Tears and Laughter: The Joan and Melissa Rivers Story

Joan Rivers writes such insightful, razor-sharp books about her life and her family that it's an automatic disappointment to see she and her daughter Melissa playing themselves in a TV-movie written by somebody else. What happened to this woman's voice, to her sense of truth? Nearly everything in this biographical drama rings false. After Joan's career is broadsided by bad ratings and press, her manager-husband takes his own life, leading the comedienne and her only child to battle amongst themselves before finding comfort in survival. There's a quick moment in the second-half that is well-realized (Joan attempting to date again, but finding the whole process hurtful), however the heated arguments between mother and daughter fail to come off (they may work as a camp). This TV-movie isn't badly made, and obviously has the intriguing factor of having the two principals playing themselves, but it needed a lighter, more deft and flexible touch. Director Oz Scott barrels through as if he's filming "Ordinary People--The Sequel".