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Visitors Review

dave-sturm 2012-05-25 06:29:30

Extraordinary screwball comedy

I submit there is never a single non-funny minute in this masterpieceof screwball comedy. How in heaven's name were these actors able tokeep a straight face making this? Tea Leoni, especially, greets eachnew disaster with insincere mortification so effectively that it is themovie's best running gag.To recap, Ben Stiller is a husband, new father and adopted son ofarchetypely loud and quarrelsome Jewish New York parents George Segaland Mary Tyler Moore. Ben wants to find his "roots," i.e., birthparents. He has enlisted the help of adoption case worker Tea Leoni,whose somber professional manner conceals incompetence of colossalproportions.So begins a road movie as Ben, Tea and Ben's wife, played by aphysically lush Patricia Arquette, and their baby set out on the quest,which seems simple at first. What they are actually plunging into is anincredibly complicated unfolding of an adopted child's real history.There's no point in going into the plot in more depth. Suffice it tosay that no sooner does one set of crazy people, all of whom seemperfectly normal at first, exit the movie than a new set of crazypeople pops up.Favorite scene? I'd have to say LSD "guide" Lilly Tomlin trying to talkdown an LSD-lit-up Richard Jenkins. The destruction of the post officecomes in a close second. Oh, but wait, there's the armpit-lickingscene. And ... I give up. David O. Russell, the writer/director, take a bow.

Brian T. Whitlock 2012-05-24 23:13:51

GREAT MOVIE, BUT I'M SHOCKED ABOUT MARY TYLER MOORE!

This movie is all about funny,one misinformation after another. Ben Stillerplaying a new dad who wants to find out his real family was really a sillyidea from the getgo. Thinking he finally meets his parents turn out to bethe silliest road trip anyone has gone on. Mary Tyler Moore playing the momis good, but did she have to flip her sweater up to Stiller to prove to himon how many kids she has? By the way, nice bra Mary HAHAHAHAHA! Crazycharacters after crazy characters, this movie was awesome, and it's a bigkeeper for comedy fans.A 10!

2012-05-24 03:30:54

COMIC TIMING.

Where to begin! Lily Tomlin and Alan Ada at the top of their game in an all-round stellar comic starcast. Lighthearted but biting dialogue that houses a charming warmth for its dysfunctional characters. And a doozy theme: a new father's search for his birth parents. He can't name his own baby until he knows more about where he came from. The adoption agent who accompanies them is the epitome of the high strung New Yorker, whose goofs and gaffs lead the group into one riotous predicament after another. Particularly funny if you have recently been thinking of names for a baby, or if you can laugh at 60's counterculture. The movie is funniest in the last 15 minutes or so. The closing credits alone are worth the price of admission (or DVD). Recommended rental. Even better the second time round.

2012-05-23 21:34:50

The funniest movie of all time

I don't watch movies twice. I just don't. However, I have seen this movie 5 times and laugh out loud every time. Ben Stiller is, as usual, hilarious. A great road movie.

2012-05-21 04:57:39

Ben Stiller Never Ceases to Amaze

Sometimes, watching a Ben Stiller movie is like watching a car crash, you just can't look away or you might miss something. In this slightly chaotic film about a man trying to find the identity of his birth parents is a serious topic; but Stiller mananges to weave the characters carefully into a totally neurotic mis-adventure. You have to wonder what kind of daily experiences this man has had. How do you come up with a scene where a friend or is licking the underarm of his wife(Patricia Arquette). Does it happen in his circle of friends? I don't think this film was a big box office attraction, but I watch it over and over again just to see Mary Tyler Moore loose control because her daughter-in-law is nursing her baby and not wearing the right bra--warning her against the perils of an inadequate binding device. I highly recommend this movie just to rattle your cage a little.

NRastro 2012-05-20 14:49:31

Really funny, but may not play well on video

I saw this movie and was amazed by its unrepentant irreverence.However, as I read some of the other user comments here, I realize that Ithink the film plays a lot better if you see it in a theater or with otherpeople (I saw it in a theater when it was first released) than if youwatched it on video, alone at home. If you watch it alone, I can easily seehow it might feel like it keeps you too much off balance and then seemsoff-putting and unsettling as a result. In my opinion, you need peoplearound you to share the shock of some of the places the plot takes you to.(This is definitely a movie where I said numerous times, "I can't believethey're going to go there!" and, indeed, they go RIGHT there (i.e., over theedge).)The film has some gay characters that are depicted a bit unconventionally,which can be refreshing if you're gay. But if you're in the right mood, Ithink the movie can be a hoot for anyone.

2012-05-15 07:39:07

I'M SEEING COLORS I DON'T WANNA SEE

Hilarious film. The dialogue is priceless and the characters are well-developed and likeable. Ben Stiller plays Mel Coplin, the (adult) adopted son of Mary Tyler Moore and George Segal. Their constant arguments are hilarious and neurotic. Mel is married to Nancy, played wonderfully by Patricia Arquette (usually I do not like her but she was great in this role). They have just had a baby boy and cannot seem to name him because Mel has hang ups about it. He decides that in order to name the son and to get on with his life he needs to meet his birth parents. He sees an adoption counselor, Tina Kalb (played annoyingly well by Tea Leoni. She is all right but I don't personally see her appeal). Tina informs Mel that she has located his birth mother in San Diego, and this is where the fun ensues. I won't mention all the details because that will ruin much of the fun... but the mishaps and mistakes and problems encountered all along the way have Mel, Nancy, and Tina running all over the US, meeting up with one of Nancy's high school acquaintances in Michigan after they destroy a US post office. Lily Tomlin and Alan Alda play Mel's birth parents, and you will scarcely believe the joys that await everyone when they arrive at their house. I have heard mixed reviews of this film, but my own opinion is that it is hilarious and if you listen to all the dialogue, the observations and discussions the characters have is brilliant. Particularly funny is the part of Paul (Richard E. Jenkins), the Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agent.

Idocamstuf 2012-05-14 17:52:48

Brilliant!!!

Comedies like this are a real rarerity, especially nowadays. You almostnever see a movie thats this intelligent and funny. Ben Stiller ishilarious as the man who is traveling around the US to find his biologicalparents. Lily Tomlin and Alan Alda are hilarious as well as his biologicalparents. This is definately a must see comedy, and I very rarely givecomedies good reviews. ***1/2 out of ****.

2012-05-13 14:30:51

Some Jokers might think this isn't worth 5 stars

This is an absolutely stunning, painfully funny film, shamefully underrated (see also 'Office Space', 'Dirty Work' for similarly overlooked comic masterpieces). I'm not such a huge Ben Stiller fan, apart from in 'Mary, and 'Royal Tennenbaums', but he is perfectly cast here, as a reticent man, forced into some horrifically uncomfortable public humiliations. It wouldn't be fair to reveal much of the plot, but the climax of Stiller's search for his biological parents is pure gut-renching black comedy. Don't believe the critics who give this anything less than 5 stars - this is top-quality entertainment, for those who like their comedy black, and on the dry side.

considrd 2012-05-13 00:17:30

Side splitting mayhem on the search for birth parents

We love this movie and rent it periodically when we want somethingguaranteed to make us laugh. Lighthearted, with sharp dialogue deliveredbya stellar comedy cast, the story focuses on a new father's search for hisbirth parents. He can't name his own baby until he knows more about wherehe came from. The adoption agent who accompanies them is the epitome ofthe high strung New Yorker, whose goofs and gaffs lead the group into oneriotous predicament after another. Particularly funny if you have recentlybeen thinking of names for a baby, or if you can laugh at 60'scounterculture. Lilly Tomlin and Alan Alda are unforgettable in their lastlines during the closing credits.

JStraw-3 2012-05-10 00:07:29

Great rental

A very funny, weird and witty movie from the director of the great "ThreeKings". While not as polished as the later 3 Kings, this movie is highlyrecommended. A lot of fun with some great performance from an all-star,quirky, cast.

2012-05-09 06:23:32

This movie is awesome!

Typical of Ben Stiller, this film is hysterically funny. Ben is a neurotic adoptee trying to find his real parents. In a series of odd encounters, he finally finds his genetic matches...and, well, let's just say they are pretty trippy. Very well written and acted, worthy of being seen several times. It's full of unexpected humor that catches you off guard...a wonderful comedic surprise! END

2012-05-08 12:40:39

DVD/VHS Trade-off

See it's sort of a toss-up, 'cause on the one hand, you've got the film in widescreen with better (not spectacular) picture and sound, but, on the other hand, the VHS version has two more outtake scenes in the credits. I chose the DVD, but I didn't know about the two missing scenes until after I'd already purchased it. Just something to consider.

2012-05-07 22:26:35

Whatever

Another critically acclaimed film that had me saying: "Whatever" when it was finally over. "Rushmore" was another one that left me cold and not laughing. I guess it's me. I just didn't get it. A friend of mine recommended this film to me and I was really excited about seeing it hoping for some really good laughs. Unfortunately, I mostly sat there wondering what was supposed to be so funny. I found it shrill and disjointed. And after seeing Tea Leoni in three films now I honestly feel she should stick to television or get out of acting period. She really reeks. And it wasn't funny when Mary Tyler Moore bragged about how wonderful her breasts still looked at her age. It was, sadly, embarrassing. A wonderful cast in what I feel was a big disappointment.

TheTwistedLiver 2012-05-06 08:31:01

Very entertaining film with a solid cast and serpentine plot

This film is well worth seeing. The characters and story are veryentertaining and funny. This is what Ben Stiller should be doing now,films like this one. Unfortunately, Ben has fallen into the same rutthat haunts Eddie Murphy and others who have lost the sense of humorthey once possessed after having children. Comedians should besterilized for the good of their work. Ben stiller made the film Envyright around the birth of his first child and hasn't been funny since.The plot revolves around Mo Copeland, a thirty year old man who hasjust given birth to his first child and is having problems naming thechild due to his lack of identity from being adopted. He sets out on amisguided journey to find his birth parents and hilarity ensues. Veryfunny movie.Go into this film expecting and knowing nothing and you will beentertained and laugh out loud. I guarantee it.

2012-05-05 17:36:10

Best armpit licking scene ever

Ben Stiller is once again out to "meet the parents" - his own parents this time - but doing so proves, well, almost disasterous. The film presents an amusing cross-section of white America. Ben Stiller plays another uptight role (a blend of the Ben Stiller from Reality Bites/Meet the Parents/Royal Tenenbaums). I laughed out loud a few times and grinned quite a bit too. This movie is not for the typical movie watcher who still finds Hollywood formula comedies amusing. If you loved the Royal Tenenbaums you'd probably like or love this film. And any movie with an armpit licking scene is worth watching.

Robert J. Maxwell 2012-05-04 23:25:33

Like a Woody Allen Road Flick.

Maybe called "Deconstructing Mel." Ben Stiller, his wife Patricia Arquette,and an adoption agency representative, Tea Leoni, go on the road in searchof Stiller's "birth parents." Ben is nervous and mostly passive. His wifeapologizes for having put on weight during her recent pregnancy. Thestatuesque Leoni and Stiller find themselves attracted to one another,although neither is ready for an affair. The search takes them to San Diego where Stiller's mother turns out to be amaterialistic nonentity with two radiantly healthy daughters, a big ranchhouse, a collection of glass zodiac figures, and no brains. It turns out tohave been a mistake. They next find themselves in Michigan where Stiller's father is an ex-Hell'sAngel who now drives a truck and twits Stiller for looking Jewish. This isalso a mistake.Next stop, Antelope Wells, New Mexico, navel of the universe, whereStiller's parents are revealed to be a couple of aging hippies, Alda andTomlin, with a lunatic son who is a selfish and jealous young man who dosesthe quail dinner and sends one of the visitors on an unwitting acid trip. Oh, the trio of investigators has picked up a male couple who are married. One of them is Arquette's ex-boyfriend and likes to lick herarmpit.Stiller's parents of orientation, a nice Jewish couple, show upunexpectedly, there is a mix up of vehicles, and Stiller's adoptive father,George Segal, gets caught by the police with his arms full of dope. Despite all the travel, the movie doesn't really go anywhere in particular. Oddball is heaped upon oddball, gag upon gag. Stiller stutters a good deal,and there is a lot of overlapping nervous chatter, and people normalize allover the place -- Alda explains that after Stiller was born, he, Alda, andTomlin spent some time in the slams but it was for nothing. Less importantthan a speeding ticket. It wasn't even illegal. Or it shouldn't have been. Everyone was making LSD in those days and "it's not addicting."The question isn't really whether the movie assumes the morphology of aWoody Allen movie, but whether it gets its job done -- and it does. As faras that goes, the situational and conversational gags are funnier than manyof those in Woody's recent movies. And if the movie lacks depth, well,that's okay. "Deconstructing Harry" didn't have much depth either, andneither did most of Charlie Chaplin. If the style is a little irritating it's because we've seen it and heard itso often before. But the jokes are usually funny. The performers are up tothe task and the pace never drags. The direction is well handled too. Example: Segal and Mary Tyler Moore discover that they are driving thewrong car, now immobilized on the highway, that it may not be theirs. "Lookin the trunk and see if our baggage is there," says Moore. Segal rummagesthrough the trunk hysterical with worry. No luggage. Just a lot of junk inbags and briefcases, which Segal tears open to find that his trunk is nowloaded with illegal drugs. The cops come and catch him. But the directordoesn't spell out the entire ordeal for us. Gradually, as Segal stares atthe drug factory in his hands, and as he starts shouting at Moore, we seethat blinking red lights are beginning to light up the scene and we hear acar pull to a stop off camera. (We see no car, no cops, and we hear novoices.) Segal, still holding the paraphernalia, turns towards the sourceof the red light wordlessly, with an idiotic smile. Dissolve. A lesstrusting director would have taken us through the entire encounter with thepolice, the two big brutes in intimidating uniforms and their baritonevoices, Segal's and Moore's silly attempts at an explanation. But what wesee, though truncated, is funnier because it prompts our imagination to fillin the rest of the scene. Not badly done. Amusing, really.

kenjha 2012-05-04 14:13:19

Flirting with Laughs

An adopted man goes searching for his birth parents. Hilarity ensues.Not really. Actually there are zero laughs for the first half hour orso. The first chuckle is supplied when Brolin enters the picture as agay Federal agent. From that point, it becomes mildly amusing, thanksto a terrific cast. It's nice to see the likes of Moore, Segal, Tomlin,and Alda, although sexual scenes of these old-timers is the kind ofimagery one does not want lingering in the mind. This film providedStiller with a career template for playing neurotic men who keepencountering disaster, but the script here is not as witty and the plotnot as engaging as some of his later efforts.

Erik A. Riveros 2012-05-03 04:49:31

Terrifically written and acted.

When it comes time for an adopted son (Mel Copeland played by Ben Stiller)to name his own son, he develops the desire to find out about his naturalparents. Employing the help of a neurotic and attention-starved case workerhe and his wife (Patricia Arquette) embark on a cross country trek to findhis parents. Plagued with deliciously problematic situations for everyone involved andeven picking up more people along the way (people with problems even funnierthan his own), Mel starts to notice some inadequacies in his own marriagethrough no help at all from the attractive and very 'friendly' case worker(Tea Leone).Ben Stiller was perfectly cast for this role, bringing to it a humour andrealism that is very refreshing. Tea Leone is fantastic as a womanapproaching middle age with nothing permanent and solid in her life.Alan Alda and Lily Tomlin are incredibly funny when we are introduced tothem in the latter part of the film. From the moment we are meet them untilthe end of the film, be prepared to laugh HARD. They have excellentchemistry together, but in addition their scene summarizes and incorporatesthe story behind the whole film. Very funny. The movie will be enjoyed by anyone who enjoys dark humour and goodwriting.

Mickey Knox 2012-05-02 21:31:52

i've been Watching a Disaster

This is definetely the worst Ben Stiller movie ever. ADisaster.I can't believe this one is called a comedy, it didn't even make me smileand i always laugh very hard at good comedies.If you wanna waste 90 mins watch this one. A stupid movie with no good plot- a guy in search for his real mother -, with totally not funny situationsand boringness all over the place. I can't believe its rating is so big, itdoesn't deserve it.Vote: 2 out of 10.PS I've always been a fan of Ben Stiller. This is his first movie that idisliked.