Back in 1977, Neil Simon had
a big hit with The Goodbye
Girl. Audiences were
delighted by Simon's snappy
dialogue and the wonderful
chemistry between Richard
Dreyfuss and the
playwright's then-wife,
Marsha Mason. The film
scored five Academy Award
nominations (including Best
Picture), netting a Best
Actor Oscar for Dreyfuss.
Simon updated his
Oscar-nominated 1977 script
for tonight's TNT original,
a charming but inferior
romantic comedy that's a
virtual clone of its
predecessor. Everybody Loves
Raymond's Patricia Heaton
takes on the Mason character
and Jeff Daniels has the
daunting task of essaying
Dreyfuss' indelible role.
Like the original, the film
opens with dancer Paula
McFadden (Heaton) and her
precocious 10-year-old
daughter, Lucy (Hallie Kate
Eisenberg). They live in a
humble New York City
apartment, which they lose
when Paula's actor-boyfriend
dumps her. The scoundrel has
sublet the space to Elliot
Garfield (Daniels), who's
come to the Big Apple to
star in Richard III.
Although Paula and Elliot
decide to share the rental,
she quickly becomes annoyed
at Elliot's quirky habits,
which include playing his
guitar late at night ¡ª in
the nude. As tensions grow
between them, Elliot begins
to bond with little Lucy and
tells Paula: "Lucy is your
best part. Lucy is worth
putting up with you." But
the squabbling is
short-lived. Soon, sparks
begin to fly, and an
unlikely romance begins to
blossom between the
odd-couple roomies.
Heaton is charming, bringing
vulnerability and her sitcom
timing to her portrait of a
damaged, dumped-on divorc¨¦e.
While Daniels lacks Dreyfuss'
manic energy and sarcastic
snarl, his Elliot is
significantly less abrasive
than the original ¡ª a change
some viewers may embrace.
And with her deep dimples
and sunny face, Eisenberg
emerges as a sweet and funny
young actress. Rounding out
the supporting cast is Alan
Cumming as a pretentious
stage director and Richard
Benjamin as a Hollywood
filmmaker. Benjamin is
well-suited for the part,
since he's the director on
this project.
The movie has its flaws,
however. This version lacks
the edge of the original.
It's Neil Simon-lite, and
the story loses some of its
power because of the
production team's
self-censorship. For
example, both films depict
Paula getting mugged and
Elliot's subsequent
confrontation with the
criminals. In the original,
these scenes crackled with
desperation. In the TNT's
version, they've been
sanitized for our protection
and are downright tame.
What's more, Eisenberg is
unable to cut loose like
Quinn Cummings, the original
Lucy, whose bossy attitude
and salty language lit up
the 1977 theatrical.
Still, the story remains
light, likable and
insightful, and Simon says
volumes about the human
condition and the process of
falling in love. His script
has passed the test of time,
and it rings just as true in
2004 as it did in 1977. It's
nice to see three capable
actors like Daniels, Heaton
and Eisenberg interpreting
this celebrated scribe's
characters and words, and
that's reason enough to
welcome this Goodbye Girl.
