Ireneparalegal
07-29-2006, 09:11 PM
Last night I watched on the Biography channel an hour special on the life of Playboy Playmate of the Year 1980 Dorothy Stratten, who was brutally murdered in 1980 by her estranged husband. She had just completed a movie with John Ritter called THEY ALL LAUGHED. I didn't know that "Alex" from One Day at a Time was also in this movie. They showed many clips of this film and it was sad not only to see her, but also it was indeed sad to see John. He was a great actor and he played his part well in this movie, despite the fact that the movie got bad reviews.
http://www.answers.com/topic/they-all-laughed-film
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Plot
Peter Bogdanovich wrote and directed this quirky romantic comedy that was shelved by Twentieth Century-Fox for a year, until Bogdanovich purchased the film from Fox and tried to distribute it himself, with limited success. Suave John Russo (Ben Gazzara), inept Charles Rutledge (John Ritter), and hip Arthur Brodsky (Blaine Novak) all work for a detective agency, where they are assigned to follow a trio of beautiful women -- Angela Niotes (Audrey Hepburn), Deborah Wilson (Patti Hansen) and Dolores Martin (Dorothy Stratten) -- whom their husbands think are cheating on them. Soon the three detectives all become romantically involved with the women they are trailing. In a real life scenario that overshadowed the film itself, Bogdanovich was having an affair with Dorothy Stratten during the production and they were being followed by a detective hired by her husband Paul Snider, who as a result ended up murdering his wife and himself. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
Review
Dismissed by critics at the time of its release -- sometimes quite harshly -- They All Laughed is actually a moderately engaging romantic comedy. It doesn't succeed at being the witty, sophisticated, breezy sex comedy that it wants to be, but it provides a decent amount of lighthearted entertainment. The screenplay is the culprit here; Peter Bogdanovich doesn't really seem to know where the story is going, allowing it to meander all around the screen without ever arriving at its destination. Since he's the director as well as the writer, there's no one to force him to correct this major flaw -- and Bogdanovich's direction is only slightly more focused than his writing here, resulting in a film that moves in fits and starts. The (mostly) talented cast is not really used to their best advantage, with only Colleen Camp scoring a decisive hit, but they do provide the film with its biggest asset. It's always a treat to see Audrey Hepburn, Ben Gazzara has some good moments, and Dorothy Stratten and Patti Hansen are certainly easy on the eyes; only John Ritter fails to make a decent impression, overdoing his slapstick shtick to poor effect. Spending time with this group of people will be enough to keep most viewers smiling, if not laughing, throughout most of They All Laughed. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Cast
Audrey Hepburn - Angela Niotes
Ben Gazzara - John Russo
Colleen Camp - Christy Miller
Dorothy Stratten - Dolores Martin; Patti Hansen - Deborah "Sam" Wilson; George Morfogen - Leon Leondopolous; Blaine Novak - Arthur Brodsky; Sean Ferrer - Jose; Linda MacEwen - Amy Lester; Glenn Scarpelli - Michael Niotes; Vassili Lambrinos - Stavros Niotes; Antonia Bogdanovich - Stefania Russo; Alexandra Bogdanovich - Georgina Russo; Shawn Casey - Laura; Lisa Dunsheath - Tulips; Joyce Hyser - Sylvia; Tzi Ma; Elizabeth Peņa - Rita; Jo-El Sonnier; Sheila Stodden - Barbara Jo; Earl Poole Ball
http://www.answers.com/topic/they-all-laughed-film
________________________________________
Plot
Peter Bogdanovich wrote and directed this quirky romantic comedy that was shelved by Twentieth Century-Fox for a year, until Bogdanovich purchased the film from Fox and tried to distribute it himself, with limited success. Suave John Russo (Ben Gazzara), inept Charles Rutledge (John Ritter), and hip Arthur Brodsky (Blaine Novak) all work for a detective agency, where they are assigned to follow a trio of beautiful women -- Angela Niotes (Audrey Hepburn), Deborah Wilson (Patti Hansen) and Dolores Martin (Dorothy Stratten) -- whom their husbands think are cheating on them. Soon the three detectives all become romantically involved with the women they are trailing. In a real life scenario that overshadowed the film itself, Bogdanovich was having an affair with Dorothy Stratten during the production and they were being followed by a detective hired by her husband Paul Snider, who as a result ended up murdering his wife and himself. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
Review
Dismissed by critics at the time of its release -- sometimes quite harshly -- They All Laughed is actually a moderately engaging romantic comedy. It doesn't succeed at being the witty, sophisticated, breezy sex comedy that it wants to be, but it provides a decent amount of lighthearted entertainment. The screenplay is the culprit here; Peter Bogdanovich doesn't really seem to know where the story is going, allowing it to meander all around the screen without ever arriving at its destination. Since he's the director as well as the writer, there's no one to force him to correct this major flaw -- and Bogdanovich's direction is only slightly more focused than his writing here, resulting in a film that moves in fits and starts. The (mostly) talented cast is not really used to their best advantage, with only Colleen Camp scoring a decisive hit, but they do provide the film with its biggest asset. It's always a treat to see Audrey Hepburn, Ben Gazzara has some good moments, and Dorothy Stratten and Patti Hansen are certainly easy on the eyes; only John Ritter fails to make a decent impression, overdoing his slapstick shtick to poor effect. Spending time with this group of people will be enough to keep most viewers smiling, if not laughing, throughout most of They All Laughed. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Cast
Audrey Hepburn - Angela Niotes
Ben Gazzara - John Russo
Colleen Camp - Christy Miller
Dorothy Stratten - Dolores Martin; Patti Hansen - Deborah "Sam" Wilson; George Morfogen - Leon Leondopolous; Blaine Novak - Arthur Brodsky; Sean Ferrer - Jose; Linda MacEwen - Amy Lester; Glenn Scarpelli - Michael Niotes; Vassili Lambrinos - Stavros Niotes; Antonia Bogdanovich - Stefania Russo; Alexandra Bogdanovich - Georgina Russo; Shawn Casey - Laura; Lisa Dunsheath - Tulips; Joyce Hyser - Sylvia; Tzi Ma; Elizabeth Peņa - Rita; Jo-El Sonnier; Sheila Stodden - Barbara Jo; Earl Poole Ball