mark.waltz Back when the movies focused on real looking people in amusing situations and didn't focus on loud special effects or the supernatural, writers could get the audiences in and win awards for classy projects like this. You can't get any more real than Richard Dreyfuss and Marsha Mason, so real looking that you might confuse them for your neighbor, your college professor or your boss. Both actors, trained for the stage, feel right at home in the world of Neil Simon, particularly Mason who was married at the time.With her lover abandoning her and subleasing the apartment out from under her, Mason finds herself in a bind when Dreyfuss shows up in the middle of the night with a receipt and a legal right to move in and kick her out. In spite of her attitude towards him (or because of her young daughter, Quinn Cummings), he allows her to stay. The two are already quirky enough, and together, they turn each others worlds upside down. With his career as a dramatic actor and her struggle as a 30 something year old chorus girl, they are two worlds of theater that don't always understand the other. "Ask an actor a question, he gives you his credits." She's done everything from "Fiddler" to "Company", and he refuses to play a gay, de-humped Richard III. Simon pays tribute to his first love, the theater, and having written the scripts for both books and musicals, and he covers pretty much every archetype within the theater that could possibly be covered. While Quinn Cummings quickly made her exit from "the business", she makes quite an impression as Mason's very worldly daughter who is often more adult than the two adults surrounding her. But it is thanks to her, the adults come to an understanding, especially after she is mugged. But the conflicts continue, realistically, and they are realistically neurotic as opposed to pretentiously neurotic and demanding of attention. They show the New York I remember from just 20 years ago when people could have conflicts like this yet be able to come to an understanding.So between the writing and the three brilliant performances (not to mention vintage New York footage and a great theme song), this is a comedy for the ages. The musical version of this may have tanked, but surrounded by an ensemble of New York stage character actors, this remains a winner. This has the wild spoof of the gay version of "Richard III" (with Paul Benedict of "The Jeffersons" as its director) that is completely unforgettable. The viewing of this was not the winter of my discontent.

Lee Eisenberg By 1977, Richard Dreyfuss was a well established actor, having appeared in "American Graffiti", "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz" and "Jaws". That year he appeared in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and "The Goodbye Girl", winning an Academy Award for Best Actor for the latter.Probably the most notable role that year was John Travolta's turn as a working-class youth who dances to disco music in "Saturday Night Fever", one of the most iconic movies of the decade. By contrast, barely anyone remembers "The Goodbye Girl". On the other hand, Richard Dreyfuss is the better actor (more importantly, he frequently addresses political issues, while John Travolta is now more known for Scientology than for his movie roles). Are Academy Award nominations meant to address roles or individuals? Whatever the case, this movie - the first that Neil Simon wrote directly for the screen - is worth seeing. I actually liked Marsha Mason's role more than Richard Dreyfuss's. I'd call her one of the most underrated actresses. Overall, it's an OK movie, not a masterpiece.

George Wright The Goodbye Girl is a well-paced and bright romantic comedy from the 1970's which also reflects the lifestyle and social currents of that decade, sandwiched between 60's idealism and 80's materialism. This might sound glib but for me, it fits neatly in that period when young people were coping with disappointments and heartache as they tried to build lives for themselves. The script and the acting are funny, sad and entertaining throughout.The repartee between Marsha Mason and Richard Dreyfuss sparkles as the two people who are forced to accept each other as roommates, only because of economic necessity. One is a granola-eating guy from Chicago who meditates and exercises as he tries to make it in the New York theatre scene. The young woman is a single mother who has been abandoned by her common-law husband and tries to return to dancing. The music of Bread evokes the soft rock of the decade. We see Marsha Mason working as a sales girl for a Japanese car company in an era before Japanese cars were commonplace. Before gay rights became part of the social agenda, Richard Dreyfuss takes on the role of Richard II in a way that a 1970's audience felt was more like their home decorator or hairdresser. It all seems a bit dated and predictable; however, with the acting of Mason and Dreyfus and the brilliant script from Neil Simon, it still entertains and resonates with audiences.

indy-39 I suppose in a way I owe a debt of gratitude to this film-it certainly ranks on my list of "essentials" for cutting my own critical chops. The "essentials" I'm referring to are films I absolutely despised that virtually everyone I knew (and the Oscars) liked. For years the mere mention of "pan-tees-hang-ing-in-the-bathroom" could sent me into a rage. Listen, I like Neil Simon- probably more than I should-but this film is crap. The by-play between the leads that usually makes Simon funny falls flat with these two truly mismatched actors. Dreyfuss overacts shamelessly (it's his m.o. in virtually all his lead roles- like Bette Midler he's really only suitable for supporting roles) and begs the question: If John Simon could call Streisand "ugly" what do you call a guy who looks like a gerbil with whiskers? He's truly grotesque, and not just when he's playing gay Richard III (his best moment) his Oscar for this smacks of self congratulation on the part of Hollywood. Marsha Mason is mediocre also a career best. Fortunately for me, sanity prevailed and Dreyfuss sank to a level more befitting his talents (he blamed coke- I prefer to take the optimistic view that the world just came to its senses).This isn't the worst Neil Simon film- just the most overpraised. I watch what I can bear of it from time to time when I feel like patting myself on the back for trusting my judgement way back when.