Really Surprised!

It is not only a funny movie, but it allows a great amount of joy for anyone who watches it.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

First of all, Jack Lemmon's character is the most annoying passenger in an airliner. Asking stupid questions like..."" Is this flight going to be thirty minutes longer?"". And the stewardess (as they were called back then)" Says, "That's what the pilot just said, and he knows more than me". And what she really wanted to say was, ""No shit, you got ears?". I'm surprised his wife didn't tell him to shut up, and stop asking questions.Now, for all you history buffs, this was filmed in 1970. And we see an airliner being loaded at the rear exit. Now, the rear stairs are what DB Cooper used in his robbery. And they were built into the airliner. All gone now due to weight.And, in the old days, you could film aboard a real airliner in flight. So, just for the 70s filming, 5 stars. Not a favorite, again, because the talking would drive you nuts.

I'd forgotten how funny this is. Jack Lemon and his wife, Sandy Dennis, are flying from Ohio to New York for Lemon's job interview at a major advertising firm. They'll dine at the Four Seasons, spend the night at the Waldorf, and the next morning Lemon will breeze through the interview and get the job.Well, as they say, it's a long road that has no turning. Murphy's law applies. If it can go wrong, it will.The airplane is rerouted to Boston, their luggage is lost, their room wasn't held for them, they're mugged, swept up in a political demonstration, they get lost, and Lemon loses a front tooth after grappling with a stray dog over a half-eaten box of Crackerjacks.One of the most amusing moments comes when they must walk from Grand Central Station to the Waldorf in a downpour. Dennis calculates from the street signs that they have been walking in the wrong direction. Instead of plunging headlong into frenzy, a drenched Lemon simply stands there, staring at her silently, a stupid grin plastered on his face. The moment endures.Lemon is fine in the role of the nervous out-of-towner. He runs the gamut from desperation to full-blown mania. Sandy Dennis is a little annoying though. Sensible at the first obstacles, she becomes increasingly shrill and nasal, and those teeth! It doesn't help Lemon a bit.The film reminds me of a movie like "Memphis Belle", about a bomber that runs into every conceivable problem during its run over Europe. Everything that happens is, in itself, probable, but the combination of problems, the way they are piled atop one another, is astronomically remote. But that's part of what makes "The Out Of Towners" funny. It's as if the whole city were against them, and not just the city but the abiotic factors -- fog that blocks their landing at New York, the rain that leverages their misery, the tunnels in the park that provides a haven for thugs, nasty dogs, and lost little boys.Quincy Jones musical score will transport you back to 1970, with its Burt Bacharach harmonies and chorus. The film cheats a bit. New York City was a dangerous place in 1970, but the miscreants we see -- the looters and muggers -- are all white, and that's not what New York was afraid of in 1970. But you can't have such historical reality in a comedy.This was remade recently. Everything is being remade recently. Sometimes re-remade. Not just feature films but television shows like "The Honeymooners" and even television cartoons like "The Flintstones." Lately, there have been Hollywood movies based on video games like "Battleship." Sooner or later, I guess someone will have to admit that the well is dry.

Jack Lemmon rescues this good comedy which shoulda been great > there are as many believable and funny scenes as there are unbelievable and just plain dumb scenes which should have hit the cutting room floor.as a NJ-NYer from 1951 to 2009, I loved the location shots of New York in 1970 and the Director and EDitor know just how much time to spend on these classic backdrops.of course, movie comedy is about exaggeration and we can go down of a list of "in reality, they could have easily....". but it's Neil Simon, probably the first American playwright who writes mostly based upon his own New York experiences and knows how to tickle the funnybone especially, of middle class easterners, earnest but constantly being kicked around; not as street savvy as they think they are.I wrote above that Lemmon saves the project, as professional as it is, because, frankly, Sandy Dennis is uncharacteristically awful. And it's not her fault, I surmise > seems the Director does not know if she should just use her beautiful "English accent", throughout, or mix in some real Brooklynese. On the other hand, perhaps his concept of Mrs. Kellerman, is a kind of naïve, flaky kid, like Edith Bunker > always adoring - restrained but still capable of breaking out in a lecture, if needed.another reason I chose a "6" rating is in the terrible denouement and finale scene. to use a contemporary expression to describe an old movie directorial/literary choice, "what were they thinking?".good to see Meara and Billy Dee Williams, in early roles. (and all those 8 cylinder sedans!).

Criticized by some for being too critical of 1969 NYC, THE OUT-OF-TOWNERS is so flat out hilarious, it's impossible to not recommend it. One cringes with fright just thinking of what predicament visiting business exec Jack Lemmon will get himself and wife Sandy Dennis into. Re-routed by air to Boston, Lemmon & Dennis arrive via an abominably crowded train to a dismal NYC after midnight. Unable to find lodging (Lemmon didn't call ahead to inform the hotel he'd be arriving late...he was too busy "circling" New York before heading to Boston), the couple hit the streets --- hard. Ripped off by con man Graham Jarvis, caught up in a protest alongside Cuban consul Carlos Montalbán and deafened by an exploding manhole cover are just a few of the calamities these two endure. Lemmon is hysterical being hysterical, though claiming to be calm at all times. Dennis is infinitely patient, well matched with Lemmon as they try desperately to make it through a single night. Neil Simon's acidic script foreshadows his later PRISONER OF SECOND AVENUE. Arthur Hiller adds another comedy classic to his resume and the supporting cast is littered by a bunch of great New York character actors: Anne Meara; Ron Carey; Dolph Sweet; Richard Libertini. Anthony Holland is perfect as a hotel desk who, though appearing sympathetic, makes it clear that he could care less.