Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.PCS 1/10/84; site mtgzz.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!umcp-cs!gymble!lll-crg!dual!qantel!vlsvax1!zehntel!tektronix!uw-beaver!cornell!vax135!houxm!ihnp4!drutx!mtuxo!mtgzz!leeper From: leeper@mtgzz.UUCP (m.r.leeper) Newsgroups: net.movies Subject: PRIZZI'S HONOR Message-ID: <854@mtgzz.UUCP> Date: Tue, 18-Jun-85 12:07:07 EDT Article-I.D.: mtgzz.854 Posted: Tue Jun 18 12:07:07 1985 Date-Received: Sun, 30-Jun-85 06:38:43 EDT Organization: AT&T Information Systems Labs, Holmdel NJ Lines: 50 PRIZZI'S HONOR A film review by Mark R. Leeper One of the classic names of American cinema is John Huston. He has worked in the cinema since he worked on the screenplay of the 1932 MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE. Besides being a familiar face in the films like CHINATOWN, he has directed such classics as TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE, KEY LARGO, THE AFRICAN QUEEN, and THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING. He is still out there making films of some seriousness for the viewer over 30. In the middle of the summer's fluff films, he has released PRIZZI'S HONOR, a comedy that turns out to be more than a comedy. The ads for PRIZZI'S HONOR indicate that it is a light comedy about two people who fall in love without realizing that each is a hired killer. That seems like an odd premise for a comedy, though the comedies PAIN IN THE A..and its American remake BUDDY, BUDDY have also attempted to be light comedies involving hired killers as main characters. Well, don't believe the ads. The first hour of PRIZZI'S HONOR certainly has a fair amount of comedy, but by the second half the fun is abandoned and we are left with a serious story of crime family politics and back-stabbing like out of some sort of co-operation between Lillian Hellman and Mario Puzo. The lovers are played by Kathleen Turner and Jack Nicholson, and an odder couple it is difficult to imagine. It is never really clear what the appealing Miss Turner sees in the fat, balding, New-York-accented Nicholson. The Nicholson character is so unappealing that the viewer tends to assume that Turner is pulling some sort of a scam. There is absolutely no chemistry between the characters on the screen. In fact, the most engaging character on the screen is William Hickey as the Patrone of the crime family. It isn't easy taking Hickey seriously in the role, as he usually plays a young man with a funny voice. Still, as the wizened head of a crime family, he is the most charismatic character in the film. The character's failing exterior causes the viewer to vastly underrate the keen mind of the character, who deftly pulls the strings for the entire family. Huston's daughter, Anjelica Huston, plays Nicholson's former girlfriend, who after a disagreement with her gangster father is trying to work her way back into the good graces of the crime family. In reality, PRIZZI'S HONOR will disappoint some with its uneven tone. Those who expect to rest their minds with a farce will find themselves lured by the second half into a complex film of some intrigue and a fair dose of violence. Even fans of the "Godfather" films may find themselves taxed to keep track of who is doing what to whom, or even just who is who. On the -4 to +4 scale, PRIZZI'S HONOR is a high +1. Mark R. Leeper ...ihnp4!mtgzz!leeper