Funny About Love
{{Short description|1990 American romantic comedy film}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2014}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Funny About Love
| image = Funny About Love.jpg
| alt = Gene Wilder has a confused look on his face as an infant sits on his head holding a clock
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = Leonard Nimoy
| producer = Jon Avnet
Jordan Kerner
| writer = Norman Steinberg
David Frankel
| based_on = "Convention of the Love Goddesses"
- {{cite news |last1=Greene |first1=Bob |author1-link=Bob Greene |title=Convention of the Love Goddesses |url=https://classic.esquire.com/article/1986/10/1/convention-of-the-love-goddesses |access-date=10 October 2022 |work=Esquire Archive |date=October 1986 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221010221304/https://classic.esquire.com/article/1986/10/1/convention-of-the-love-goddesses |archive-date=10 October 2022}}
- {{cite news |last1=Greene |first1=Bob |author1-link=Bob Greene |title=Print Article: Convention of the Love Goddesses |url=https://classic.esquire.com/article/19861001039/print |access-date=10 October 2022 |work=Esquire Archive |date=October 1986 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221010221257/https://classic.esquire.com/article/19861001039/print |archive-date=10 October 2022}}
in Esquire Magazine by Bob Greene
| starring = {{Plainlist|
| music = Miles Goodman
| cinematography = Fred Murphy
| editing = Peter E. Berger
| studio = Duffy Films
Avnet/Kerner Productions
| distributor = Paramount Pictures
| released = {{Film date|1990|09|21}}
| runtime = 101 minutes{{cite web|title=Funny About Love|url=http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/funny-about-love-1970-0|work=United International Pictures|publisher=British Board of Film Classification|date=October 26, 1990|accessdate=May 30, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140531110534/http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/funny-about-love-1970-0 |archive-date=2014-05-31}}
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget =
}}
{{external media
| float =
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| image1 =Farrah Fawcett, [https://www.datocms-assets.com/39109/1612363612-1612189507529427-farrah-fawcett-funny-about-love.jpg "Funny About Love"], publicity still{{cite news |title=Farrah Fawcett's Hair Evolution |url=https://www.lofficielusa.com/beauty/farrah-fawcett-hair-evolution-70s |access-date=10 October 2022 |work=L'Officiel USA}}
| image2 = Gene Wilder, Farrah Fawcett, [https://cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/P4AWHIBOIVCYFON7H7BCW3222A.jpg "Funny About Love"], publicity still{{cite news |title=A decade in pictures: Iconic stories, photos and covers of the 1990s |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/news/photos/nydn-new-york-decade-photos-of-the-1990s-20190624-photogallery.html |access-date=10 October 2022 |work=New York Daily News}}
| image3 = Mary Stuart Masterson, Gene Wilder, Christine Lahti and Farrah Fawcett. [https://web.archive.org/web/20221010233832/https://thumbs.worthpoint.com/zoom/images1/1/0709/08/farrah-fawcett-funny-love-orig-1-x_1_a05b40db3e98775665e6b4007dd41a28.jpg "Funny About Love"], publicity still{{cite web |title=Funny About Love (1990) RARE ORIG 2 1/2 X 3 TRANS |url=https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/farrah-fawcett-funny-love-orig-1-x-75301685 |website=worthpoint |access-date=10 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221010233832/https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/farrah-fawcett-funny-love-orig-1-x-75301685 |archive-date=10 October 2022}}
| image4 = Gene Wilder, Farrah Fawcett, [https://web.archive.org/web/20221010233901/https://thumbs.worthpoint.com/zoom/images1/1/0707/06/farrah-fawcett-funny-about-love-sexy-orig_1_3de65390383ad89491dc9e0ba85207c8.jpg "Funny About Love"], publicity still{{cite web |title=FUNNY ABOUT LOVE - ORIG. STILL |url=https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/farrah-fawcett-funny-about-love-sexy-orig-5 |website=worthpoint |access-date=10 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221010233900/https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/farrah-fawcett-funny-about-love-sexy-orig-5 |archive-date=10 October 2022}}
}}
Funny About Love is a 1990 American romantic comedy film directed by Leonard Nimoy and starring Gene Wilder in his first romantic lead along with Christine Lahti and Mary Stuart Masterson.{{cite news|last=Wallace|first=David|title=Gene Wilder on his first turn as a romantic lead in 'Funny About Love'|date=22 September 1990|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-gene-wilder-interview-1990-20160829-snap-story.html|accessdate=30 April 2018}} With a screenplay by Norman Steinberg and David Frankel, the film is based on the article "Convention of the Love Goddesses" in Esquire Magazine by Bob Greene.{{cite web |last1=Bekman |first1=Stas |title=564 Funny About Love (1990) |url=https://stason.org/TULARC/movies/trivia1/564-Funny-About-Love-1990.html |website=stason.org |access-date=10 October 2022}} The film was a critical and commercial failure.
Plot
New York cartoonist Duffy Bergman marries gourmet chef Meg Lloyd.{{cite web |title=Funny About Love |url=http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/1267 |website=FulvueDrive-In.com |access-date=10 October 2022}} Meg wants to have a baby. Duffy agrees, but after unsuccessful attempts, Duffy encourages her to focus on her career and come back to the child issue later. After his mother's death, however, Duffy becomes fixated on wanting to have a child. Meg no longer sees this as a priority, as she's trying to open her own restaurant. The two start to have marital problems, leading to a separation.
Duffy travels to Arizona to speak at a Delta Gamma sorority convention. He explains that the Delta Gammas have always been his dream girls—his Love Goddesses. There he meets the much younger Daphne Delillo, and when she moves to New York to work as a network sports reporter, their attraction develops into a relationship. Daphne becomes pregnant. Duffy is happy to father a child, but uncomfortable with how fast this relationship is progressing. When she has a miscarriage, Daphne breaks up with him, believing that they were really staying in the relationship for the baby.
At his father's wedding, Duffy hears news about Meg and decides to go to her restaurant. He tries to reconcile with her, insisting that he doesn't care if they remain childless as long as he can be with her. Duffy discovers that Meg has adopted a baby boy.
Cast
- Gene Wilder as Duffy Bergman
- Christine Lahti as Meg Lloyd Bergman
- Mary Stuart Masterson as Daphne Delillo
- Robert Prosky as Emil Thomas Bergman
- Stephen Tobolowsky as Hugo
- David Margulies as Dr. Benjamin
- Wendie Malick as Nancy
- Celeste Yarnall as Madge
- Anne Jackson as Adele Bergman
- Susan Ruttan as Claire
- Freda Foh Shen as Nurse
- Regis Philbin as himself
- Patrick Ewing as himself
Production
The film was originally produced with Gene Wilder's character having three love interests - Christine Lahti, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Farrah Fawcett. After test screenings, a decision was made to cut all of Fawcett's scenes and re-edit.{{cite web |last1=Greene |first1=Bob |title=Commentary: Farrah in the morning |url=https://www.cnn.com/2009/US/06/28/greene.farrah/index.html |website=CNN |accessdate=10 February 2020}}{{cite news |title=Farrah Gets a Cut |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-09-23-ca-1463-story.html |access-date=10 October 2022 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=23 September 1990}} These edits were late in the production process, and it is believed that some promotional material was distributed with incorrect information.{{cite news |title=Tanglewood Mall Cinema |url=https://www.roanoke.com/tanglewood-mall-cinema/image_bbbc6080-e030-5d6c-9818-a46a3b4120cb.html |accessdate=10 February 2020 |work=The Roanoke Times |issue=File 1990 |date=Feb 7, 2020}} Fawcett is not credited in the movie.
Release
=Box office=
Funny About Love opened in 1,213 theaters on September 21, 1990 and grossed $3,036,352 in its opening weekend, landing at #5, behind Goodfellas, Postcards from the Edge{{'}}s second weekend, Ghost{{'}}s eleventh, and Narrow Margin.{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?yr=1990&wknd=38&p=.htm |title=Weekend Box Office Results for September 21–23, 1990 |website=Box Office Mojo |date=2010-06-09 |accessdate=2010-09-07}} The film would eventually gross $8,141,292 in the domestic box office.{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=funnyaboutlove.htm |title=Funny About Love (1990) |website=Box Office Mojo |accessdate=2010-09-07}}
=Critical reception=
The film was panned by critics.{{cite news |last1=Keenan |first1=Dorothy |title=Review: 'Funny About Love' Is Just That A Warm, Witty Romance, Despite The Narrow Plot |url=https://buffalonews.com/article_cdfdf8ac-0bf9-5c5c-a2b0-792206eff693.html |access-date=10 October 2022 |work=Buffalo News |language=en}} Based on 7 reviews, the film has a 0% rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes.{{cite web | url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/funny_about_love/ | title=Funny About Love | work=Rotten Tomatoes | publisher=Flixster | accessdate=May 30, 2014}}
Janet Maslin of the New York Times gave the film a mixed review.
{{cquote |Infertility, divorce and loneliness shape the rambling plot, but they somehow do little to make the film substantial...... Once the film settles down to follow Duffy and Meg in their eager efforts to conceive a baby, it develops at least some recognizable emotional content.{{cite news|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?_r=1&res=9C0CE5DD1E31F932A1575AC0A966958260 |title=Funny About Love :: nytimes.com :: Reviews |newspaper=nytimes.com |date= 1990-09-21|accessdate=2010-08-18 |first=Janet |last=Maslin}}}}
Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times had nothing but disdain for the film, giving it only a half of a star rating out of the four stars scale he utilized.
{{cquote |Funny About Love provides an opportunity to spend 101 minutes in the presence of the most cloying, inane and annoying dialogue I've heard in many a moon, punctuated only by occasional lapses into startling bad manners.{{cite news|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/funny-about-love-1990 |title=Funny About Love :: Reviews |publisher=Rogerebert.com |date= September 21, 1990|accessdate=2010-08-18}}}}
Gene Siskel was also scathing in his review on Siskel and Ebert’s show At the Movies, remarking that unusually for him, during the screening of the film he stood up in horror at one scene taking place at a sporting event, and said to Ebert: “I’ve seen it all.”
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|0099623|Funny About Love}}
- {{mojo title|funnyaboutlove|Funny About Love}}
- {{rotten-tomatoes|funny_about_love|Funny About Love}}
{{Leonard Nimoy}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Funny About Love}}
Category:1990 romantic comedy films
Category:American romantic comedy films
Category:Films directed by Leonard Nimoy
Category:Films set in New York City
Category:Films shot in New York City
Category:Paramount Pictures films
Category:Films scored by Miles Goodman
Category:Films with screenplays by Norman Steinberg