A great adaptation of one of Donald Westlake's sad-sack comedies, in this case about Antonio Banderas, an unsuccessful art gallery owner who ekes out his income by a variation on the Bible Salesman scam. He winds up engaged to a funny, screeching Melanie Griffith, in lust with her sister -- and Melanie's gangster ex-husband is after him.
This won't be to everyone's taste: Westlake's humor is a lot like Tim Burton's and it's a shame Burton has never tried his hand at one of Westlake's novels. None of the screen adaptations of his works have served him well, although the hard-to-find HOT STUFF, from his own script works well.
But this is about as good as it gets, with a perfect supporting cast, including Eli Wallach, Darryl Hanna, Danny Aiello and the woman who can make you laugh while she's having a nervous breakdown: Joan Cusack. Give this a try. And if you know Tim Burton, suggest he try a Dortmunder novel or two.
