The Tall Guy

"The Tall Guy" is an enjoyable little trifle, featuring Jeff Goldblum as an American actor in London. Rowan Atkinson is hilarious as a conceited bugger, and Emma Thompson plays Goldblum's love-interest. An interesting film, not a classic by any stretch, but worth ninety minutes.

The Tall Guy is one of my all-time favorites. One's taste in comedies is a highly personal thing, and not everyone will find this movie to their taste, but if you like the inimitable flavor of British humor (as I do) and enjoy Jeff Goldblum and Emma Thompson, you will probably find this movie to be extremely rewarding -- that is, hilarious and, perhaps, a bit touching.

It's got its flaws, of course. There are plenty of spots where nothing really happens, the music is pretty uneven, and a few gags fall flat. There are one or two key plot points that are a little hard to follow (especially the scene with Emma Thompson on the television). And surprisingly, the last quarter or so turns a bit grim, and comes a bit close to losing sight of the whimsicality which is so much of this movie's charm.

But I'll gladly put up with all that for what this movie has to offer. It's incredibly hard to make a good comedy, and all too many comedies nowadays are either too tame, or too scatological...too cruel, or too meek...too earnest, or too smug in their irony. The Tall Guy proves that there is ground between these extremes, and what fertile ground it is! I don't know if one could make this movie in America; the entire film is permeated with a uniquely British sensibility that makes it irresistible. And in the midst of all this, Jeff Goldblum is absolutely spot-on as the bemused American; his facial expressions and reaction shots in this movie are priceless. It's a pity that so many of his recent roles have been in action movies; at his best, Goldblum is a fantastic comic actor, and this movie depends completely on his charm, wit, and expressiveness.

One of the centerpieces of the movie, by the way, is a musical based on "The Elephant Man". It's a tour-de-force of parody, brilliantly satirizing the tastelessnesses and mediocrities of modern musicals; indeed, I wish we could get to see even more of it.

I recently revisited The Tall Guy for the third time, watching it side-by-side with There's Something About Mary, and I can't begin to tell you how much the latter movie suffered by comparison. They have a few traits in common -- both movies revolve around the pursuit of a beautiful woman by a misanthropic-but-oddly-handsome male Jewish lead, both have a strong sexual element to their humor, and both feature a prominent handicapped character (a blind man in the Tall Guy, a man on crutches in Mary) whose misadventures are played for laughs. But where There's Something About Mary is coarse, mean, and obvious, The Tall Guy is witty, absurd, and completely good-natured -- and in my opinion, far superior.

I suspect there are a fair number of people who won't "get" The Tall Guy, and that's a shame. But if it sounds like it's on your wavelength, rent it if you can find it. It's an incredibly sweet and funny movie that is well worth the watching.

Now, I have to say that I went to see this based on the review of Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, both of whom could not get through a sentence without breaking into laughter when discussing several key scenes. I had never seen either one of them behave that way before, so I went out--this is, what, twelve years ago?--and plunked down my $5 and proceeded to laugh my butt off for two hours. I found both the sex scene and the scene of the musical to be minor gems, and can't recommend this film highly enough, particularly if you are A) a Jeff Goldblum fan, B) an Emma Thompson fan C) a Rowan Atkinson fan, or D) a musical theatre aficionado. You will laugh about the musical theater scene for years to come, particularly if you think Andrew Lloyd Webber is the antichrist, as I do.

Richard Curtis has written some impressive romantic comedies (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill, Bridget Jones, Love Actually) and had his hand in the writing of some of the top British TV comedy of our time (Mr Bean, Not the 9 O'Clock news, Blackadder). This was one of his first scripts to be turned into a feature film.

He wrote this script about his own experience playing straight man to Rowan Atkinson on his early tours. Curtis was frustrated in real life with being under the shadow of Atkinson, but the script obviously makes a caricature out of this by turning Atkinson into a terrible, nasty villain. But, Rowan fans beware, this is not as fun as it sounds. The unkindest touch of all was added by Rowan himself. He makes himself appear completely unfunny. He plays his backstage self without a touch of humour or subversion - one would almost swear that Rowan just really was a nasty bast*rd.

But anyone who's seen Rowan's stage shows, or Not the 9 O'Clock News, knows that Rowan can play a bastard with ironic humour, where we know he's only kidding - on stage, Rowan specialised in bastards like the vicars and schoolmasters he's played, and nobodies like Mr Bean. Here, Rowan knew it was important for the story for Rowan to not actually be funny, and the straight man to actually be funny. Plus, we need to root for the straight man (played by Jeff Golblum). Rowan's being a villain is the story's main source of conflict and dramatic tension. Without it, there isn't a story. So Rowan has, ironically, done a brave and humble thing by agreeing to play it completely straight, humourless and cold - and he shows himself a really good dramatic actor (though the experience may be disheartening for Rowan fans).

So if you're a Rowan fan, this will not be for you. If you're a Richard Curtis fan, this is a fairly simple and conventional script, but its quite a fun romantic comedy nonetheless. Emma Thomson is suitably cold and severe, and Jeff Golblum makes a good everyman. 6/10.

Jeff Goldblum plays a gawky, downtrodden American actor living in England who plays straight man to an obnoxious, unpleasant comedian. Rowan Atkinson is the obnoxious, unpleasant comedian who torments Jeff. Emma Thompson is a pretty, deadpan nurse who gives Jeff's life hope and meaning when he falls in love with her and vice versa. After parting ways with Atkinson, Jeff lands the lead role in "Elephant!", a musical version of "The Elephant Man", in which he plays, of course, the Elephant Man. Jeff's eternal happiness is nearly thwarted by a cute co-star who threatens his romance with Emma Thompson. Will Jeff come out on top? Of course he does. This isn't "The Fly" after all.

Too long but still very funny, with Jeff well cast as the title character. Atkinson is a great antagonist and Emma Thompson has her moments of inspired deadpan humor. And of course, the actual "Elephant" sequences are a riot.

"Vengeance shall BE MINE!" Jeff as Dexter King, AKA: The Tall Guy.