Reviews (54)

that "Little Bird" is going to leave you breathless!
Demi Moore came under intense public attention for those "pictures", little did they know she was going to star in a movie about going starkers...STRIPTEASE.

STRIPTEASE is one of those "guilty pleasure" movies that have a certain campy charm, it's certainly more enjoyable that it's bastard-sister-film; SHOWGIRLS.

Erin Grant (Demi Moore) loses the custody battle for her daughter when she is fired from her job. What's a girl to do? Go and shake her booty, what else?!!

Down at the Eager Beaver Club, where the beer isn't the only thing on the menu, Erin finds a job prancing around to such innocuous tunes as "Little Bird" and "Money Can't Buy It". Soon, a mysterious murder and a hilarious excuse for a congressman - Dilbeck (Burt Reynolds in an inspired performance) prove more of a hindrance than a help as Erin decides to expose her lousy ex-husband as the drug-pushing, slack-jawed yokel that he really is, all the while spinning around a pole in a G-string. Sound exhausting? Nah! We're only getting started!

Overall a pretty enjoyable caper. The DVD transfer is beautiful.

2 stars for Demi Moore
This movie is not a fully erotic movie as it might be expected.But it is not a clever and funny movie either.So what makes Striptease bad,I guess,is that it doesn't manage to satisfy any taste at all.

Erin Grant (Demi Moore) must strip for a living,and her biggest fight is against her ex-husband to get her little daughter back.Meanwhile a [physically excited] congressman (Burt Reynolds)gets fixated on her,a murder occurs and things get quite complicated.

Striptease has humor at times,but not much really happens.The plot,if there is any,is pretty weak.The only thing that makes this movie worth watching is probably Demi Moore and her dancing on beautiful Eurythmics songs.However other than those "music videos",there is nothing else to care about in the movie.I wish Eurythmics used Demi on their videos,which would make making a movie like Striptease unnecessary.

The DVD doesn't have a single extra as it suffers from being an old release,so I can not show any reason why you should buy this DVD,except if you are a hardcore Demi fan..

NATURALLY BAD CONGRESSMAN WAS REPUBLICAN
"Strip Tease" was typical. In it, Burt Reynolds was depicted as so many Republican politicians are depicted: Stupid, immoral, greedy, corrupt...am I leaving anything out?

STEVEN TRAVERS
AUTHOR OF "BARRY BONDS: BASEBALL'S SUPERMAN"
STWRITES@AOL.COM

Stunningly Bad Movie
This is a stunningly bad movie. The plot is basically Demi Moore's character as a single mom who needs money so she works in a strip club (yes, stripping) and has men problems (crappy ex-husband, lecherous politician). While Demi Moore looks great in this movie that was not even worth the two hours or so I wasted watching it.

Best Movie Ever!!!
I love this movie... It is the best ever made and I love to watch it late at night, if you know what I mean. Demi Moore is the best when she starts stripping, I start stripping!

I watch this movie every night of the week! ... Read more

Amazon.com

Inspired by an actual incident, this unassuming, wonderfully good-natured romantic comedy tells the story of a New York City street cop named Charlie (Nicolas Cage) who makes a promise to a coffee-shop waitress named Yvonne (Bridget Fonda) that will change both their lives.One day after coffee, Charlie is embarrassed to discover he doesn't have money for a tip, so he tells Yvonne that he'll share half of his winnings if the lottery ticket he's holding comes up a winner. Sure enough, he wins the jackpot--a whopping $4 million payoff--and Charlie's wife, Muriel (Rosie Perez), goes ballistic when he tells her about his deal with Yvonne.From this point, It Could Happen to You follows Charlie's dilemma as he is forced to decide the proper course of action, and director Andrew Bergman smoothly incorporates a gentle love story into this amusing crisis of conscience. Fonda and Cage have an easygoing chemistry that adds a pleasant touch to the movie's fairy-tale plot, and the story's kindhearted sentiment is never so thick that it becomes sticky-sweet or artificial. As feel-good comedies go, this one's a class act. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (28)

This movie is very underrated
I watch this movie all the time and each time i watch it i love it even more!It is a wonderful movie that tells a real-life event,I really enjoyed Rosie Perez's performance as she plays a snobby,and wickedly evil have who cares about nothing but their lottery winnings.And Bridget Fonda is real good as a sweet,caring waitress who got cut off from her credit cards by her husband (which is played by Stanley Tucci,who is a delight to the film)but (as all movies do) it ends with the good guy getting the good girl (i didn't spoil anything you can figure this out early on in the film.)

Sweet Romantic Story
This story was inspired by an actual event and makes you believe that there are still nice people in the world. One day a policeman (Charlie Lang, played by Nicholas Cage) must leave a restaurant in a hurry, and rather than leave without a tip he promises half the winnings of a lottery ticket to his waitress (Yvonne Biasi, played by Bridget Fonda), if the ticket should win. The ticket wins, big time, and the conflict and stress begin.

To contrast with the sweetness, though with a bit of cynical edge, of Charlie and Yvonne, is Charlie's wife Muriel, obnoxiously and effectively played by Rosie Perez. Muriel is out for Muriel, and wants to get what she sees as hers, regardless of whatever promise Charlie may have made to Yvonne.

We see Charlie conflicted as to what to do at first. After all, Charlie certainly did not expect to win several million dollars on that lottery ticket. However, Charlie wants to do the right thing, and he does. As Charlie follows his heart, and what he believes is right, Charlie comes to realize that Yvonne has morals and a style more like his own, and Muriel is greedy and conniving and just not a very nice person. While I was initially conflicted by Charlie's marriage to Muriel, because I believe strongly in marriage, there came a point where I just couldn't stand Muriel any more, and no belief in marriage would have made me stay with her.

This story is a bit of a caricature and more than a bit trite, but somehow I wanted this variation on the Cinderella theme to work out and I had to follow it to the end. I wanted the movie to work out because Yvonne was just a wonderfully nice person and she deserved a better life, and I decided that no matter what Muriel and Charlie were not going to work out. I admit that I did come to the point where I wanted Charlie and Yvonne to get together, but I was not sure of exactly how to work that out without complications.

In a way this movie is a bit of a guilty pleasure, because it does have a fair amount of predictability, though not all the details are predictable. However, I like to watch happy ending movies sometimes, and this one has a wonderfully happy ending. This movie works because of the great chemistry between Bridget Fonda and Nicholas Cage. The combination of their character's believability, the sweet story, and the happy ending, just make this a fun movie to watch. Just keep your analysis of the story to a minimum; it is only a movie, after all.

Fake Love Story, Seriously flawed script...
The original script for this film was more honest. It tried to show the charecters in a somewhat more realistic way, but the studio rewrites turn this into a modern day and totaly cliched Cinderalla story with an ending that looks so much like they made it up and did it as a reshoot.

you reap what you sow
This movie, based on a true story, is for anyone desperately hoping that good things do happen to good people. Yvonne is a struggling waitress who has filed for bankruptcy, as her estranged husband (she doesn't have enough money to divorce him) ran up $12,000 on her credit cards. She came to New York 5 years ago to be an actress, and it just never happened. Meantime, Charlie is a good-hearted cop, very blue collar, living in Queens and liking it. He is married to Muriel, his high-school sweetheart, and she doesn't like it -- she wants more more more!! And WHEN is Charlie going to give it to her, that's what she wants to know!

One day, Charlie is at Yvonne's coffeeshop and doesn't have enough money to pay the bill and leave a tip. He offers to come back the next day and give her half his lottery winnings (he just purchased a ticket) or double a tip. Turns out he wins ... and that is where the real story begins.

Money is not the root of all evil, it's the LOVE of all money that is. How much this money meant to Charlie, Yvonne, Muriel and the various people who start coming out of the woodwork all becomes apparent. Furthermore, money is not an end but the means to an end -- how does each individual choose to use their part of the pie? It's interesting .....

This is billed as a romance but that is really the secondary plotline that develops very slowly. It could happen to you -- and the situations presented make you examine what you would do if you won $4 million.

A feel good movie, through & through!
I am glad that this movie is available on DVD because it's a great "feel good" movie! Nicolas Cage plays a mild mannered cop who, one day, can't leave a tip for a cup of coffee, so he offers his waitress (Bridget Fonda) his lottery ticket. It's funny to see the chain of events that happen throughout the movie. It's a romantic comedy that will keep you watching right to the end! ... Read more

Reviews (19)

Jack and Besty are in Vegas with Elvis
When Honeymoon in Vegas begins a man named Jack Singer (Nicolas Cage) is in a New York Hosptial. It's 1987. His mom is not feeling well. And he is visting her in the hospital.

Jack's mom requests that if she dies, that Jack will awalys love her and never get married. She does die and Jack screams at her body that he promises never to get married.

Then 4 years later a man (Robert Costanzo) is in Jack's office. The man's wife is cheating on him. Jack has a girlfriend named Besty (Sarah Jessica Parker) wants to take the next step to marriage. So he pops the question and takes her to Las Vegas.

There, a gambler named Tommy Korman (James Caan) has returned to Las Vegas and invites Jack to a poker game. There is an Elvis impersonator aslo in the game. Jack loses big to Tommy and owes him $65,000.

But Tommy will erase the money if Besty will spend the weekend with him. Jack agrees and Tommy takes her to Hawaii. Tommy's wife is dead. Tommy's son (John McMahon) is aslo going to be there.

When Jack finds out where Besty is. He checks out of his hotel and goes back to New York. He sees on a news report Tommy and Besty on his tv. If your are a big Elvis Presley fan, and wants to see 3,000 Miles to Graceland. Stay home and watch this or Finding Graceland or both.

There are Elvis Presley impersonators. From Bruno Hernandez to Rick Marino. And there is even a black Elvis Preseley impersonator (Clearance Giddens). Maybe 3,000 Miles To Graceland is half bad as people say it is. There are aslo flying Elvises that sky dive. This is a great film for Elvis Presley fans.

A Hilarious Lesson In Love And Marriage.
The wonderfully talented and versatile Nicholas Cage turns in a great comic performance in this Andrew Bergman comedy adventure. .............. Cage plays Jack Singer, a commitmentphobic private investigator who loves longtime galpal schoolteacher Betsy (Sarah Jessica Parker) but, "Just hasn't gotten around to marrying her." ............... Like most women who have been waiting on their love a bit too long for the comfort of the commit and not getting past the girlfriend status to wife, Betsy delivers the ultimatum, marriage orgoodbye. .............. Jack, not wanting to lose Betsy, decides they'll finally get married in Vegas. Unfortunately, Jack is diverted from his plans by Tommy Korman, smarmily played by the great veteran talent James Caan. Korman is a "Garment district" guy, and major player on the Vegas gambling circuit. He decides to invite Jack to a "complimentary" poker game after spying Betsy in the hotel lobby, and deciding she will be the look alike replacement for his deceased wife. ............ From there, lot's of laughs, mayhem, twists, trips and a competition between Cage and Caan's characters that lead to a "Flying Elvis's" declaration of love that will ultimately see to it that the best man wins. .............. No matter how many times I view this movie, it always remains a fresh and fun adventure that leaves me with a smile on my face. The three leads are terrific, and there are plenty of funny cameos along the way as well. Peter Boyle as "Chief Orman" a burnt-out Indian wanna-be, is truly hilarious. Pat Morita, Ben Stein, and more amusing familiar faces appear as well. ................ This is one of my all time favorite comedies, and one that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend to anyone looking for a "feel good" first rate comedy film experience.

Brilliantly Three Starred
I was shocked and appalled by the amazingness of the neutrality in which I viewed this video. I could find nothing wrong or funny with it. It was completely and utterly even. I think, that this in and of itself, should deserve an award. Never have I seen such unbiased representation of life.

Cliche
The villain said one phrase that I hadn't predicted. The whole rest of the movie I had top to bottom. I even guessed the cloths the heroine was going to be wearing in the final scene.

A couple goes to Vegas to get married; the guy gets in debt; the villain clears the debt on condition he can be with the guy's fiancee for a weekend. Of course, the villain claims nothing romantic; and of course, he starts romancing her the moment their out of sight; then of course, she falls for him; then of course, she falls back for the hero; and the end is happy.

If you want that. I'll say this: for what they had to work with, the story was rather charming.

Great Comedy
This is one of my favorite Nicholas Cage films. This movie was perfect for his style of humor. I can and have watched this film at least 35 times :-) ... Read more

Reviews (18)

A funny film that gets better each time you watch it!
This is a cleverly funny film that shows Matthew Broderick doing what he does best in a comedic role. Couple that with Marlon Brando in a very godfatherly role, Bruno Kirby's scene stealing support role and a great supporting cast, and you have the "recipe" for a funny movie. There are so many quick jokes, including a few good inside ones, that this film gets grows on you even more with each viewing.

An offbeat gem
Although I enjoyed this spoof of The Godfather (and other genres) on first viewing, I didn't fully appreciate its offbeat charm and cleverness. A second viewing a few years later brought home to me just how original and endearing The Freshman really is. Sadly overlooked on its release, this is a movie that works on many levels. Its outrageous plot manages to combine parody, Hitchcockian twists, sparkling dialogue and, at times, touching scenes of affection, in one superbly balanced package. Its achievement is all the more astonishing when one recalls that this was the directorial debut of its talented writer/director, Andrew Bergman.

The cast is brilliant. Seasoned pros such as Bruno Kirby and Maximilian Schell (the latter enjoying himself immensely as the gaily enigmatic Larry London) lend wonderful support to the two leads, Matthew Broderick and Marlon Brando. Broderick is ideally cast as the young college student embroiled in the affairs of the Sabatini "clan", while Brando gives one of his most likeable performances as the ageing "don" who bears more than a passing resemblance to you-know-who. On paper at least, the very notion of Brando sending up his most famous role must have seemed a risky move, but the great Marlon effortlessly avoids any opportunities for tastelessness. If anything, he enhanced my enjoyment of his original Don Corleone, simultaneously parodying and paying tribute to his greatest creation, and no movie buff would want to miss this cinematic reincarnation. Furthermore, Broderick and Brando enjoy a wonderful on-screen chemistry, and I was both touched and amused by their rapport.

Also deserving of mention is Paul Benedict as Arthur Fleeber, the slimey professor of film studies whom Broderick encounters. Benedict hilariously sends up the loathsome pretentiousness of such types, and the scene in which he receives his comeuppance is deliciously handled.

In short, The Freshman is a joy from start to finish, and repeated viewings will only enhance your enjoyment of this daring little gem.

A MUST SEE!
To quote another critic from 1990, any film that shows Marlon Brando ice skating and Bert Parks singing Bob Dylan's Maggie's Farm is a MUST SEE!

Delightful movie, often overlooked.
Young Clark Kellogg (Matthew Broderick) comes to New York, and within minutes, is robbed of most of his possessions. Even though he finds the robber, he is still short on cash (NYU Film School's required books aren't cheap) and is receptive to the idea of a job as an errand boy. He is stunned to meet his boss, Carmine Sabatini (Marlon Brando), who happens to look and sound like Don Vito Corleone. Clark soon finds himself tangled with Sabatini's Mafia-like affairs, not to mention his daughter, but mixed with that is a genuine liking and respect for the pseudo-Don. But with danger threatening from the Feds and a mob from South Amboy, is there a way out for both of them?

A delight of humor, as both Broderick and Brando excel. Look for a tour de force by Maximillian Schnell as the mysterious Larry London.

Lots of in-jokes here, from the portrayal of NYU Film School to Sabatini telling Kellogg that he knows a few people in Hollywood! The final scenes leave you laughing (Bert Parks hailing a Komodo Dragon with a Miss America parody, the very Germanic London being given intro music of a few notes of "Deutchland Uber Alles" and "The Ride of the Valkyies", Sabatini addressing said Komodo Dragon with "You cudda been a handbag" (recalling the backseat scene from "On the Waterfront"). The movie never takes itself too seriously.

One wishes that, given the capabilities of the DVD, that more material would be given the viewer. Unfortunately, we are left with the theatrical trailer and not much more. Disappointing.

The liner notes do disclose that the role of Sabatini was not actually written for Brando, and that the Komodo Dragon was played by a number of similar-looking giant monitors.

Still, one of the finest comedy movies of the late '80s. You won't regret it.

Idiotic,stupid, ridiculous, and inane
If there was ever a stupid and idiotic idea for a movie, this is it. Any kind of aliens from any planet invading any place would make more sense than this movie. The only redeeming feature is Brando's performance, which in the context of the plot, writing, and other performances, is a miracle.
This movie idea and script is straight out of the trash. A five year old kid could write a better script. Each and every executive who ok'ed this movie should be fired and never work again in film. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Most people probably approached Isn't She Great looking for a screaming camp-fest, only to discover a surprisingly sincere love letter to trash-novelist Jacqueline Susann, author of Valley of the Dolls and Once Is Not Enough. Bette Midler plays the brash, self-obsessed Susann, who started as a struggling actress yearning for fame and not too picky about what she was famous for. Fortunately, she catches the eye of personal manager Irving Mansfield (Nathan Lane), who seems to have no particular skills either but who is so passionately devoted to his client that he marries her. It's Irving who first suggests that Susann write a book about the sordid lives of celebrities and beautiful people, and Irving who pushes the book to publisher after publisher with dogged devotion. The movie lurches a bit in Susann's early life--it wants to approach the difficulties of Susann's life (an autistic son, breast cancer) with a mixture of sentimentality and irreverence, which doesn't always mesh--but once Valley of the Dolls finds a publisher, the movie finds its legs. The ever-dependable David Hyde Pierce plays the uptight WASP assigned to edit Susann's manuscript, and much mileage is gotten out of the conflict between Pierce's blue-blood manner and Midler's broad Jewish glitz. John Cleese and Stockard Channing also provide able support. Paul Rudnick's script shows a genuine affection for its heroine; Rudnick also wrote the screenplays for Addams Family Values and In and Out. --Bret Fetzer ... Read more