COMPANY MAN, cowritten and codirected by Douglas McGrath (EMMA) and Peter Askin, is an AUSTIN POWERS meets THE PINK PANTHER screwball farce about the 1959 Cuban revolution. Allen Quimp (McGrath) is a bumbling, gee-whiz high school teacher in 1950s Connecticut who believes grammar instruction is his gift to society. Quimp's .. Read more
| Starring | Sigourney Weaver, Douglas McGrath, John Turturro, Anthony La Paglia |
|---|---|
| Director | Peter Askin, Douglas McGrath |
| Genres | Comedy |
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COMPANY MAN, cowritten and codirected by Douglas McGrath (EMMA) and Peter Askin, is an AUSTIN POWERS meets THE PINK PANTHER screwball farce about the 1959 Cuban revolution. Allen Quimp (McGrath) is a bumbling, gee-whiz high school teacher in 1950s Connecticut who believes grammar instruction is his gift to society. Quimp's grasping wife, Daisy (Sigourney Weaver), however, has higher aspirations for him. In classic THE MAN IN THE GRAY FLANNEL SUIT mode, Daisy desires a highly paid husband who can provide a better lifestyle. Desperate to impress her, Quimp pretends to have a secret life as a CIA agent. When Quimp accidentally helps a visiting Russian dancer, Petrov (Ryan Phillipe) defect, the CIA actually does hire him, so they can claim credit. "The Company" ships Quimp off to Havana, Cuba, where Agent Fry (Denis Leary) and Chief Lowther (Woody Allen)--who has some of the film's funniest lines--studiously ignore the impending revolution. However, when Fidel Castro (Anthony LaPaglia) overthrows General Batista (Alan Cumming), the fanatical, chest-bumping Agent Johnson (John Turturro) convinces Quimp to help him assassinate the Cuban dictator. With hilarious performances from Allen and Turturro, COMPANY MAN puts a slapstick, revisionist spin on Castro's rise to power.
| Starring | Sigourney Weaver, Douglas McGrath, John Turturro, Anthony La Paglia, Ryan Phillippe, Denis Leary, Woody Allen, Alan Cumming |
|---|---|
| Director | Peter Askin, Douglas McGrath |
| Studio | PATHE DISTRIBUTION |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 23 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Comedy |
| Language | DVD: English |
| Released | DVD: 30 Jun 2003 Production year: 2000 |
| Format | DVD |
This film has a really impressive cast — Sigourney Weaver, Alan Cumming, Ryan Phillippe, John Turturro — and one can only assume that co-writer/co-director/star Douglas McGrath (who has appeared in several Woody Allen movies) convinced his players that he really was Woody Allen and that he was remaking Bananas. Instead, this comedy — about a teacher in the 1960s who becomes a spy and gets involved in a plot to overthrow Castro — is a complete mess, with none of the finesse, wit or timing of even Woody Allen's worst movie.
I did my best to watch this movie to the end, but gave up in the middle - just really boring.
This could have been hilarious. There are plenty of funny ideas and a solid supporting cast that includes Sigourney Weaver, John Turturro and an uncredited Woody Allen. Unfortunately they (especially Weaver and Turturro) ham it up something cronic and show their comedy limitations. Both can work in comedy with good directors to guide them (Weaver was good in Working Girl and Ghostbusters, Turturro is genius in The Big Lebowski) but they don't have natural comic talent like Woody and are out of their depth here.
Generally though this is a short and amiable passing of time that will amuse in places. Just don't expect greatness.
Same goes for the barebones DVD.