NOTHING IN COMMON. Directed by Garry Marshall; written by Rick Podell and Michael Preminger; produced by Alexandra Rose for Tri-Star. Starring Tom Hanks and Jackie Gleason. Rated PG (some adult situations).
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This movie stars one of my most favorite and one of my least favorite actors. The former is Hanks, one of the funniest and most appealing performers in movies today. [Hindsight note: when this was originally written, this statement wasn't as obvious-sounding as it is today.]
But I've never been a fan of Gleason's. And I'm not now. I have to say, though, that he does a terrific job here. And Hanks has never been better. They make Nothing in Common a real winner.
It's not a barrel of laughs, as many of Hank's previous efforts have been. But he does get a lot of good lines, holding forth in rare form early on, as a wonder boy commercial-maker and lady-killer.
However, by the end, the movie almost qualifies as a tear-jerker. Not just any director can pull off such a combination. But Marshall does have experience with such versatile fare. Tucked away in his amusing Flamingo Kid were a few surprisingly serious sentiments.
Here his subject again is the nuclear family. But in the current movie the Basner family reactor is on the verge of a meltdown.
Mom Lorraine (Eva Marie Saint) walks out on Dad Max (Gleason) after what we learn was a dismal 34 years of marriage. This change in family structure puts a lot of new demands upon son David (Hanks) ... and at a bad time, too.
Busily making his move up the corporate ladder, he has been extremely successful at avoiding any kind of intimate relationships and obligations—with his parents as well as with his many romantic interests.
Now he has to deal with a father who can't see well enough to drive, but who won't go to the doctor, and a mother who's afraid to develop a close relationship with anyone else. First out of necessity, then, gradually, because he finds he really cares, David shifts his top priorities from the workplace to his family.
David's movement from a negligent son and overall immature person to a real adult is fascinating to watch. Hanks plays the playboy well, which we knew he could do. But he's also terrific in the serious scenes. This role is a real step forward for him.
The spotlight is on David for most of the movie, but Gleason's isn't the only other good performance. Saint is wonderful as the mother, Bess Armstrong is delightful as David's high school sweetheart and current confident, and Hector Elizondo (the father in Flamingo Kid) ia funny and believable as the sympathetic boss.
Not many single movies display so many first-rate performances. They give this one as much "ring of truth" to it as any I've seen in quite a while. It's only weakness is the ending, which seems tentative, like the writers couldn't quite decide how to conclude.
Of course, the characters are so real that it's easy to imagine their lives outside the actual movie. So how do you decide when to stop watching them?
NOTE: this movie made my 10-best list for 1986.
August 20, 1986