Pretty Good

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

LA Story is an ode to Los Angeles- the sunny city of angels. Bathed in early 90s sunlight, which when exposed to the film stock of that time created an atmosphere without even trying LA Story is Steve Martin at his best. This is a quirky, offbeat and yet endearing film that includes among other things a reference to Mel Gibson and a talking freeway Billboard. Victoria Tennant is nice as the newly arrived Englishwoman who Martin's character falls for. And Sarah Jessica Parker is fresh faced as the bumbling sales girl before she took off to rule the streets of New York. But this is Steve Martin's movie and he is excellent as the straight faced funnyman trying to make sense of his career and the city he lives in. This is early 90s movie magic at its finest and one of the best heartwarming comedy films out there.

L.A. Story (1991) A love letter to Los Angeles. A satire on the city the great Steve Martin has taken to calling his home. A surreal, whimsical romance. More like a series of comedic sketches. Like in stand up comedy, there are some sketches that make you laugh out loud, but others that unfortunately fall flat. Though the ones that stand out are so memorable that the slow moments seem negligible. The Good. The Cameos (Paula Abdul, Chevy Chase, Iman, Woody Harrelson, Terry Jones, Martin Lawrence, Patrick Stewart, Rick Moranis, and more; The DVD has a cute little separate menu providing details on them). The opening traffic avoidance scene, where everyone waves to him, as if he navigates sidewalks like this all the time (a tribute to Fellini's La dolce vita). Sara's subsequent senseless driving. The coffee and lemon ordering. The roller skating through fine art galleries. Commentaries on the ridiculousness in Hollywood. How SanDeE* must be spelled like that and all material, official or not, writes it out like that (her endless prancing and twirling is ever so annoying but young Parker still manages to be adorable). The Hard Rock Cafe scene where her boyfriend happens to be sitting at the bar, eerily watching them. L'Idiot, the pretentious dining establishment (where Patrick Stewart is Maitre D') that barters reservations and menu allowances (You think with a financial statement like this you can have the duck?"). The hotel in Santa Barbara is called "El Pollo del Mar" ("Chicken of the Sea"). Filmed in California. I am a California girl, so this was (mostly) positively regarded. Shakespeare references and quotes. (some misquoted or paraphrased, of course). Priceless one-liners. I will refrain from listing more than a few: "Hello, this is Harris. I'm in right now, so you can talk to me personally. Please start talking at the sound of the beep."; "Rather than doing an interview with me, which would be fascinating by the way, because of the interesting word usements I structure."; Why is it that you don't always recognize the moment when love begins but you always know when it ends?"; "Let your mind go and your body will follow."; "All I know is, on the day your plane was to leave, if I had the power, I would turn the winds around, I would roll in the fog, I would bring in storms, I would change the polarity of the earth so compasses couldn't work, so your plane couldn't leave." (The billboard does this for him later!); "There are only two things in my life I will never forget. One is that there is someone for everyone. Even if you need a pickax, a compass, and night goggles to find them. And the other is tonight. When I learned that romance does exist deep in the heart of Los Angeles." Alright, several. The Bad. There were some moments where I was a little bored, probably because I was not understanding the humor. I had to look into some of it in order to understand them. You would need to have lived in California- and preferably in the nineties- to truly appreciate many of the references. Somewhat dated. The Enya songs honestly did not seem to match the scenes. I loved Enya as much as anyone, but she did not seem to fit here. I did feel like there was a little much going on. Steve Martin apparently worked on the script for seven years. A lot of material squeezed into the two hours made for some characters I did not care for or wanted to know better, a few random vignettes that did not seem to go anywhere, sometimes what seemed like a lack of focus. The Amazing. And I saved the best for last, my favorite character, the adorably communicative electronic highway billboard sign. That gives love advice. And wants to be hugges. Insists on it. I might want billboards for my friends after this. Overall, though? Characters I cared for, witty writing, heartfelt romance, and good laughs. Plus, I have to be honest. I am biased in favor of anything from this man I have long deemed a genius. News flash. 42 is no longer the answer to life. "How Daddy is Doing" = "Sing Doo Wah Diddy". Enough said. End credits.

Very Steve Martin like. But somewhat average at it.I think that would summarize this one quite well.It's very Martin-like because it's got a sense of general distortion and endearing over-the-top fantasy, but while always keeping a very vivid grip on reality. It's a mix of romance; as often one that is very intense and that emphasizes on the emotional strain of love; and comedy of course.Victoria Tennant does a good job playing the counterpart to Martin's character.It's fun, very naive, has an element of endearing sympathy and subscribes to the modern fairytale genre.Not bad, but Martin's done better.

'L.A. Story' is a yet another film, that showcases the astounding talent of Steve Martin. The Honorary Oscar-Winner is a delight to watch here & he, singe handedly, leads the film with a performance that's purely enjoyable. 'L.A. Story' Synopsis: With the help of a talking freeway billboard, a "wacky weatherman" tries to win the heart of an English newspaper reporter, who is struggling to make sense of the strange world of early-90s Los Angeles.'L.A. Story' is an entertaining fantasy romantic-comedy, that narrates a story informatively. The Screenplay, which is Written by Martin himself, is a lovely mix of romance & situational humor, as well as capturing the true essence of Los Angeles in the early 1990's. A Special Mention for the delightfully real dialogue. Mick Jackson's Direction is appropriate. Cinematography & Editing are excellent.Performance-Wise: Its Martin all the way. He doesn't miss one single beat. An Impeccable Performance! Victoria Tennant is cute. Sarah Jessica Parker is fantastic. Her scenes are full of energy, thanks to her superior act. Richard E. Grant is first-rate. Marilu Henner is equally competent. Among Cameos, Patrick Stewart stands out.On the whole, Watch 'L.A. Story' for its innovative story & Martin's performance.