of course, there are some smashingly good comedies made by performers who are known mostly as comic actors. But some of the greatest comedies of all time have been with all--around actors who play drama, adventure, mystery, and other genres as well as comedy. My three stars for this film are for the antics of Sid Caeser - the only little bit of humor in it.
The critics of 1977 almost unanimously panned "Fire Sale," and audiences avoided it more than they went for it. The cast must have worked for peanuts, because the budget was a mere $1.5 million for such a cast of known names. It made a small profit in theaters with total ticket sales of $10 million. But that was a year when the first Star Wars film broke all records with a $1.6 billion box office. And, when two others films topped half a billion bucks and 34 films had box office receipts exceeding $100 million. Against this film's paltry box office, many other real comedies had good draws. The biggest of the year were "The Goodbye Girl" with a box office over $370 million, "Semi-Tough" at over $250 million, "Annie Hall" at just over $200 million, and "Airport" at more than $165 million.
Here's the only funny exchange of dialog in this film. Virginia, "Why are you so afraid of your father? He's a old man with a lousy business." Russell Fikus, "He's old, but he's a killer."
Ethnic humor is usually oriented toward people of whatever group it happens to be about. It's comedy that they would understand, recognize and enjoy. It's the type of stories one tells within one's group. But when it is designed for larger audiences - especially people outside the group, it has to be done more carefully. First, so that a broader audience will recognize humor associated with the ethnic group that may not be in other groups. Second, so that it's genuinely funny to others as well. And, third, that it doesn't go overboard to the extent of stereotyping people.
I can recognize the ethnic comedy in this film, but it's no funnier that a smile or two. After that, it gets a little into stereotyping. But the biggest fault of the film is that it just lacks comedy. It isn't very funny. Where are the laughs in the script? The antics are the only thing this film has going, but they aren't very good. Rob Reiner's Russel Fikus isn't even funny with his first asthma attack brought on by fear of his dad. After that, his prolonged gasping and noise-making is tedious and boring.
I hadn't seen this film in the theater, and just watched it on DVD. After watching it, I reflected on how audiences expect movies with comedians in the lead roles to be very funny. But, so often, such films are little better than average, and sometimes they are terrible. Of course, there are some smashingly good comedies made by performers who are known mostly as comic actors. But some of the greatest comedies of all time have been with all--around actors who play drama, adventure, mystery, and other genres as well as comedy. My three stars for this film are for the antics of Sid Caeser - the only little bit of humor in it.
The critics of 1977 almost unanimously panned "Fire Sale," and audiences avoided it more than they went for it. The cast must have worked for peanuts, because the budget was a mere $1.5 million for such a cast of known names. It made a small profit in theaters with total ticket sales of $10 million. But that was a year when the first Star Wars film broke all records with a $1.6 billion box office. And, when two others films topped half a billion bucks and 34 films had box office receipts exceeding $100 million. Against this film's paltry box office, many other real comedies had good draws. The biggest of the year were "The Goodbye Girl" with a box office over $370 million, "Semi-Tough" at over $250 million, "Annie Hall" at just over $200 million, and "Airport" at more than $165 million.
Here's the only funny exchange of dialog in this film. Virginia, "Why are you so afraid of your father? He's a old man with a lousy business." Russell Fikus, "He's old, but he's a killer."