11 posts tagged “women who joke”
Online news sources are reporting that the actress Brittany Murphy has died, following a full cardiac arrest. She was 32. Obviously I'm hoping this news isn't true, but I guess we'll find out more tomorrow. I can't pretend to be familiar with every entry on her extensive filmography, but she did some fantastic work in Clueless, which remains a classic teen rom-com, and is always a fun watch. She was also very funny in Drop Dead Gorgeous and Freeway, not to mention the hundreds and hundreds of King of the Hill episodes she voiced, as Luanne.
This is just horrible news... and right before the holidays too... my heart goes out to her friends and family.
While doing my usual Big S picture-trawl, I came across this interesting article in Jezebel, about the absence of female writers on the staff of big TV shows and movies. Now, as noted further down the article, when they claim that The Sarah Silverman Program has "zero" female writers, they're obviously overlooking the fact that the series co-creator, head writer and executive producer is a woman (Sarah herself, obviously). Still it's a bit of a surprise to learn that there aren't any other women on the team. Apparently Laura makes up quite a few of her own jokes on set, but does that count? Not officially, no.
The part that really snagged my eye, was a quote from an academic study which suggested that "the greater the participation of women, the more thought-provoking but the less violent and fear-inducing is the resulting cinematic product." As a fan of non-violence and provocative thought, I'd go along with that conclusion to some extent... certainly where my favourite Brit-based writer, Annie Griffin, is concerned... but a female duo were responsible for the recent Anna Faris flick House Bunny, which prompted very little intellectual discussion beyond the usual critical musing on why such an obviously talented comic-actress keeps taking such crappy, crappy roles.
As a wannabe writer it also intrigues me, because my own work tends to fall on the so-called "feminine" side of the line, with compassion and philosophising (spirituality?) where the mindless sex and violence should be... mostly because that's the sort of comedy that I enjoy, and want to see more of. So, for purely selfish reasons, I'm hoping there's some sort of genderquake in the industry at some point over the next few months, so my screenplays don't land on stony ground. Thalia, we beseech thee!!!
Probably my second schoolboy crush after Kylie Minogue, I was first introduced to Elvira when she guest-presented a late-night heavy metal video show, to help promote the release of her movie Elvira: Mistress of the Dark. And it worked, because I ended up buying a copy on VHS as soon as it came out. Now, I know you’re going to say it was all about the boobs, but there are actually some really great jokes in that flick, which have stuck with me ever since...
Elvira: “And if they ever ask about me, tell them I was more than just a great set of boobs. I was also an incredible pair of legs. And tell them... tell them that I never turned down a friend. I... never turned down a stranger for that matter. And tell them... tell them that when all is said and done, I only ask that people remember me by two simple words. (pause) Any two, as long as they're simple.”
There’s probably nothing to be gained from peering back through the mists of time to analyse the hormonal stew that was brewing back then, but early exposure to Elvira and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, have clearly left a mark on my libido, lumbering me with an unhelpful attraction to theatrical, goth-y women... “unhelpful”, because I’m a square, scruffy geek, and unable to maintain a “style” of any kind, let alone a high-maintenance one like that. Sigh. Naturally, this is a fun time of the year for me, as the whole country sets its phasers to “spooky”, and the pubs are crammed with Elviras, Morticias and Magentas. Hurrah!
I would write more about Peterson herself, and the evolution of the Elvira character, but the AV Club interview that prompted this post sums it all up better than I ever could.
Happy Hallowe’en!
I finally caved and picked up The Aristocrats on DVD... because it was in a bargain bin, and I was curious to see it in again. Although I’d already seen Big S perform a brief, slightly bloodless bit for an Amnesty International charity show, it was her contribution to this feature-length dirty joke that made me fall for her... hard and fast. I was looking forward to hearing what Paul Provenza (the director) and Penn Jillette has to say about my fave comedian on the commentary track, and they didn’t disappoint me, alternately swooning over her, and analysing exactly why she’s such an impressive performer. She doesn’t simply tell the joke, she lives the joke. As Jillette observes, in any other context the quality and commitment she displayed would have earned her an Oscar. And so it goes.
She is, of course, not only an exceptionally gifted woman, but also an exceptionally sexy woman... but her sexuality is simply one of many harp strings, for her to pluck at will. I once suggested that if Roger Rabbit and his wife Jessica had a daughter, she would grow up much like Big S... the goofy, cartoonish energy combined with bona fide “bombshell” sensuality. It’s a killer combo. One should never confuse a performer’s “on screen” persona with their real-life personality, but I get the feeling that talking to her would be something of an emotional rollercoaster with her swinging so wildly and unpredictably between poles... which is what makes her act so interesting and compelling. For someone like me, who’s always looking for approval, it would be a constant cycle of pleasure and pain, between the glares and the smiles. Ah, but it’d be worth it! Oddly this feeds into my current reading of Hermann Hesse’s Steppenwolf. In the novel (to oversimplify horribly), the titular character, a world weary and withered soul, meets an enchanting young woman who shakes up his dry and dusty existence... meeting for their first date, the narrator notes a certain “boyish” aspect to her avatar, and observes, “Of all the things that pleased and charmed me about her, the prettiest and most characteristic was her rapid changes from the deepest seriousness to the drollest merriment, and this without doing herself the least violence, with the facility of a gifted child.” (p 127)
Hesse included a preface in later editions of the book, on the subject of readers misunderstanding his text, so it would be foolish of me to make too many sweeping statements... still, it seems to me that the aim of the strange forces/agents who have taken the narrator’s life to task, is to drag him out of the safe harbour of self-absorption, and set him off on an adventure across the choppy waters of Life, with Humour as his only compass and comfort... “Humour alone (perhaps the most inborn and brilliant achievement of the human spirit) attains to the impossible and brings every aspect of human existence within the rays of its prism. To live in the world as if it were not the world, to respect the law and yet to stand above it, to have possessions as though ‘one possessed nothing’, to renounce as though it were no renunciation, all these favourite and often formulated propositions of an exalted worldly wisdom, it is in the power of humour alone to make efficacious.” (p 67) Later it is observed that “true humour begins when a man ceases to take himself seriously.” (p. 207) Likewise, it would seem to me that the most deplorable kinds of people are generally those who can only laugh at others.
Hesse was heavily influenced by “eastern” philosophy, and name-drops Krishna throughout the novel. I was very fortunate to have finished reading the Bhagavad Gita shortly before, because it makes a great deal more sense in that light... my spin being that Humour helps us to detach ourselves from the material world, and our petty gripes and concerns, allowing our Soul to stretch its legs a little. The most shocking and surprising jokes might therefore have the greatest effect, similar to the mindf*ck “Magic Theatre” which the novel’s narrator is drawn into. To turn the world on its head, and recast our own dearly held certainties as ridiculous and misbegotten... to dance in the darkest corners of our souls, and spring clean our psyches, so that we might then improve, and enlighten ourselves. Devastation in preparation for something better to come. Assuming that one happens to believe in reincarnation, or second-chances, of course. “Well, you will do better the next time.” (p 252)
I haven’t really said very much about Silverman at all, have I? But there isn’t really anything I can say to describe how I felt the first time I watched Jesus is Magic, or to convince the doubters/haters of her talent. As far as I’m concerned she’s the gold standard of Comedy... or, to put it another way, the greatest mother-trucker alive. Bless her.
These days, you’d probably have to pay a king’s ransom to get Billy Boyd, Julia Davis, Omid Djalili, Ben Miller and David Walliams in a production together, but back in 1999 they all appeared in a three part comedy for Ch4 called Coming Soon, by the writer/director (auteur?) Annie Griffin.
The story follows a rather self-involved, and self-important “devised theatre” group who spurn the tyranny of the scripted word in favour of trust exercises and endless workshopping. Their disdain for writers is both vocal and unequivocal... as they follow the example of their improvisatory idol (Julia Roth, ironically played by Griffin herself) and prize the process over the production. They do, however, still require funding, and are forced to recruit a famous Scottish singer looking to break into movies, in order to qualify for a grant offered in honour of cross-border co-operation between England and her homeland. Needless to say, her populist appeal rubs the pretentious “artistes” up the wrong way, and gradually threatens to undermine the entire enterprise. To be fair though, it wasn’t the sturdiest of ships to begin with, as all the founding members of the group have their own selfish idiosyncrasies and agendas, especially when it comes to recruiting (and grooming) new cast members.
On the DVD commentary for her later sitcom The Book Group, Griffin stated the belief that characters don’t have to be especially sympathetic for the audience to want to follow their story. I’d agree, with the proviso that it depends on how well the characters are written and played. Vikki Pepperdine’s “Jen” is a classic example... as the group’s director she spends the majority of her time being unapologetically arrogant, antagonistic and verbally abusive, and yet there’s something so endearing about her obliviousness, that when she finally does crack, you can’t help but care. Her utter conviction in the face of total apathy from audiences (and the world in general), is equal parts admirable and absurd.
Julia Davis’ character (Kim) spends most of the series off in her own little world, as one of the naive new recruits to the group. At first she just seems shy and gawky, but we soon realise that she may be a teeny bit “f*cked”, as Elaine C Smith so delicately puts it, during a somewhat one-sided “co-counselling” session. It’s a role that really plays to Davis’ strengths, as she works through different accents and personas, dances crazy, and unleashes her inner demons.
Still, for me the stand-out has to be Mabel Aitken, in her largest role to date, as Fiona, the relentlessly perky Scottish fiancée of Walliams’ sleazy suit, and cofounder of the Trans-Ecosse scheme which is funding the folly. Not only does Fiona manage to keep smiling through Jen’s glowering rebukes, she openly admires her moxie, and even offers to set her up on a blind date with her brother! Bless. In many ways, she is my ideal woman... a cute suit, who’s organised and ambitious, but tolerant of the so-called “artistic temperament”. We might have to have words about the whole “getting drunk and dancing topless on tables” thing, but other than that she’s a darling...
I’ve long since given up trying to figure out why certain actors/shows/films/bands become popular, while others are left to sink sadly into obscurity. I think Griffin’s writing is incredibly smart, sharp, and savagely satirical... but at the same time, there’s something very humane about the way in which she exposes and indulges her characters' follies and failures. In this case, she even allows her characters a “happy ending” to be going on with, even if they aren’t all where they wanted to be at the start of the run. In a contemporary review from the Guardian, the critic suggests that potential viewers may have been turned off by the setting and focus of the series... I guess it’s the reverse Office-effect, in that almost everyone has worked in an office environment at some point, and can more easily relate to the premise than they can to a show about a cliquey, close-knit theatre group... and maybe I’m biased by the fact that I’m an arty-type myself, but I’d still maintain that the performances and jokes are funny enough to warrant a wider audience, regardless.
Some kind soul has uploaded a taster session with the Le Jeu Theatre Company to YouTube, viewable here. Warning: Clip may contain strong swearing and smugness.
Apparently in America, the sitcom Seinfeld was a big hit... one of the most influential and critically acclaimed comedies of the 90s... while over here, the BBC chose to bury it in a graveyard slot, with minimal promotion, so it never caught on in quite the same way. I remember sitting up until midnight, with the TV turned down as low as it could go, trying to enjoy the show without waking my parents. Good times. Now, thankfully, the entire run is available on DVD and all the extra features crossed the pond with them. Last month I managed to find the Season 9 boxset on sale, and have been working my way through it. After such a long gap, it wasn’t the best place to start, since the final four episodes of the run are filled with callbacks to episodes I haven’t seen or can’t remember. Still, the other 22 are very funny in themselves, and fantastically bizarre. I understand that some people objected to the direction the series took after Larry David left, turning away from the reality-rooted focus on social minutiae and awkwardness that is his calling card. Maybe they’re right... as I say, I can’t remember much about the early seasons... but that doesn’t stop me hailing “The Merv Griffin Show” episode as a work of genius, with Kramer dragging the other characters into his own delusions via a reclaimed TV chat show set. Love it.
Even back then, I was drawing little cartoons of Elaine on the labels of my home-made video tapes... inspired by how cute she looked in episodes like “The Strike” and “The Burning”, pouting with disappointment over the possibility of losing a hard-earned sub sandwich, or burning for all eternity in Hell. I’ve now learned that I’ve been mispronouncing Louis-Dreyfus’ name all this time (it’s “dry-fus”... not “dray-fus”), but there’s no mistaking the brilliance of her performance, as she slips from eye-rolling snark to energetic slapstick. I was glad to learn that she’s had a successful post-Seinfeld career, in her own award-winning sitcom, The New Adventures of Old Christine. Hurrah! Why the same hasn’t happened for Jason Alexander, I can’t really say... clearly he isn’t as cute as his co-star, but come on... the guy does impotent rage better than anyone out there. Michael Richards rather shot himself in the foot with his ill-advised foray into stand-up... but he’s still a master of physical comedy, and gives some of the most memorable line-readings.
What’s most interesting about the show, as I take another crack at my copy of the Bhagavad Gita (an ancient Hindu scripture concerned with religious duty and spiritual advancement), is that the characters' daily lives are a textbook demonstration of the wrong way to go about accruing karma and achieving enlightenment. As Ranchor Prime notes in his commentary: “When the soul’s eternal love is directed towards the Lord’s creation instead of to the Lord himself it is transmuted into kama, or material desire. This kama, when frustrated, produces anger... So long as we are under the control of material desire we will have to gratify the demands of the mind and the senses, and we may feel some happiness in return. But the happiness is limited and temporary, and is the enemy of the true self because it leads to frustration... Thus, in the material world the living entity is bound by the golden shackles of kama, particularly in the form of sexual desire. No amount of gratification will satisfy kama, just as no amount of fuel added to a fire will extinguish it.” (p.35)
Jerry will never stop “dating” and settle down... and George will never stop lying on dirty floors, to root around under the vending machine for lost change... they are damned and damaged souls. If one were feeling preachy, one might suggest that they’d been in a prison of sorts since the very first episode... and it’s only in the final episode that the walls and bars manifest, as they sit having the very same conversation they had in the pilot, caught in an endless loop of pettiness. “The Burning” is a particularly telling episode, as Elaine discovers that her boyfriend David Puddy (played by the burly brickhouse of comedy that is Patrick Warburton) listens to Christian rock... and she becomes concerned that he might actually believe in something beyond the material, because she’d much rather assume he simply couldn’t be bothered to change the station:
Jerry: So you prefer dumb and lazy to religious?
Elaine: Dumb and lazy I understand.
And that’s the problem I’m having in my own stumble towards “the light”. I have an inherent knee-jerk reaction where religion is concerned, after years of being bullied and demeaned by religious-types at school... or rather, by teachers and "friends" who packaged their bullying in piety. It’s easy to flick on the TV and see countless characters, real and fictional, encouraging us towards kama... with the boob jobs and the bling... but there aren’t really any role models to lead us down a more spiritual path. Well, there was John Locke for a little while, but other than that, I can’t think of anyone. Is it even possible to write an “enlightened” sitcom, without coming off like one of those creepy, preachy “Chick tracts”? That is, I think, the biggest hurdle that modern peeps face when contemplating a move towards more spiritual goals... the fear that they’ll become a judgemental nutjob. Of course, many would say that you’re a nutjob just for thinking there might be a God (or Gods) to begin with, so I guess it’s a sliding scale.
Bless her... even when she loses, she still manages to steal the limelight (and the laughs):
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xak2vy_ss-at-emmys_shortfilms
I think I first started paying attention to the Canadian actress Meredith MacNeill when I forced myself to sit through the Brit comedy flick Confetti. The review aggregate sites rate it at about six-out-of-ten, and I think that's fair enough... but with the cast they had, you'd be forgiven for expecting a much higher rating. Jessica Hynes, Martin Freeman, Stephen Mangan, Meredith MacNeill, Robert Webb, Olivia Colman, Julia Davis.... that's a solid Britcom All Stars line-up right there... drawing from Spaced, Green Wing, Peep Show, The Office, and Nighty Night. The concept of three couples competing to win a dream home, by entering a bridal magazines competition to find the "Most Original Wedding" is pretty solid. Unfortunately, I've never been a big fan of semi-improvised mockumentaries, so I can't help feeling that this DVD would make a useful rough draft for a really great scripted comedy... but I doubt you could get the same cast to go back for another swing at it, sadly. It's a shame because there are so many story strands that are simply left to fray in the wind, and some very brave and funny performances, which go to waste amongst all the clutter. The whole way through I was rooting for the Tennis Couple (Mangan/MacNeill) to win it. Not only because they were the funniest, but also because their ceremony was the most genuinely original and bizarre. It was like a piece of devised theatre! I think their characters had the most interesting arcs, and the best jokes... the self-deprecating sub-plot about MacNeill needing a nose job before the big day was especially admirable on her part... and would get much more play in my hypothetical re-draft of the original. Nevertheless, Hynes and Freeman make such a sweet on-screen couple, and their segments have such emotional weight to them, they could easily have carried a rom-com all on their own.
Mangan and MacNeill also crop up, separately, in Annie Griffin's Festival. It's probably not fair to compare the two, but Griffin's work also seems to be semi-improvised, even if it isn't... the difference being that she can encourage her cast to bring a natural flow and energy to their performances, but also knows how to tell compelling stories, with deviate in strange and dark ways. Overall, it just makes for a more satisfying experience, even though the "resolution" to her characters' arcs are often equally ambiguous. In this tale of various performers, on vastly different rungs of the success ladder, plying their "Art" at the Edinburg Festival, MacNeill is part of an experimental Canadian theatre troupe. The trio spend much of the film looking either stoned or jet-lagged, but it's great to see them pull it together for their big performance... it would have been easy to get cheap chuckles out of them being as dopey on-stage as they are off it, but they (and Griffin) clearly take their craft seriously, and it almost made me wish I was there in the theatre to experience it myself.
Most recently, MacNeill was a member of the ManStrokeWoman cast. At first I avoided this sketch show, because it seemed too tightly focussed on the dating woes of thirty-something urbanites... which was deliberate on the part of the writers and producers, but I'm not sure it was to their credit... but after picking up the DVDs cheap, and giving the show a chance, I found there was a lot there to enjoy. Still a little too reliant on catchphrases and running gags for my liking, but with such a spirited and talented cast, it's hard to be too curmudgeonly about it. My favourite MacNeill "runner", for rather obvious reasons, was the one where she and Nick Frost play a couple experimenting with role-playing... the set-up involves MacNeill entering the bedroom in a succession of sexy costumes, and then taking the role she's playing far too seriously... such as when her "nurse" diagnoses Frost's "patient" with cancer. "Is it... naughty cancer?", he asks hopefully. No. No, it's not.
I'm not sure what first prompted MacNeill to come to our shores, but I'm very grateful that she did... it's just a bummer that she doesn't seem to have found a "breakout" role yet. I'd happily watch (or write for) a sitcom with her in the lead role, but I accept that there may be others out there who don't share my passion for crazy and cartoony comediennes. That said, she did put in a decent dramatic turn as the girlfriend of a suspected terrorist, in the meat-headed military drama Ultimate Force... and she picked up very good notices for her starring role in a play called Trance. In fact Time Out: London called her performance "the best thing about the production... there’s a lovely, believable contrast between her gawky off-duty persona, bumbling towards self-assertion, and the authority of her professional identity. The contrast serves the play well."
Over here in the UK, Saturday Night Live is usually only discussed when one of their alumni makes a movie. I think I can vaguely recall a time when the show was broadcast over here, but that was a long time ago, so basically to us it’s just “that thing all those funny people did before they were famous”. Which is why it was bit confusing when Tina Fey got top-billing on the posters for Mean Girls. Maybe the serious comedy buffs were aware of her before that, but she was a (delightful) bolt out of the blue for me. I think Mean Girls still holds up as a very smart and funny comedy, with plenty of quotable lines and memorable scenes (even the fake “PSA” trailers are funny), but it also marks the rather tragic tipping point where Lindsay Lohan went from adorable to abominable.
At the time, we couldn’t receive the channel which was broadcasting the first season of 30 Rock, so for months I would have to endure flicking through my TV guide and seeing Fey’s smiling face taunting me from the page. Finally, the box set arrived at our local Blockbuster, and I was able to find out what all the fuss was about! If I could choose the kind of sitcom I wrote for, even if it had to be a group effort, then 30 Rock would definitely be a dream gig. First of all, there’s a strong, smart and sexy female lead, which is always handy for a wannabe-feminist like myself. Second of all, there are random male geek characters, who also happen to be comedy writers, which is great from a “write what you know” standpoint. Thirdly, the show has an interesting “reality level”... it can be quite crazy at times, especially with the Paul Reubens episode, and the multiple characters played by Rachel Dratch, but it still manages to keep one foot planted on terra firma. That’s mostly thanks to Fey herself, I think, grounding the show with her warm and unpretentious performance as Liz Lemon... her “bi-curious” shoes probably help too. I watched the box set at least twice through before the seven day deadline was up and I had to reluctantly return them.
Sadly, I haven’t been able to catch up with the second (or third?) season yet, so I had to sate my Fey-thirst by renting Baby Mama instead. I’ve read fairly lukewarm reviews for the film, and it’s true that the plot doesn’t hold up to a great deal of close scrutiny, but I was laughing loudly the whole way through, and that’s a good sign when you’re watching a comedy, right? Amy Poehler makes a great foil for Fey, and waltzes off with most of the best lines and “bits”... I especially enjoyed the fake pocket-checking charade she went through, while half-heartedly offering to chip in for the gas money... and her random invective, while being wheeled into the hospital... I guess her character was kind of cartoony, but I dig that, and it played nicely against Fey’s more subtle and subdued comedy stylings. While her characters may never deliver the intensity or insanity that usually hooks me in, they definitely have their own appeal... and I guess that comes down to the “dream date” factor. They’re whip-crack smart, successful, creative, professional, warm, funny and endearingly dorky. Totally unattainable, of course, for me at least... but fun to date vicariously through the TV screen. Sigh...
Meanwhile, I can’t help wishing that we got more “extras” in this country... the R2 releases of both 30 Rock and Baby Mama omit all the commentary tracks and “making of” gubbins. I know it’s a lame thing to whine about, but Fey contributed a very charming and self-deprecating commentary to Mean Girls, and I’d like to hear more from her.
Sadly, I did not discover Sandra Bernhard’s work in chronological order, or in qualitative order either. My first exposure must have been through the sitcom Roseanne, where her tall, slim frame made her stand out rather dramatically alongside the plumper lead character... with that voice... and those eyes... and those lips... oy! I can’t really remember how I felt about her as an actress back in the day, but I know I was pleased to see her again when a friend lent me his video tape of Hudson Hawk. After that came (by far) her best film to date, Martin Scorsese’s King of Comedy*, and then finally the tapes and CDs of her incredible stand-up/cabaret act. During my time at uni, I spent many a happy evening downing chocolate milk, scoffing cookies, and listening to Excuses for Bad Behaviour. Good times. While I now primarily think of Bernhard as a stand-up, or a singer... since so many of her TV and movie appearances are too obscure to root out in this country... I still have a soft spot for her performance in Bruce Willis’s misbegotten, blockbuster-budgeted “B-movie”.
Over at the AV Club site, Hudson Hawk rated not only a “My Year of Flops” entry, but also a “Commentary Tracks of the Damned” dissection. In the former, Rabin describes it thusly: "The Bruce Williest of all Bruce Willis movies... nothing more or less than a giddy little vanity project for [Willis], who gets to sing, romance a sexy nun, save the world and wear a porkpie hat and shades that lets audiences know that he's a rocking, blue-collar kind of dude." In the latter, it is accused of committing such cinematic sins as: “Burying a lightly comic, intermittently enjoyable caper story beneath blockbuster excess, random vulgarity, and graphic violence”, and “Letting producer-star Bruce Willis indulge his lifelong wish to play a super-slick, boyish safe-cracker, the kind of asshole who thinks he's opposed to assholes.” And I’m not arguing with any of that. For me, even as a teen, the bits where Bruce Willis and Danny Aiello get together to trade smug banter were always the least interesting, and over the years they’ve just become unbearably irritating. It’s also true that the movie seems to have a serious tonal discordance, splicing a wacky, cartoonish crime caper together with a hard-hitting, foul-mouthed action movie. According to the director’s commentary, this discordance was intentional, and all part of “the fun”. I do believe that it was done on purpose, but I don’t believe that it was a very good idea. He says the film was “ahead of its time” too, but its been a good eighteen years now since it was released, and the problems are just as glaringly obvious today as they must have been when it first tanked at the box office.
Still, with the director and writer of Heathers on board, there are occasional flashes of dark wit on show, and I’m always partial to a little live-action cartoonery. Which is why, I suppose, I am most drawn to the insanely over-amped performances that Richard E. Grant and Bernhard put in as the Mayflowers, a mega-rich, megalomaniacal married couple intent on nothing short of WORLD DOMINATION!!! And yes, that does have to be in all capitals... and you have to imagine Grant raising his arms to the ceiling and bellowing it out with childish glee. In an earlier draft I found online, Minerva had a lot more lines, and I would have loved to hear her deliver the reams of villainous dialogue, in her dry drawl... but as it stands, it’s probably better for Bernhard’s reputation that she put in a smaller, forgivable cameo. There are too many good jokes and neat visual twists in Hudson Hawk for me to deny my admiration entirely... and as I find myself writing comedic-action-adventure scripts of my own, I’m no doubt being unconsciously influenced by it... but that doesn’t mean I’d place it anywhere near my Top Fifty films of all time (if I were ever to take the time to compile such a list). The Mayflowers, however, are almost certainly on my Top Ten list of fave movie villains... along with the Tremor Brothers from Smokin’ Aces... and Debbie Jellinsky from Addams Family Values.
In his scathingly funny diaries from the period, as published in the collection With Nails, Grant depicts Bernhard as rather a soft-hearted and sentimental soul, albeit one prone to unfortunately ranty outbursts. Since he spent so much time trapped in Budapest with the woman, waiting out various production snafus, I’m inclined to accept his insight... and even though it’s none of my business, and has no bearing on my life whatsoever, it’s somehow comforting to know that there might be a sweet and self-deprecating, flesh-and-blood human being hiding behind the stone-cold sarcasm and casual offence that she dishes out on stage.
* Also Scorsese's best film, if you ask me, but I know I'm in a minority on that one.
