Lost in America
Cast
Albert Brooks .... David Howard
Julie Hagerty .... Linda Howard
Sylvia Farrel .... Sylvia, Receptionist at Ross & McMahon
Tina Kincaid .... Model
Candy Ann Brown .... David's Secretary
Directed by
Albert Brooks
Rater # has description and review.
Rater #1
Has Not Seen Movie
Rater #2
6/10. Many of today's youth knows Albert Brooks as simply a voice of a fish
in Finding Nemo. The rest mostly know him for his comedic shtick (I
know him mainly from his guest appearances on The Simpsons), and it
seems like Lost in America is a perfect example of Brooks' comedic
talents. His deadpan routine is really what made him famous, and this
was really an introduction to his work for me. I was underwhelmed but
not really disappointed.
David Howard (Brooks) is an advertising guy who is expecting a
promotion, but when he doesn't get it, he decided to take his wife
Linda (Julie Hagerty) to start a new life, Easy Rider style. She
quits her job and they go out roaming the country in their new
Winnebago. However, when they get to Vegas, David finds out something
about Linda that will change their entire journey.
Put simply, Lost in America is not a funny movie. It is comedic,
sure, but it never made me laugh once. Their situations were grounded
in reality, and what Brooks (who also directed and co-wrote) was
going for was to show what could actually happen in real life.
Therefore, there was nothing in the least wacky going on. I think
Brooks was having trouble keeping a lot of funny things for reality;
much of what was somewhat funny was whatever was improvised and
started to grow a little over-the-top.
On the other hand, where at one point Lost in America failed with it
having be in a basis of reality, it was good that it seemed real,
that it could happen to anyone. Everyone has a little David Howard in
them, and when he was basically telling his boss to "take his job and
shove it", everyone who has ever worked in corporate America, much
like Office Space, would be standing up and cheering.
In addition, Lost in America was constantly entertaining. There were
no dull moments, and at a quick 91 minutes, it's a cheerful
diversion. It's not funny, but with Albert Brooks, Julie Hagerty, a
simple plot and consistent entertainment, how can you go wrong?
Rated R for some language.
Running time: 91 minutes
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