The Search for John Gissing

This is the case: "While he (Alan Rickman) was often typecast as baddies, he played a broad range of characters, bringing depth, nuance, and humour to every role he ever took on. Even if a movie or play was not great, after you'd see anything he was in, you'd feel the need to emphatically tell someone "...but Alan Rickman was awesome." Because he inevitably was; he was consistently superb. I don't think there has been a Rickman performance that one could ever look at and say, "Meh. He was OK."

In this film, Mike Binder (who also directed) is an American businessman named Matthew Barnes who just arrived in London with his wife (played by Janeane Garofalo), where Matthew is supposed to take over the final negotiations for a big merger with a German firm. Unfortunately, all of the arrangements were made by John Gissing (Alan Rickman), who feels passed over for the job and sabotages Matthew at every turn. Another key character is their boss, Francois (played by Allan Corduner, who played Sullivan in "Topsy-Turvy").

All of the characters are interesting, as is the direction and editing (which features lots of jump cuts). All in all I was pleasantly surprised given the poor review I had read in the local newspaper. Seen at Cinequest (the San Jose, CA film festival), where it was the opening night film on 2/21/2002.

I went into this to see one of Mrs. Garofalo's rare film titles not expecting anything but maybe a reality bites type of film. What I got was a fantastic surprise.

I will admit the first half of this film got annoying because Mike Binder's constant complaining about the situation wore on me but when he and Gissing meet, hold onto your seat, your gonna laugh. Binder sure picked a great supporting cast to round out this little gem. Alan Rickman is a comic genius in this one. He's the star of this w/o a doubt. In the beginning you will loathe him but in the end you'll be rooting for him. Every character in this is funny. Every actor was casted perfectly for this film.

How this film slipped under the radar and isn't any bigger than it is is a surprise to me. It's an absolute winner. If your bored one night and are searchin your netflix cue, browse to this title and wait for it...your gonna love it.

Saw it in Austin at the festival and was laughing like a wildman. Binder is NOT doing Woody Allen in the first twenty minutes he's ten times funnier. Jaenaane Garafalo was great and Rickman, who I am not a big fan of most times, is prefect in this role. Perfect. Loved it. To the makers, thankyou.

"The Search for John Gissing" is a 2001 comedy starring Mike Binder, Janeane Garofalo, and Alan Rickman.

Matthew Barnes and his wife Linda come to London, where Matthew is going to oversee a merger of a British company with the Germans. The man who has rented a house for them and is going to pick them up at the airport is one John Gissing (Rickman) who doesn't show up at the airport. They reach him, and he apologizes, and sends them to a hotel where he has a room reserved for them. The room turns out to be for someone else, and the Barnes' can't get a room because Gissing maxed out their credit cards when he rented them a house. The couple winds up staying with a nun who, while Linda is in the shower, makes a pass at Matthew.

It doesn't take Barnes long to figure out that John Gissing is out to destroy him. It turns out that Gissing was passed over for this assignment and feels threatened. Barnes turns the tables on him.

Lots of this film is very funny, with a crackerjack performance by Rickman, who is hilarious. Mike Binder is possibly a devotee of Woody Allen - this is Binder's film, and it's not dissimilar to an Allen film, nor are his line readings. Janeane Garofalo as his discouraged wife is very good.

This film didn't get a general release, apparently. It's hard to understand why since it is at least a cut above some of the dreck that passes for comedy today. I suspect if Ben Stiller had made it, the film wouldn't have had that problem.