Fell into a YouTube hole the other night with friends, and the trailer for Arthur played. It is largely based on Dudley Moore's obnoxious drunk laugh, and I knew then I had to watch the movie (which I hadn't seen since it aired on TV when I was a kid) almost as a drinking game (without the drinks because I would have been dead from alcohol poisoning before the end of the opening credits). Though it was surprisingly showered with Oscar noms (and a win) back in the day, there are elements of this that have aged very badly. Moore's drunken act isn't funny anymore (if it ever was), and though it still works to give the character some pathos, I wish he'd been less drunk through the climax. When he's not on the sauce, he's perfectly charming and likeable, but I wanted him to be better motivated (and better motivate others) in those closing moments. The other thing that dates it is that it's hard these days to properly care for the idle rich, and this pampered 40+ year-old man-child, while kind-hearted, may still remind us of the worst elements of the so-called Top 1%. What it DOES have going for it is just about everything else. Dudley Moore isn't really funny, but the actors/characters around him are, especially, but not exclusively John Gielgud as the butler and true father figure. Liza Minnelli also puts in a properly naturalistic performance and she and Moore play very well against one another (even if the real "romance" is between Moore and Gielgud). And no, once you get past the opening and an Act 2 relapse, there isn't THAT much of the obnoxious laughter.
The moral of this cinematic tale is that one can find love, happiness and a fulfilling life as a dipsomaniac; a depressing movie and a waste of fine acting talent.
Add your comment
Comments 1 - 3 of 3
mbkeene
As a fan of alcoholism and copious amounts of cold hard cash, I beg to differ.Siskoid
Fell into a YouTube hole the other night with friends, and the trailer for Arthur played. It is largely based on Dudley Moore's obnoxious drunk laugh, and I knew then I had to watch the movie (which I hadn't seen since it aired on TV when I was a kid) almost as a drinking game (without the drinks because I would have been dead from alcohol poisoning before the end of the opening credits). Though it was surprisingly showered with Oscar noms (and a win) back in the day, there are elements of this that have aged very badly. Moore's drunken act isn't funny anymore (if it ever was), and though it still works to give the character some pathos, I wish he'd been less drunk through the climax. When he's not on the sauce, he's perfectly charming and likeable, but I wanted him to be better motivated (and better motivate others) in those closing moments. The other thing that dates it is that it's hard these days to properly care for the idle rich, and this pampered 40+ year-old man-child, while kind-hearted, may still remind us of the worst elements of the so-called Top 1%. What it DOES have going for it is just about everything else. Dudley Moore isn't really funny, but the actors/characters around him are, especially, but not exclusively John Gielgud as the butler and true father figure. Liza Minnelli also puts in a properly naturalistic performance and she and Moore play very well against one another (even if the real "romance" is between Moore and Gielgud). And no, once you get past the opening and an Act 2 relapse, there isn't THAT much of the obnoxious laughter.Illiteratus
The moral of this cinematic tale is that one can find love, happiness and a fulfilling life as a dipsomaniac; a depressing movie and a waste of fine acting talent.