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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best adaptations of a Neil Simon play., December 5, 2001
Clever direction means that this doesn't seem too play-like and the hotel rooms never seem claustrophobic. A very strong cast is assembled here, with Caine cast against type as a closet case preparing to receive an Oscar with his bitter and scathing wife Maggie Smith. Alan Alda turns in a moving performance as Billy, and Pryor and Cosby, both usually associated with other actors, show us what a good double-act they could have been. It seems to be four plays in one, with the tone of the comedy varying from piece to piece. Alda's section is touching comedy, Walter Matthau's is farce, Caine's is wry observation while Cosby's is farce again. The brevity of the individual pieces means that the film moves along at a cracking pace, leaving you wanting more. If you do want more, I suggest Neil Simon's Plaza Suite.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
More Stars Than The Grand Hotel--A Nostalgic Piece With A Stellar Cast, November 4, 2010
There is a certain amount of contrivance and staginess to be expected in many Neil Simon film adaptations. I mention this only for viewers who may not be familiar with Simon as a playwright/screenwriter whose most successful days included "The Odd Couple" and "The Goodbye Girl." Working almost exclusively in theater and TV for the past 20 years, it seems as if he retreated from film after dabbling in original screenplays for such dubious films as "The Slugger's Wife" and "The Marrying Man." Well for good or bad, "California Suite" is pure Simon circa 1978--a West Coast riff and companion piece to his successful "Plaza Suite." If you are a Simon fan, this is undoubtedly a must-have film for a variety of reasons. If, however, you have no idea who Simon is--there is still much to recommend "California Suite."
Structured as four overlapping stories set in one Los Angeles hotel, Simon has assembled a pretty impressive array of talent. Jane Fonda and Alan Alda play a divorced couple engaged in verbal warfare over the welfare of her daughter. Fonda, anyway, is especially brutal and annoyed that Alda has assumed a laid back California persona. Walter Matthau displays his comedy chops trying to remove a prostitute from his room. Bill Cosby and Richard Pryor face off in grand slapstick fashion when only one vacancy is available. And Maggie Smith and Michael Caine are on hand from England to attend the Oscars. Smith's character has been nominated and in an amusing bit of real life, Smith won Best supporting Actress for this role! Told you it was a good cast!
"California Suite," undoubtedly, is in the middle range of Simon's oeuvre. He did get a screenplay nomination in addition to Smith's statuette. It's hard to deny the appeal of seeing this big name cast let loose. Fonda and Alda are quite good in the most dramatically rendered sequence, Matthau is a delight, and Smith and Caine are brilliant. For me, Pryor and Cosby provided the most tedious of the stories--but I can certainly understand the mainstream commercial appeal they had at the time. The whole thing does come off as a filmed play (that's the staginess and contrivance I mentioned at the get-go) which isn't a problem for me or other fans, but could be potentially off-putting to new viewers. Pretty funny, for the most part, with good to great performances. I personally could watch Smith (here in her prime) all day long! KGHarris, 11/10.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
More Stars Than The Grand Hotel--A Nostalgic Piece With A Stellar Cast, January 10, 2011
There is a certain amount of contrivance and staginess to be expected in many Neil Simon film adaptations. I mention this only for viewers who may not be familiar with Simon as a playwright/screenwriter whose most successful days included "The Odd Couple" and "The Goodbye Girl." Working almost exclusively in theater and TV for the past 20 years, it seems as if he retreated from film after dabbling in original screenplays for such dubious films as "The Slugger's Wife" and "The Marrying Man." Well for good or bad, "California Suite" is pure Simon circa 1978--a West Coast riff and companion piece to his successful "Plaza Suite." If you are a Simon fan, this is undoubtedly a must-have film for a variety of reasons. If, however, you have no idea who Simon is--there is still much to recommend "California Suite."
Structured as four overlapping stories set in one Los Angeles hotel, Simon has assembled a pretty impressive array of talent. Jane Fonda and Alan Alda play a divorced couple engaged in verbal warfare over the welfare of her daughter. Fonda, anyway, is especially brutal and annoyed that Alda has assumed a laid back California persona. Walter Matthau displays his comedy chops trying to remove a prostitute from his room. Bill Cosby and Richard Pryor face off in grand slapstick fashion when only one vacancy is available. And Maggie Smith and Michael Caine are on hand from England to attend the Oscars. Smith's character has been nominated and in an amusing bit of real life, Smith won Best supporting Actress for this role! Told you it was a good cast!
"California Suite," undoubtedly, is in the middle range of Simon's oeuvre. He did get a screenplay nomination in addition to Smith's statuette. It's hard to deny the appeal of seeing this big name cast let loose. Fonda and Alda are quite good in the most dramatically rendered sequence, Matthau is a delight, and Smith and Caine are brilliant. For me, Pryor and Cosby provided the most tedious of the stories--but I can certainly understand the mainstream commercial appeal they had at the time. The whole thing does come off as a filmed play (that's the staginess and contrivance I mentioned at the get-go) which isn't a problem for me or other fans, but could be potentially off-putting to new viewers. Pretty funny, for the most part, with good to great performances. I personally could watch Smith (here in her prime) all day long! KGHarris, 11/10.
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