Goldie-Hawn Movie Reviews

There are two things that made me really enjoy seeing this film again for the first time in years. One is Goldie Hawn. She was both terminally cute and utterly adorable in this. The past few years I had mainly seen her in films from the past decade or so, and while she has remained extremely attractive, I didn't remember her in her twenties well enough to realize just how much she and her daughter Kate Hudson resemble one another at the same age (or nearly, since Goldie was 27 when she made this, and Kate is not yet that old). Kate Hudson is a chip off the old block if ever there was one. Goldie Hawn has had a fine career, but I always thought it should have been better than it was. She was a truly gifted comedienne, and one of the cutest women to ever walk the earth. Perhaps her sixties connection with LAUGH IN kept people from taking her seriously for many years, but she definitely should have been in more major projects. Even if everything in this film were bad, just being able to gaze at her extraordinary smile and riveting blue eyes would be enough.

A second thing that makes this film click is the remarkable Eileen Heckart. One of the premiere stage actors of her generation, the husky voiced, long-faced Heckart simply never found her place in the movies. While she managed a great stage career, many of us didn't have the privilege of living in New York so as to see her perform. One advantage of the movies is the ability for talented performers to display their talents in every godforsaken corner of the glove. Heckart is stellar as Don's overprotective mother, and it is an utter joy to hear her squeeze out a put down or insult. She won a well-deserved Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in this one.

I am not overly fond of the rest of the film. The problem is that this isn't really a movie: it is a play captured on celluloid. Some film versions of plays manage to transcend the source to make an exciting film. A classic example is TWELVE ANGRY MEN, which takes twelve jurors and locks them in a single room for nearly two hours. But it makes a great film because the camera is so magnificently active, moving agilely from close up to group shot to isolating a couple of figures. The camera in BUTTERFLIES ARE FREE is, however, static and passive. It merely stands in front of each scene and lazily absorbs the action. It doesn't get close and explore what it happening. In other words, the camera isn't an important part of the telling of the story. As a result, it never becomes more than what it was onstage. I also am not fond of Edward Albert Jr., but that is a strictly personal reaction, and not an objective criticism of the film. My final problem with the film is that sometimes, because it is merely a filmed play, it sometimes gets a tad dull in the dialogue. Some of the talk is [not good]. For instance, the scene that takes place the morning after Jill and Don sleep together, before Don's mother shows up, is quite dull. I almost wondered if the reason Goldie Hawn spent the entire scene in her underwear wasn't to make up for the dullness of what the two of them were saying.

So, not a masterpiece, but definitely worth seeing for catching the young Goldie Hawn and for the magnificent Eileen Heckart.

I watched Butterflies are Free on cable for the first time this past weekend. How did I ever miss this one! It was a very good story, and I thought the acting all around was outstanding. It's the story of a blind man, who is determined to make it on his own, much to the chagrin of his mother, who is portrayed brilliantly by Eileen Heckart. She won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her work here. And along with trying to be independent, he meets a woman who helps to bring him out into the world, and discover new things. Now I knew from the start that Goldie Hawn's character wasn't going to be completely sympathetic, but I guess you just have to see the movie to figure that out. The movie had me hook, line, and sinker. and I was glued to my couch for the whole thing. I really enjoyed this film, and recommend it.

This is one of the best movies I have ever seen, and I saw it for the first time yesterday on HBO. Goldie Hawn is hillarious in this movie, and the story is beautiful. If you like Goldie Hawn, and if you like a good, real love story, you will LOVE this movie.

This is a sweet movie about what happens when you add the pressures of family, unspoken expectations, and travel to a new marriage. no matter how well you think you know one another...

Burt Reynolds and Goldie Hawn are two of the most likeable actors in Hollywood, so it's natural that a movie that places them on-screen together is bound to be great, right?

Well, for the most part.

Yes, the two do have a natural chemistry, and the premise of the movie is decent enough. But as the movie progresses -- and as their characters' love affair begins to disintigrate -- the laughs get fewer and farther between and you might find yourself wanting to see what's on TV. However, if you fight through the lulls that dominate the middle-third of "Best Friends," you'll be rewarded with perhaps the best part of the movie -- the end. Ron Silver is great as a Stephen Spielburg-ish director, and seeing Burt and Goldie make up is worth watching the grueling break-up.

Funny, sad, heartwarming. I'm happy to see that Amazon has this movie for sale. The Patty Austin/James Ingram music gives a lovely air to this touching story.

I remember seeing The Sugarland Express in a movie theater on Long Island New York with my family when I was around 8 years old, actually it was just a few months before I turned 9 and thinking Goldie Hawn ( Foul Play) and William Atherton (Ghostbusters, and Bio-Dome) were really good and I was totally impressed with all of the action and adventure with those thrilling police car chases, the one police chase is so thrilling and amazing it just may knock your socks off! I'm sure this movie is probably a little dated in the year 2003 but It would be interesting to watch it again especially to see those amazing chases! If I remember correctly I think I remember hearing on TV that parts of this movie were based on a true story and I think this was the first movie that Steven Spielberg ever directed.

Steven Spielberg;s first movie was done on a moderate budget but it shows his then growing ability as a film maker to cast and work with the best actors for the roles. Produced by Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown, First movie where the music was scored by John Williams, great camera work by Vilmos Zsigmond, and edited by Verna Fields.

THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS, released in 1974, marked director Steven Spielberg's first big-screen effort (his 1971 suspense masterpiece DUEL being a TV movie), and a very good debut it was. Although not exactly a huge box office hit at the time, it remains an important film in that it gives permanent lie to those critics who say Spielberg has been nothing more than a popcorn huckster.

Loosely based on an incident that occurred in Texas in 1969, the film stars Goldie Hawn as a recently-released convict who breaks her husband (William Atherton) out of pre-release so that they can get back her infant son from the custody of his foster parents. In stealing the car of the parents of one of Atherton's former fellow inmates, they attract the attention of a Texas state trooper (Michael Sachs). When the car finally breaks down, they kidnap Sachs and force him at gunpoint to drive them across Texas, towards Sugarland, southwest of Houston.

Thus, in the film's first twenty minutes, the couple have managed to compile escape, grand theft auto, wreckless driving, illegal possession of firearms and assault. The minute they force Sachs behind the wheel, they add kidnapping--not exactly the best way to justify one's rights as a parent. Add to that almost the entire Texas state police force, led by Captain Harlan Tanner (Ben Johnson), and you have one of the ultimate pursuit stories. It's one that includes run-ins with rogue Louisiana state cops and a couple of redneck snipers in a used-car lot. In the meantime, their plight becomes a cause-celebre throughout the Texas countryside (the way the crowds of people wave them on seems to predate the real-life 1994 freeway saga of O.J. Simpson).

When they finally reach Sugarland, Sachs, Hawn, and Atherton drive up to the foster parents' home, only to find no one there; in fact, the whole town is deserted. Atherton is then shot by a police sniper, and the chase is back on, this time accelerating towards the Rio Grande and the Mexican border. Atherton dies of his wounds, and Sachs and Hawn are both humiliated but uninjured.

Although there are moments of humor and comedy in it, THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS is for the most part an offbeat crime drama with a tragic outcome in the style of BONNIE AND CLYDE. Hawn gives probably the performance of her life here as the desperate ex-con who uses every well-intentioned but misguided attempt to get her son back. But the image that she had as a bubble-headed blonde on "Laugh-In" caught pretty much everyone off guard. They weren't prepared for a serious-minded actress; that, plus the fact that this is not an upbeat film, contributed to THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS being only a minor hit at the box office, though it would lead to Spielberg making JAWS almost immediately afterwards.

The film, however, still works, not just because of Hawn's performance but also that of veteran character actor Johnson, who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 1971 for THE LAST PICTURE SHOW and was a fixture in the films of both John Ford and Sam Peckinpah. John Williams' mostly minimalist Americana music score and the fine cinematography of Vilmos Zsigmond, combined with Spielberg's keen understanding of character and story, make THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS an extremely interesting and worthwhile film after more than a quarter of a century.

I remember seeing The Sugarland Express in a movie theater on Long Island New York with my family when I was around 8 years old, actually it was just a few months before I turned 9 and thinking Goldie Hawn ( Foul Play) and William Atherton (Ghostbusters, and Bio-Dome) were really good and I was totally impressed with all of the action and adventure with those thrilling police car chases, the one police chase is so thrilling and amazing it just may knock your socks off! I'm sure this movie is probably a little dated in the year 2003 but It would be interesting to watch it again especially to see those amazing chases! If I remember correctly I think I remember hearing on TV that parts of this movie were based on a true story and I think this was the first movie that Steven Spielberg ever directed.

Steven Spielberg;s first movie was done on a moderate budget but it shows his then growing ability as a film maker to cast and work with the best actors for the roles. Produced by Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown, First movie where the music was scored by John Williams, great camera work by Vilmos Zsigmond, and edited by Verna Fields.

THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS, released in 1974, marked director Steven Spielberg's first big-screen effort (his 1971 suspense masterpiece DUEL being a TV movie), and a very good debut it was. Although not exactly a huge box office hit at the time, it remains an important film in that it gives permanent lie to those critics who say Spielberg has been nothing more than a popcorn huckster.

Loosely based on an incident that occurred in Texas in 1969, the film stars Goldie Hawn as a recently-released convict who breaks her husband (William Atherton) out of pre-release so that they can get back her infant son from the custody of his foster parents. In stealing the car of the parents of one of Atherton's former fellow inmates, they attract the attention of a Texas state trooper (Michael Sachs). When the car finally breaks down, they kidnap Sachs and force him at gunpoint to drive them across Texas, towards Sugarland, southwest of Houston.

Thus, in the film's first twenty minutes, the couple have managed to compile escape, grand theft auto, wreckless driving, illegal possession of firearms and assault. The minute they force Sachs behind the wheel, they add kidnapping--not exactly the best way to justify one's rights as a parent. Add to that almost the entire Texas state police force, led by Captain Harlan Tanner (Ben Johnson), and you have one of the ultimate pursuit stories. It's one that includes run-ins with rogue Louisiana state cops and a couple of redneck snipers in a used-car lot. In the meantime, their plight becomes a cause-celebre throughout the Texas countryside (the way the crowds of people wave them on seems to predate the real-life 1994 freeway saga of O.J. Simpson).

When they finally reach Sugarland, Sachs, Hawn, and Atherton drive up to the foster parents' home, only to find no one there; in fact, the whole town is deserted. Atherton is then shot by a police sniper, and the chase is back on, this time accelerating towards the Rio Grande and the Mexican border. Atherton dies of his wounds, and Sachs and Hawn are both humiliated but uninjured.

Although there are moments of humor and comedy in it, THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS is for the most part an offbeat crime drama with a tragic outcome in the style of BONNIE AND CLYDE. Hawn gives probably the performance of her life here as the desperate ex-con who uses every well-intentioned but misguided attempt to get her son back. But the image that she had as a bubble-headed blonde on "Laugh-In" caught pretty much everyone off guard. They weren't prepared for a serious-minded actress; that, plus the fact that this is not an upbeat film, contributed to THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS being only a minor hit at the box office, though it would lead to Spielberg making JAWS almost immediately afterwards.

The film, however, still works, not just because of Hawn's performance but also that of veteran character actor Johnson, who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 1971 for THE LAST PICTURE SHOW and was a fixture in the films of both John Ford and Sam Peckinpah. John Williams' mostly minimalist Americana music score and the fine cinematography of Vilmos Zsigmond, combined with Spielberg's keen understanding of character and story, make THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS an extremely interesting and worthwhile film after more than a quarter of a century.

I enjoyed the "First Wives Club"! Directed by Hugh Wilson in 1996, it's a movie many women can identify with about four college friends; Cynthia Swann Griffin (Stockard Channing), Elise Eliot Atchison (Goldie Hawn), Brenda Morelli Cushman (Bette Midler), and Annie MacDuggan Paradis (Diane Keaton). After graduation, each busy with her own life, time races by and the four lose track of each other. When Cynthia commits suicide Elise, Brenda, and Annie are reunited at her funeral and begin rekindling their friendship.

Getting reacquainted they learn that each of them has been tossed aside and replaced by younger woman in their men's lives, after many years of marriage. Brenda is separated from her husband but hopes to reconcile, Annie and her husband are in therapy and also separated, and Elise, an actress who worries she is past her prime, is faced with splitting everything and making alimony payments to her soon to be ex-husband. During a pity party, they realize it would be much better to spend their energy in getting even than to staying angry, feeling sorry for themselves, or following Cynthia's lead. To accomplish their goal a strategy tailored to each man is set in motion. I especially enjoyed the scene where Elise delivers the proceeds from the sale of their assets to her husband!
Although the girls start out seeking revenge, their focus begins to shift as the self-confidence they had in their youth is resurrected and they realize that life, like each of them, still has much more to offer. A great ending!

Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler and Diane Keaton star in FIRST WIVES CLUB, a movie about three women who's men have traded them in for younger models, and they set out to get revenge. The movie starts when Brenda (Bette Midler), Elise (Goldie Hawn) and Annie (Diane Keaton), all find out their friend Cynthia has commited suicide. At the funeral they meet up again, as they were college friends, and they start hanging out with each other more often. Annie's marriage is in the dumps, she's seeing a therapist, and later finds out the therapist is seeing her husband! Brenda is separated from her husband Morty but is still raising her son, and Elise is divorcing her husband Bill who in turn wants alimony. These women, furious, decide to take a stand and fight back, and they sure do! There are some really memorable moments like when the ladies go to a lesbian bar, when they break into Morty's condo and escape on the window washer stand, and more. Other stars in the movie include Sarah Jessica Parker, Eileen Heckart, Stephen Collins and more. And yes the book is much different, but this movie is still very entertaining. Overall a great movie, one of my favorites.

I love this movie! Not only was the cast excellent (3 stellar actresses in the prime of their lives...also of note a pre-Sex and the City Sarah Jessica Parker, and a pre-7th Heaven Stephen Collins), but the story was funny and touching and there was a great message. These women are great rolemodels. Now I saw this in the theater when I was 12; so this clearly was a movie my mom dragged me to see, but I'm glad she did. And I'm glad it's on DVD. But, I wish there could have been SOMETHING in the way of extras. The film was a definite hit, and I remember seeing bloopers on ET or something back in "96, not to mention the trailer alone has about 5 or 6 deleted scenes. So why no extras?! Well, there is the trailer (which has the deleted scenes, clearly filmed, just irrationally not on the disc). However, the movie alone is worth the buy and it's great to see actresses over 30 in a great movie playing great characters. I just wish there were more. Maybe it's time for a sequel. How about seeing the First Wives happily remarried and still helping others get even (now that they've "got everything")?

I enjoyed this movie a lot more than the critics. Maybe because I love goldie and mel, both of whom have been known to sign autographs for fans.

I think that Bird on A Wire was a brilliant movie because the Writers and Producers brought 2 wonderful actors together to make the stunning movie it is. With the comedy of Goldie Honking the BMW Horn and driving crazy to the suspense of the story of her old boyfriend Rick(Mel Gibson) who was supposed to have gotten killed years and years before.
This movie is one of my family's favorites and they have rented it and watched it more than 8 times! I think that Bird on A Wire is very good Classic and even though it was made in 1990 it is still a huge hit for the young and old.
In fact if you can I would say first before buying it you should rent it at your local movie renting store and watching it before buying it so you can see just how funny, suspenseful and Story-packed this movie is.
I rate this movie FIVE STARS because of this great combination to make this movie the most undescribable and fun movie in years that I have seen as a 'Classic'.

Considering what Mr. Maltin has to say in his review, I wonder if he ever bothered to watch this movie to the end. It is a fine-line satire of our society as it was in the late eighties and still is to this day. The action scenes force the hero through a lot of adventures and make him face the past. But all he can see is pretense. It is yes, an action-comedy movie, but if one would bother to look between the lines, he would see the irony of our own society. Despite the fact that Gibson and Hawn are stars, they work well together and gave us probably the comedic performances of their lives. David Carradine is top shape and delivers. In its genre, I would recommend it to anyone. There is humour, drama, action and spice in this little movie. All the ingredients that, in other times, made a great movie.

By now, Woody Allen fans have learned to take the long view in evaluating his, uh, oeuvre. Those of us who remember such early efforts as BANANAS or TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN--which we loved but no one was about to try and pass off as great cinema--also remember when almost out of the blue, Allen became a filmmaker to be reckoned with. LOVE AND DEATH was sharp, literate and suggested that could put together a well crafted film. But ANNIE HALL caused genuine excitement, garnered deserved critical acclaim and (although Allen purportedly could not have cared less) Academy Award nominations. It seemed, at the time, a quantum leap in terms of sophistication. It also hinted at artistic problems that would start to surface in later films.

One of the key differences between ANNIE and the earlier comedies was the lightly self-referential touch. If Allen had always played a nebbishy everyman in his early comedies: he now played--truer to his actual life experience certainly--a nebbishy successful filmmaker and comedian. The change was crucial. He was no longer a little man. Alvy Singer may have been a neurotic mess, but, like Woody Allen, he was a real player.

By the time we get to EVERYONE SAYS I LOVE YOU some 20 years later, Allen's milieu is clearly defined--and extended. The single and childless Alvy and Annie have been replaced by the multi-married, no longer together Joe and Steffi (Goldie Hawn) and their array of children from their various marriages, blended, by all appearances, more or less successfully. Like so many of Allen's later films, it takes place in a glowing, warm upper middle class Manhattan (when we're not off to Paris or Venice). It's a world most of us can only dream of (as was true of the young and struggling Woody Allen once).

If EVERYONE SAYS I LOVE YOU's setting is a kind of fantasyland, its characters are probably equally fantastic. Sophisticated, sweetly neurotic, but hardly desperate, these are people who remain best friends with former spouses, with no lingering "issues" rearing their heads at odd moments. College aged children play cupid for their own parents, and go, with a nod and a wicked wink, way beyond innocent PARENT TRAP territory. But nothing is done maliciously. Intentions are sort of good even when they involve such unethical behavior as eavesdropping on a private therapy session.

As warm and engaging as the characters are, and as attractive as their world seems, placing it all in the context of an old-style "burst into song" kind of musical belies all that. If the similar milieu of HANNAH AND HER SISTERS seemed like a possibility (a real world that we're just not fortunate enough to inhabit), this film's setting is pure fantasy. It is tempting to say that in his post-Mia period, Allen is projecting a vision of the kind of social world where forgiveness and reconciliation are not only possible, but are a virtual given.

It's probably not wise to rely on a psycho-analytic approach to Woody Allen's films. It's hard to ignore the fact though that both in real life and in his films, Allen went from dyed-in-the-wool bachelorhood to having an extended, perhaps eccentric family situation. It cannot be surprising that themes of family and forgiveness should appear in his later films. What's fascinating here is that these themes are addressed in a normally light-entertainment mode (musical comedy). It makes the yearning for innocence all the more profound in a way.

The music is pretty good too. Yes, the untrained voices of the actors work only in the context of the movie and no one's going to rush out looking for the soundtrack, but in that context, the device does work fairly well. Call it a little "alienation effect" or an "Allen-ation" effect. I find the songs effective for the most part, and certainly no more disturbing than some of the more traditional bits of surrealism in Woody Allen films (e.g. Marshall McLuhan jumping out from behind a movie display board in ANNIE HALL to lecture some pretentious buffoon about the real significance of his work). ANNIE was a great film, EVERYONE SAYS isn't quite on that level. But in the overall context of his work, it's certainly merits our attention--and our affection.

I confess I saw this movie just because I was watching all movies with Natalie Portman in them. (She's not much in this one, by the way.) But this movie made me laugh and think like no other movie has in a while. I agree that it was interesting to see Edward Norton in this role, and DANG what a great group of actors in one movie! The songs will remain with you. Maybe it's because it's my first Woody Allen film, but I really thought he was funny. ("If I take the Concorde, I can be dead for three hours in Paris and alive for six hours in New York, which would be perfect!") Natalie's made a Woody Allen fan out of me. Oh, and Natasha Lyonne does really well too, and she's in several other movies now. When you sit back and think, you first believe that many things were pointless, but then you realize Woody is presenting an entire spectrum of love and relationships: teenage (Natalie Portman and Gaby Hoffman), college (Natasha Lyonne), late twenties (Drew Barrymore, Edward Norton, Tim Roth), and of course, the rest are involved in the "adult" romance. A really great movie, highly recommended.

Woody Allen is a Genuis. This movie was Released theatrically in the USA Christmas Day December 25, 1996 when musicals were not popular...But woody Allen had the moxy to do a musical when they weren't in and he did it well.
This movie is set in Manhattan and Paris. It shows all the seasons of New york and Paris. But the winter season of the movie is the most incredible parts of the film. This is one of the things i love about mr. allen he uses new york and his surroundings and shows them in a incredible way.
This movie centers around various members of a madcap Manhattan wealthy- very high society, democratic family, who attempts by turns to find romance. Allen returns to his improvisational comic vein, reportedly springing the musical numbers on his nonmusical stars--only Barrymore was dubbed--shortly before production began.
In this film, director Woody Allen mixes song-and-dance with his usual array of neurotic, upscale New Yorkers suffering romantic woes.
Allen's character's daughter DJ-(Natasha Lyonne) is the narrator telling stories about her crazy, multi-layered extended family and their love lives.
Her family includes :
her step-father Bob -(Alan Alda)
her mother Steffi-(Goldie Hawn)
her sister Skylar-(Drew Barrymore),
her sister's fiance Holden-(Edward Norton)
her brother scott (Lukas Haas)
her half sister laura-(Natalie Portman)
ex-convict James Ferry-(Tim Roth)
and the object of her father's obsession Von-(Julia Roberts).
While the impending wedding of young lovers Holden and Skylar is the centerpiece of the film, we also get to know various members of Skylar's family -- and their dysfunctional love lives.
Sklyar( Barrymore) and Holden (Norton) are to get married but things are soon shaken by the fact that her mother invites a just released convict by the name of James Ferry ( Roth) skylar falls for mr. perry and decides to call off the wedding.
that's when the hijinxs begin. But will Skylar choose Holden or Perry ?
Woody allen's character Joe is also in love with Von(Julia Roberts) who just so happens to attend therapy session with Joe's daughter Dj's step sister's friend's mother dj knows everything
about Von and tutors her father about her likes and dislikes.
Laura (portman) on ther hand is competing with her best friend(Gaby hoffman) for the heart of a rich teenage boy.
DJ(Lyonne) while evryone is looking for love for DJ love comes to her and she falls in love with numerous of men thru out this movie...a italian artist, a man she shares a cab with, a man dressed as one of the marxs brothers at a party.
The only person in the film who isn't in love is lukas haas who plays alan alda's son scott they are sort of butting heads with each other cause they can't see eye to eye cause his father is democrat and scott is a republican.
The characters often express their feelings through
such classic tunes as "Just You, Just Me" and "My Baby Just Cares for Me,", " If I had you" making this one of the more unique movies in Allen's oeuvre.
Everyone in the movie looks for love in all the wrong places- whether it be in the form of a criminal or neurotic married woman. Three of the best characters is the grandfather- both before and after he dies and the ex convict James Perry- Tim Roth who has a very good singing voice, and drew barrymore who plays a virginal very proper woman ( something we haven't seen drew play) but she shines in this movie.
The cast really makes this movie special. Allen has made a extraordinary modern musical that still has the old-fashion feel to it, a diffucult thing to do in this day and age.
I give it *****5 Stars! and two thumbs way up!

A spoiled Judy Benjamin get's married to an ugly ... guy with an even uglier hairdo (white people can't wear fro's without looking ridiculous). He dies of a heart attack on their honeymoon as they make love on the bathroom floor. A smooth talking Army recruiter hears her sad tale on a radio talk show and offers to help her. After smooth talking her in his office, she signs up. Sounds like a real good story right? Well......

Judy's arrival at Ft Biloxi is funny as are other boot camp scenes... Once Judy decides to tough out basic, it just isn't a comedy anymore. She actually starts to get annoying.

After being given an ultimatum from her CO, (jump or screw) Judy jumps from the airplane. She cries [wolf] and gets an assignment in Paris. It all goes downhill from here. She meets up again with a snobbish Frenchman that she met in Biloxi (yeah I know). Well he's a communist and the Army wants her to stop dating him. She decides to marry him, then changes her mind once she's out of the Army. The final scene is her running happily down the road in a wedding dress acting like a 16 year old.

This movie is a lot like Full Metal Jacket in that after boot camp, everyone shuts it off. Bill Murray's 'Stripes' is a good example of 'interest after the boot camp scenes'. Maybe that's why the old TV show 'Private Benjamin' only dealt with boot camp type training.

This 1980s feminist fable is about the pampered and weak JAP (Jewish-American Princess) Judy Benjamin, who wants nothing more than to be married to a rich and successful man and be able to spend lots of money. She has been cared for by men for her entire life and has no skills, independence, or serious ambitions. After she is widowed, she falls for a recruiter's sales pitch and joins the Army, believing that it will be like going to a spa and will help her recover from the emotional blow of her husband's death. There is great comic potential here, but the movie lacks the sort of sharp writing that would have taken it to the next level. Nonetheless, it obviously strikes a cord with many viewers.

The first half of this film is inoffensive, sitcom-grade material. (In fact, a sitcom based on the film ran from 1981 to 1983.) Goldie Hawn's alternately cutesy/whiny act during basic training gets tiring quickly -- she's like a child who keeps begging for our attention -- and the film rarely manages to capitalize on the comic potential of the situations. Still, it does set up well how her parents' visit to the Army base reminds her of their degrading treatment of her, making her resolve to be the best soldier possible. We cheer for her to succeed. She does, of course, becoming a strong and independent woman in the Army.

The second, more serious half of the movie is somewhat more satisfying, as we watch Private Benjamin fight not to let her new French beau Henri bully her into reverting to her shallow, weak, pre-Army self. Her romance with the despicable Henri is the most interesting part of the film, in part because Arman Assante plays his part so well: charming but condescending and unfaithful.

The picture quality on the DVD is average for a film from 1980. The DVD includes the trailer and short biographies of the major actors. The film is captioned in several languages and can be heard with French dubbing. It does not include a widescreen version, just pan-and-scan.

Judy is in an extremely vulnerable state and when she calls into a radio show to understand why her life is in turmoil, an army recruter asks to meet her. When she arrives, she is obviously confused and wants to escape from her problems.

An assignment in Europe, getting into peak physical shape and living in her own condo sounds just too tempting. The reality of the situation is not so tempting. $458 a month hardly makes up for your husband dying on your wedding night. When she arrives at boot camp and says: "Is green the only color these come in? Where are the yahts?" You just fall in love with her character.

The disturbingly insensitive Captain Doreen Lewis is a comic treat all by herself, yet even with a whip in hand, not even she can compete with the pouting princess. Doreen wants to toss Judy right back into the arms of her parents. However, when Judy's father tells her she is not intelligent enough to make her own decisions, something changes. Private Benjamin decides to stay.

Some of the great comic moments are when Goldie is cleaning the bathroom with her electric toothbrush. I have stayed at an army base in Germany and trust me, they could have used a bit of toothbrush cleaning. My thoughts were that in the army, everything was spotless. Not! So, this movie was even funnier since I could totally relate to some of the experiences Judy had to go through. Another reason to respect our men and women in the military!

While this is mostly a comedy, there is some romance, with a sadistic twist. You know there is going to be trouble when Judy asks: "Am I making sense?" And her French Fiancé says: "No, and that 's what I love about you." You start to get the feeling that Judy is the only one who really knows what she wants and that no one else is listening.

Judy starts off running from her problems and ends up running from her problems. There are no real solutions presented, except to run. And maybe sometimes if you think about it, running is just a good idea.

Comic Entertainment at its finest!

A spoiled Judy Benjamin get's married to an ugly ... guy with an even uglier hairdo (white people can't wear fro's without looking ridiculous). He dies of a heart attack on their honeymoon as they make love on the bathroom floor. A smooth talking Army recruiter hears her sad tale on a radio talk show and offers to help her. After smooth talking her in his office, she signs up. Sounds like a real good story right? Well......

Judy's arrival at Ft Biloxi is funny as are other boot camp scenes... Once Judy decides to tough out basic, it just isn't a comedy anymore. She actually starts to get annoying.

After being given an ultimatum from her CO, (jump or screw) Judy jumps from the airplane. She cries [wolf] and gets an assignment in Paris. It all goes downhill from here. She meets up again with a snobbish Frenchman that she met in Biloxi (yeah I know). Well he's a communist and the Army wants her to stop dating him. She decides to marry him, then changes her mind once she's out of the Army. The final scene is her running happily down the road in a wedding dress acting like a 16 year old.

This movie is a lot like Full Metal Jacket in that after boot camp, everyone shuts it off. Bill Murray's 'Stripes' is a good example of 'interest after the boot camp scenes'. Maybe that's why the old TV show 'Private Benjamin' only dealt with boot camp type training.

This 1980s feminist fable is about the pampered and weak JAP (Jewish-American Princess) Judy Benjamin, who wants nothing more than to be married to a rich and successful man and be able to spend lots of money. She has been cared for by men for her entire life and has no skills, independence, or serious ambitions. After she is widowed, she falls for a recruiter's sales pitch and joins the Army, believing that it will be like going to a spa and will help her recover from the emotional blow of her husband's death. There is great comic potential here, but the movie lacks the sort of sharp writing that would have taken it to the next level. Nonetheless, it obviously strikes a cord with many viewers.

The first half of this film is inoffensive, sitcom-grade material. (In fact, a sitcom based on the film ran from 1981 to 1983.) Goldie Hawn's alternately cutesy/whiny act during basic training gets tiring quickly -- she's like a child who keeps begging for our attention -- and the film rarely manages to capitalize on the comic potential of the situations. Still, it does set up well how her parents' visit to the Army base reminds her of their degrading treatment of her, making her resolve to be the best soldier possible. We cheer for her to succeed. She does, of course, becoming a strong and independent woman in the Army.

The second, more serious half of the movie is somewhat more satisfying, as we watch Private Benjamin fight not to let her new French beau Henri bully her into reverting to her shallow, weak, pre-Army self. Her romance with the despicable Henri is the most interesting part of the film, in part because Arman Assante plays his part so well: charming but condescending and unfaithful.

The picture quality on the DVD is average for a film from 1980. The DVD includes the trailer and short biographies of the major actors. The film is captioned in several languages and can be heard with French dubbing. It does not include a widescreen version, just pan-and-scan.

Judy is in an extremely vulnerable state and when she calls into a radio show to understand why her life is in turmoil, an army recruter asks to meet her. When she arrives, she is obviously confused and wants to escape from her problems.

An assignment in Europe, getting into peak physical shape and living in her own condo sounds just too tempting. The reality of the situation is not so tempting. $458 a month hardly makes up for your husband dying on your wedding night. When she arrives at boot camp and says: "Is green the only color these come in? Where are the yahts?" You just fall in love with her character.

The disturbingly insensitive Captain Doreen Lewis is a comic treat all by herself, yet even with a whip in hand, not even she can compete with the pouting princess. Doreen wants to toss Judy right back into the arms of her parents. However, when Judy's father tells her she is not intelligent enough to make her own decisions, something changes. Private Benjamin decides to stay.

Some of the great comic moments are when Goldie is cleaning the bathroom with her electric toothbrush. I have stayed at an army base in Germany and trust me, they could have used a bit of toothbrush cleaning. My thoughts were that in the army, everything was spotless. Not! So, this movie was even funnier since I could totally relate to some of the experiences Judy had to go through. Another reason to respect our men and women in the military!

While this is mostly a comedy, there is some romance, with a sadistic twist. You know there is going to be trouble when Judy asks: "Am I making sense?" And her French Fiancé says: "No, and that 's what I love about you." You start to get the feeling that Judy is the only one who really knows what she wants and that no one else is listening.

Judy starts off running from her problems and ends up running from her problems. There are no real solutions presented, except to run. And maybe sometimes if you think about it, running is just a good idea.

Comic Entertainment at its finest!

I am giving this film three stars because it's a treat to see Goldie Hawn and Susan Sarandon on the screen no matter what they're doing, but three stars is incredibly generous. This story is ostensibly about "living true" in other words not selling out and remaining true to yourself throughout your life. Not a bad moto to live by, but the way it is presented in this movie is pretty absurd. It starts out with Goldie Hawn as Suzette, basically a hard-drinking, sleep-around former groupie who has aged and never grown up. We find Suzette still tending bar at the Whisky Ago-go in Hollywood where she's been since Jim Morrison of the Doors passed out in the bathroom there in the '60s and she was under him. New management has decided that Suzette is obsolete and fire her, so with no money and no place to go, no family or any real friends she heads out for Arizona to look up her old pal, Vin, from the good ol' drugs, alcohol, and casual sex days, when Frank Zappa had dubbed the two of them the Banger Sisters because of their notoriety as groupie party animals. They haven't been in contact for the past 20 years. Enroute, Suzette meets up with pathetic sad-sack Harry played by Geoffrey Rush who is heading home to Phoenix after a life-time of defeat in following his dreams as a writer. He has some dire plans to carry out and is utterly neurotic. A totally improbable relationship insues. Vin or Vinnie who now goes by her real name of Lavinia has become a totally straight, rich society woman with two spoiled teenaged daughters and a distant lawyer husband with political aspirations. She lives in total luxury but is living a very flat and uninteresting existance that does not fulfill her in any way, let alone make her happy.
Long story short, Suzette's appearance upsets the apple-carts in both Harry and Lavinia's lives. The daughters are blown away to find out their mom was once "cool" and that she is a real person with real feelings.
Goldie's character is really defined by her outrageous wardrobe and her large fake breasts which are mentioned every few minutes or so and the role doesn't give her much opportunity to act. We see nothing new from Goldie in this picture and there is no real depth to the character. Susan Sarandon's character has more depth and more for Susan to work with and she does the best that she can with the role but it is a very stereotypical woman that she is depicted as being, whether it's as a society lady or an over-aged groupie. Both Hawn and Sarandon look so good in their tight-fitting bar-fly costumes that it must have been alot of fun to play these characters. These women are in such terrific shape and are such beauties in real life that it must have been a trip to camp it up like this and be able to pull it off. Unfortunately, their looks are the only hot thing about this movie...period. The moral of the story, "Live True", is put forth in such a cheesy way that even for this fluff of a movie it comes off as a disappointingly contrived message. The characters of the daughters, played adequately by Eva Anurri who seems like she could have done something with a fuller character and Erika Christensen who is lack-luster are so one-dimentional they did not elicite any emotional response from me. Geoffrey Rush's Harry was probably the best played character in the movie, but once again, even great actors can only do so much with unbelievable characters. I was left with the feeling that the writers' had really confused the idea of being true to oneself with the idea of having no self-control or responsibility. Some of the ridiculous excursions down Memory Lane that Suzette and Vin indulge in are proof positive of this, but I won't spoil the movie by pointing any of them out. I would only recommed this movie to VERY die-hard fans of Hawn, Sarandon, and/or Rush. The story is pure drivel and as someone who was around back in the day when Jim Morrison was doing his thing and the Whisky was rockin' full tilt and nobody knew about AIDS, I can assure you that anyone from that era who is still living like that is NOT "living true" but probably has one foot in the grave and a life-time of memories full of despair and pain. You can only paint a rosey glow of nostalgia around so much and this movie doesn't pull it off.

This movie definitely makes me laugh out loud and the chemistry between Goldie Hawn and Susan Sarandon is fabulous. I was a little suprised by the raunchy humor in this movie, but I think that is what makes it so funny. I did feel that the story as a whole was a little rushed, and how in one day everybody lived happily ever after. All in all, this is a great movie to watch with girlfriends - you'll definitely have some laughs!

Like an Angel of Mercy, Suzette (Goldie Hawn) descends upon Phoenix, AZ with a freaked-out, suicidal Hollywood screen writer (Harry played by Geoffrey Rush) in tow: to do good, spread her cheer, change lives and maybe borrow some money from her erstwhile fellow 60's groupie, Lavinia (Susan Sarandon) who she finds living the good, but boring life with her lawyer husband and two spoiled daughters (Erika Christensen and Eva Amurri).
Suzette is the party girl we all knew in high school and college always willing to lend you her last dollar or to let you sleep it off on her floor, who only showed how vulnerable and caring she was to a few of us lucky enough to become her confidant.
Suzette and Lavinia ("Vinny") were groupies in the 60's but whereas Lavinia grows up and marries well, Suzette clings to those by gone Hollywood music scene days when The Doors, Led Zeppelin and Love ruled the Sunset Strip. Suzette may be a bit down on her luck but she's not a loser due to the fact that she possesses the Wisdom of Solomon and a good amount of street smarts as well. More importantly, her heart is filled with love and compassion and this she offers to Vinny and her family and Harry.
"The Banger Sisters" is extremely well written and superbly acted by all especially Hawn and Sarandon. And this is a marvel considering how preachy, silly and trivial this film could have turned out.
As opposed to recent do-gooder movies like "Amelie," "The Banger Sisters" does not have a mean bone in it's body and it is refreshing for a so-called popular Hollywood film to be non-judgmental and more to the point, empathetic towards it's characters all of whom definitely have problems. Director Bob Dolman, Goldie Hawn and Susan Sarandon have produced a film that is as light as a crepe yet as deeply insightful, knowing and rib-sticking as a roadhouse beef stew.