All of Me

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Buy This Item All of Me by Lions Gate  Available from Amazon  $9.98  on 11-28-2008     This 1984 Carl Reiner comedy is one of the best film showcases of Steve Martin and Lily Tomlin's sundry talents. Tomlin plays a sickly spinster who is given the chance to transfer her soul to the body of another woman, and thus go on living. But the magic man who is supposed to make this happen goofs up and locks her spirit inside a bachelor lawyer (Martin)--or, more accurately, within the right half of the poor fellow's body. Suddenly, the swinging man-about-town is literally at odds with himself, unable to make a self-determining decision without a huge internal struggle. Martin's physical comedy, always remarkable, is absolutely inspired this time around, as he convincingly portrays a man split down the middle between opposing sensibilities. This is also one of the best films by Reiner, a filmmaker whose novel ideas are sometimes more striking than their execution. <I>--Tom Keogh</I> Reader Reviews As his recently published memoir, Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life, reminds me, Steve Martin catapulted to mainstream mega-success by bringing zeitgeist freshness onto the comedy scene. When he first transitioned to the big screen, he had quite a productive partnership going with director and fellow comic actor Carl Reiner beginning with his yuk-fest film debut, The Jerk (1979), continuing with the noir film-clip-oriented Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982) and the sci-fi farce The Man with Two Brains (1983), and then peaking with this 1984 farce, sadly their last collaboration. Captured in a surprisingly clean version on this 1999 DVD, this is still one of the funniest movies of the 1980's simply because its innately silly concept is executed with side-splitting freshness and a great amount of heart. Written by Phil Alden Robinson (who went on to write and direct the definitive fantasy-laden paean to lost fathers, Field of Dreams), the plot concerns Roger Cobb, an idealistic but unfulfilled lawyer who moonlights as a jazz guitarist. His sympathetic boss assigns him a case to handle the estate of sickly Edwina Cutwater, a wealthy eccentric who has decided to have Prahka Lasa, a daffy Tibetan meditation master, transfer her soul into the body of Terry Hoskins, the stableman's comely daughter. That way, Edwina can enjoy life anew in Terry's youthful body while Terry's soul becomes part of the universe. Roger understandably doesn't buy this, but before he can quit the case, he accidentally becomes the recipient of Edwina's soul upon her sudden death in his firm's office. The fun begins in earnest when Roger and Edwina both inhabit the two halves of Roger's body, a comically disastrous situation with their respective sensibilities at war. Needless to say, further complications ensue. As Roger, Martin shows that he was one of the most adroit physical actors around with his masterfully antic performance, especially when Edwina first enters Roger's body on the sidewalk and then in inevitably complex scenes involving the men's room and later a lovemaking session. As snooty but vulnerable Edwina, Lily Tomlin has less to do since her voiceover primarily dictates the scenes after the soul transference, but she is still a hilarious match for Martin when they battle for domination over Roger's bodily movements. In probably the most politically incorrect role since Mickey Rooney's Japanese neighbor in Breakfast at Tiffany's, Richard Libertini is downright hilarious as the swami as he seems to make up his own catchphrases on the spot ("Bakinbowl! Bakinbowl!"). Madolyn Smith has one funny scene as Roger's venal fiancée Peggy, and I only wish she could have switched roles with Victoria Tennant, who as Terry, is the film's only marginal disappointment with her stiff manner too much at odds with the rest of the comically dexterous cast. The liberating dance under the closing credits is one of the best endings to any movie comedy. Unfortunately, other than the original theatrical trailer, there are no extras with the current DVD on the market.

All of Me Available from Amazon Price: $9.98 Updated on 11-28-2008.

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