ARTHUR 🤩

Some films stick with you for decades after their premiere in movie theaters. I usually tell myself it’s because of extraordinary story content, powerful acting, fine directing, beautiful locations, or incredible, mind-blowing action. Hmm…not always. I have to be honest. Sometimes it is merely the circumstances and life events surrounding our everyday existence that can make a movie immortal. 

 I imagine my brain is like a Rolodex filled with thousands of entries and personal notes on plays and films I consider memorable.  I can give my filing system a twirl and boom… I am triggered and flooded with images. It is a gift as well as a curse, because after over seven decades, a lot is going on in my head, and it keeps adding new artistic endeavors every day. Whew. 

In 1981, my life was complicated. I had just given birth to my second child, Ilisa Rae, and was making my way through the early throes of a possible divorce. Every day was chaotic and emotional. I was on maternity leave from teaching, and the world seemed upside down. Besides the newborn and a two-year-old toddler, I was trying to hold onto the threads of my marriage. Every moment was loaded with serious, drama/trauma, undertones of doom, and impending disaster. I needed relief. I needed to worry less. I needed to laugh out loud and let go of all the weight on my shoulders that was holding me down. So I did the only sane, rational action I could think of in my state of mind… I went to the movies. 

There is indeed a time and a place for screwball comedy films. How lucky was I that one of the all-time greats was playing right around the corner? The crazy, zany problem of having too much money (and drinking way too much booze) helped me forget my own problems. I learned it was all about perspective, so I laughed, rolled my eyes, and thought about what I could do with $751 million. I remembered what it felt like to be giddy and in love with life’s joys. I no longer “felt caught between the moon and New York City.” ARTHUR, a silly, sweet, hilarious character, helped me cope and move forward once again. It was the best that I could do, and I wanted to “alert the media” that I had found my center once again. 

I bet most people don’t realize that ARTHUR was nominated for four Oscars and won two. Sir John Guilgud, a classically trained Shakespearean actor, won his one and only Oscar in his illustrious career for his role as Hobson in Best Supporting Actor. The second Oscar went to the brilliant team of  Burt Bacharach, Carol Bayer Sager, Christopher Cross, and Peter Allen for ARTHUR’s theme song, BEST THAT YOU CAN DO (Cross was the vocalist as well). Allen’s only contribution was the most popular words of the entire song – “When you get caught between the moon and New York City, the BEST THAT YOU CAN DO is fall in love.” It was the number one hit for months.  Dudley Moore, ARTHUR, was also nominated for Best Actor and the writer/director, Steve Gordon, for Best Screenplay. The film was a financial goldmine, grossing close to $100 million at the box office and then becoming number one on video for two years after its release. Not bad for a film that only cost $7 million to produce. 

Moore was not Gordon’s first choice to play the title role. Close to a dozen others turned it down, and yet, I can’t imagine anyone else as the lovable, drunken, man-child. Moore developed his character in part through improvisation. It was not unusual for over twenty takes to be filmed on any given scene. The cameramen have often said they couldn’t stop laughing, and that would just fuel Moore to do more. The moose head scene took 27 takes until everyone was begging g for Moore to stop. Yet, the entire cast and crew have been quoted as saying how kind and generous Moore was to work with. Gielgud included. 

Liza Minnelli portrayed ARTHUR’s love of his life, Linda. She was perfect. She was able to keep up with Moore and his lightning-fast banter. They became great friends over the years and always supported each other through their ups and downs. I thought it was a good decision that Liza never broke into a song-and-dance routine. It was important to see her comedic acting chops without relying on musical schtick. Her entrance was a visual delight, with her decked out in a flaming red cowgirl hat, a bright red scarf, and a shiny yellow raincoat. Kudos to the costume designer for nailing Linda’s identity right from the beginning.

Gielgud turned down accepting the part of Hobson several times until the money they were offering was too good to pass up. Gielgud didn’t like being far from his native country, and he didn’t believe he could do comedy. How wrong he was. His character was the heart and soul of ARTHUR. Gielgud’s straight-face, deadpan delivery was spot-on in every frame. He cracked me up and then brought me to tears each time with his timing, tone, and intentional, heartfelt performance. I adored Hobson and have always thought everyone should be so lucky to have such a gentle, firm guide throughout life’s journey. Hobson gave ARTHUR his backbone to stand up to his father and be his own man. What a lesson for all of us. 

One of my favorite moments of ARTHUR was that fantastic train set in his bedroom. Phenomenal, and I am sure many men immediately ran to the store to put one together in their own bedrooms. The bubble bath and top hat were iconic. It’s an image that is difficult to forget. The positive affirmations and zingers were also a bonus for anyone who has found themselves floundering or lost. 

• “You can do anything you want with your life. Figure it out.”
• “What do you want? I want to be younger.”
• “You are too old to be poor.” 
• “A real woman would stop you from drinking.” (Foreshadowing for sure)

ARTHUR has many holes in its 97 minutes. Audiences might want to ask questions such as why ARTHUR drinks so much and why he is always a happy drunk. Why are his father and Susan cold fish? What were ARTHUR’s early years like? Was he close to his mother? Did ARTHUR feel humiliation when the press ridiculed him? Did he cry as a young, lonely boy? These layers were never meant to be explored or exposed. The script only offered a snippet of time. This is all that is necessary, and that’s the genius of ARTHUR. Gordon made sure there were at least ten jokes on every page of the script. This was his main objective. 

ARTHUR is one of the best NYC films ever made. Each location is better than the last and demonstrates the allure and love for this city. The film is also an homage to the greats of the 1930s (BRINGING UP BABY, MY MAN GODFREY). ARTHUR fools us. You think it is about one thing, but then it twists the theme all around and captures us in our mushy guts. It is a funny, endearing, deliciously entertaining classic. It is screwball comedy at its finest. Some days, all we can do to get by is to laugh. 

ARTHUR is available on TCM.