Instant Favorite.

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

Never saw this before! Can't believe it. Anything with Bette Midler milking a cow whilst singing is an instant classic. Sit back, let yourself go and enjoy the ride.Fabulous:)

Reworking of the main gag in 1970's "Start the Revolution Without Me" has a rich couple from New York City, driving through a small southern town, checking into a bumpkin hospital where the wife delivers twins--two girls; at the same time, in the same befuddled hospital, a local woman also delivers twins--two girls. The joke, of course, is: one of the city babies is switched with one of the daughters from the farm family and, many years later, they all meet up at the Plaza Hotel. Bright, funny comedy, one of Bette Midler's better efforts for Touchstone, although it takes its time getting started. Once the action moves to the Plaza, it becomes less a vehicle for stars Midler and Lily Tomlin than a visual effects-driven farce with overtures to the 1930s. Tomlin's small town fussbudget is colorful, but her big city counterpart never takes shape, and she doesn't quite click with Midler (one may argue their characters are not related and therefore shouldn't click, but Tomlin's timing is very different from her co-star's, and she doesn't segue into brash slapstick comfortably). There's a great deal of incidental plotting revolving around the main action, with nutty characters continually popping up, but the jokes are freshest and funniest when director Jim Abrahams simply sets the camera on Bette Midler and lets her go. The editing is sloppy and abbreviates some of Midler's liveliest moments, yet Bette is very amusing when she's allowed to take charge. Fred Ward also appealing as a country rube who loves one or both of the Tomlins--although this pairing, too, lacks charisma (it's a plot device, like much of the rest of "Big Business"). *** from ****

One of the best examples of what comedy can be casts Bette Midler and Lily Tomlin as two sets of identical twins who got switched at birth, only to see their lives cross paths some decades later. I nearly died laughing at how people would carry on conversations with the wrong woman, totally convinced that she was the correct woman! One part of the movie that makes it seem a little less innocent are the discussions of strip mining, a type of surface mining that involves removing a long strip of overlaying soil and rock. Bobby Kennedy was going after coal companies that were doing this. More recently, the coal companies have been blowing the tops off of mountains, destroying communities in West Virginia.But anyway, it's a riot to hear the WV sisters debating the businessmen with their folksy talk. This is a movie for the ages! Also starring Fred Ward, Edward Herrmann, Seth Green (Scott in the Austin Powers movies) and financial journalist Louis Rukeyser in a cameo.So yes, is a frog's ass watertight?

Big Business is a brisk late 80s comedy that has some genuine charm and targeted humor. It doesn't really dive deeply into anything but isn't slap stick by any means. The writing and script is better than standard fare, and the Lily Tomlin and Bette Midler as well support acting lift the material higher than worth. Recall enjoying it a lot more on initial viewing partially for the added special effects at the time were somewhat remarkable considering being used on a comedy. The storyline focusing on class friction and country vs city-life is chucklingly and snickeringly funny though belly-laughs are almost non-existent. There are lots of smiles and giggles though. Fluff that's worth a watch for the cast.