I love this movie so much

Waste of time

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Certain movies I can watch once a year and "My Favorite Year" is one. Mel Brooks is listed as the exec producer, not sure how much influence he had with this script credited to Dennis Palumbo and Norm Steinberg and directed by comedy veteran Dick Benjamin. The story seems somewhat autobiographical of Brooks- being about a young Jewish comedy writer (Benjy Stone) on a TV show similar to legendary "Your Show of Shows" who has been given the assignment of watching over the weeks guest star, acting great Alan Swann. Swann had been a swashbuckling star of action movies in the 30's and 40's and has a well- deserved reputation as a top notch boozer and womanizer and if it sounds reminiscent of Errol Flynn, it's supposed to be. Swann is played perfectly in a hilarious acting job by the great Peter O'Toole, not known for his comedic roles, but he nails this. As does Joseph Bologna, playing King Kaiser, obviously based on Sid Caeser, the star of "The Comedy Cavalcade." King is an egotistical loudmouth who has found himself in trouble with the mob for his parody sketch of union boss, Karl Rojack, called "Boss Hijack." Another great comedy performance is Lainie Kazan, as the zaftig Belle Carroca, Benjy's widowed mother who has remarried a former Filipino prizefighter. Hard to believe that barely a decade earlier Lainie had posed for Playboy but she is superb as the plump Jewish mother hosting the great Alan Swann at a dinner in her Brooklyn apartment. MFY has a funny and clever script, my only complaints are Mark Linn-Baker as Benjy, he's not bad but it could have been so much better with a better comedy actor, perhaps Billy Crystal. Also Jessica Harper provides no real sparks as KC, Benjy's love interest. Still the movie is about O'Toole's outrageous portrayal of Errol Flynn who reminds us "I'm not an actor, I'm a movie star!"

First Errol Flynn was the consummate Hollywood action hero, and then he was the consummate Hollywood has-been. The substance abuse, the wrecked relationships, the legal scandals; by the end of his life he was a guy who needed a lot of rehabilitating. "My Favorite Year" is a posthumous rehabilitation of Flynn, and it is also a sweet and funny tall tale about what his redemption might have looked like had it happened during his lifetime. Flynn's actual appearance on the 1950s variety show where Mel Brooks was a young writer came and went without incident, but in "My Favorite Year" that forgettable television moment is reimagined as one huge, crazy, boozy incident worthy of Peter O'Toole in his hellraising days. O'Toole infuses all of Flynn stand-in "Alan Swann"'s lines, every flourish of his hands, every drunken stagger, with a precise mixture of charm and pain.The story is mostly a buddy comedy of the sort that thrives on the emotional closeness of its characters. Maybe a supremely irresponsible person like Swann, whose insecurities cause him to limit his relationships to the categories of one-night stands and autograph sessions, wouldn't really tolerate the presence of a straight-laced worrywart like the Mel Brooks stand-in for days and nights on end. But in the movies, opposites attract, and here they make a good pair. The young writer gets to meet his hero, and although Swann is a case in point of why it's not always best to do that, the movie argues that the hero is always there, in a way, inside the less-than-heroic has- been. Swann is self-destructive, yes, but with each new failure comes a chance for one more last hurrah, one more horse to jump on and ride into the sunset, one more crowd to win over. O'Toole is heartbreaking when he shows Swann's weakness and vulnerability, and this makes each new triumph, however modest, all the more inspiring. At the high points, the young writer is the necessary sidekick, a witness to a performance that exists solely to be seen and applauded, and when the cycle returns to darkness and doubt he is the hero's conscience. It's an old formula, but it works.Between the party-crashing, horse-stealing vignettes, there is a by-the- book romance storyline and an organized crime farce. Both are simple fare, but they do a lot to raise the stakes of Swann's television appearance and to set an amiable atmosphere through a vibrant supporting cast and obvious but endearing jokes and set- pieces. The movie's various threads all crash together in a big finish that is predictable, and not believable, but very satisfying, entertaining, and moving—not unlike a great Errol Flynn movie.Replete with tributes to Flynn's filmography, "My Favorite Year" is a must-see for fans of the Australian-born swashbuckler. "Captain Blood," "Dodge City," and "The Adventures of Robin Hood" are repeatedly and lovingly referenced, under thinly-disguised alternate titles, and the iconic scene from the ending of "Robin Hood" is recreated in astonishing detail, complete with a Basil Rathbone lookalike.

So says Alan Swann and he is so right. Peter O'Toole shows that there is a great actor inside of a great comedic performance. His remarkable portrayal of Swann stands out among all his other performances because Swann, in so many ways, is a thinly veiled O'Toole. His timing, physical grace and delivery rival the all time greats including Chaplin, Laurel, and Gleason. The pacing, casting and plot are expertly woven by director Richard Benjamin to create an inside look at early T. V. production and a crazy Jewish family. The scene of Swan attending dinner in Brooklyn with staff writer Benjy Stone's family is one of the funniest in screen history due in equal parts to the fantastic performances of O'Toole, Lou Jacobi (as a scene-stealing "Uncle Mortie") and Lainie Kazan as the mother of all Jewish mothers. As Swann, O'Toole manages to be loathsome, endearing, infuriating, charming and vulnerable. Kudos to Bill Macy as Benjy's crass boss and Joseph Bologna as the hot-tempered but indomitable King Kaiser. My Favorite Year never disappoints in delivering laughs and perhaps a sentimental tear as well.

Benjy Stone is the junior writer on the top rated variety/comedy show, in the mid 50s (the early years). Its a new medium and the rules were not fully established. Alan Swann, an Erol Flynn type actor with a drinking problem is to be that weeks guest star. When King Kaiser, the headliner wants to throw Swann off the show, Benjy makes a pitch to save his childhood hero, and is made Swann's babysitter. On top of this, a union boss doesn't care for Kaiser's parody of him and has plans to stop the show. Boy Peter O'Toole Creates One Of The Greatest One Of The Best Comedy Characters Of All Time In This Movie Allan Swann. Peter O'Toole Also Is Funny From Start To Finish. I Am Surprised No-One Has Remade This Movie. It Would Be Better Than Any Comedy Released Since 2006(Besides Superhero Movie(I Do Watch A Lot Of Stupid Comedy's)). Now Let Me See Whats 'My Favourite Year'...For Movies. I Personally Enjoyed The Year 2005 For Movies Not Because It Made My Favourite Movie (It Didn't). But The Quantity Of Good Movies That Year Was Great. I Loved This Movie As A Comedy. Its Gonna Be A Classic To Me.Rating: 8/10