One of the worst movies I've ever seen

Absolutely amazing

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

A candle that burns twice as bright lasts half as long. This is a show that's crammed with such witty, original dialogue in every episode that you just knew the writers couldn't keep this up for long. And, understandably, they couldn't. For me, this show lasted just three seasons. But those first three seasons were some of the best in TV history.It's not just the witty dialogue and natural chemistry between Cybill Shephard and Bruce Willis, but it was also the unique plots and the interesting supporting cast. The plots, of course, were secondary and only served as a way to drive the conversational hari-kari between Cybill and Bruce. But despite their second class status, the plots were actually original and fairly interesting by themselves. Credit the writers for coming up with not just the witty dialogue but also unique and interesting story lines that were intriguing and that continued to develop the principle characters.Credit also the casting director for not only finding the gems in Cybill and Bruce for the starring roles but also for the supporting cast. Aside from the obvious gem in Allyce Beasley, there were also Eva Marie Saint and Robert Webber as Cybill's parents and Charles Rocket as Bruce's brother. These were my favorite guest stars. Others I liked include Paul Sorvino as Bruce's dad and Dana Delany as Bruce's ex. These were not the usual suspects that appeared as guest stars on other TV shows at the time. Thus they were not on the forefront of every casting directors' minds. So when these actors were cast, you knew the casting director for Moonlighting spent a little more time and thought on picking them. And it paid off. I really loved Charles Rocket as David Addison's brother.If I had to pick only five episodes to re-watch, these would be it: (1) Every Daughter's Father is a Virgin - This brings a tear to my eye every time. (2) Brother, Can You Spare a Blonde? - Charles Rocket was hilarious and seeing David vulnerable for once brought a tear to my eye. (3) Big Man on Mulberry Street - It was one of the few times Maddie overtly showed her feelings for David. (4) Knowing Her - Dana Delaney, the music and Maddie's behavior made this one fun to watch. (5) The Son also Rises - Paul Sorvino was great as David's dad plus we got to get to know David more.

Since 1980, the first-run, network television shows I have watched regularly could be counted on the fingers of one hand. "Newhart," "Twin Peaks," "Andy Richter Controls the Universe." Last, and probably least, was "Moonlighting." "Moonlighting" started life as a TV movie that was followed, like so many ducklings, by five additional episodes. It concerns a glossy fashion supermodel (retired) who woke up one day to discover she had been bamboozled out of all her money. Advised by her lawyer, she began closing businesses that were kept in her portfolio as tax write-offs, including a detective agency run by wise-cracking David Addison (Bruce Willis).I was hooked from the TV-movie pilot. I can remember the moment when Willis was no longer unknown. I religiously watched every episode. When the six episodes of the first series ended, I was coming off a terrible strep throat that left me with severe laryngitis for a fortnight. Nevertheless, serving as a groomsman at a friend's wedding the next week, I whispered the good news of a great show to everyone at the reception. "If it comes back, watch it!" My friend is still married, but upon revisiting the series for the first time in a quarter century, I wondered If I should have skipped the wedding. I cannot imagine why I made such a fuss.As an actress, Cybill Shepard's greatest ability is to look good on camera. "Moonlighting" is a better showcase for the talents of Bruce Willis. Willis lived the Hollywood dream that almost never happens. After a few tiny parts he got a star-making role that propelled him to superstardom (see also Pierce Brosnan from the show "Moonlighting" was patterned after, "Remington Steele"). Willis was never used to better effect. Seeing him mumble through his lines these days, it's hard to remember the time when he could go out in an alley and loudly sing "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" to Shepard's sexy walk. Where did that man go? "Moonlighting" had some very good qualities. It was never short on snappy dialogue (often spoken at the same time by Willis and Shepherd). It always looked good. Too good, perhaps. Rumor has it the makers of "Moonlighting" always demanded more money and sometimes barely got the show to air on time. This strikes one as unprofessional.Perhaps the subversive and tongue-in-cheek elements do not hold up as well. When Willis or Shepherd break the "fourth wall" (i.e., talk directly to the camera) or let on that the know they are only characters in a show. Shades of Pirandello! It was funny at the time but it has hardly aged well. Nor have other antics that looked neat at the time, such as a Shakespearean farce stuck in the middle of a season for no particular reason except for the writers to show what wiseacres they were.DOUBLE SPOILER And the show went downhill fast. Many attribute this decline to the main characters "getting together" after a couple of seasons of sexual tension and teasing. But the main characters of "Remington Steel" never got together and that show also tanked after a few good years. Darned if you do, darned if you don't.I stayed with "Moonlighting" from the pilot right to the bitter end, and it was pretty bitter. Looking back, as is the case with "Twin Peaks" which I also revisited recently, I wonder now why I bothered. "Moonlighting" might have been on the cutting edge, but that which is closer to the edge dull the fastest. Despite many things in its favor, including Willis and the good writing and the high production values, "Remington Steele" has weathered better. "Moonlighting" really is one of those shows where "you had to be there at the time to get it."

At its best, Moonlighting channeled the scenes from His Girl Friday where Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell famously smart talked right over the top of each other for line after line of dialog. Moonlighting became famous for that, as well as other bizarre but interesting and amusing behaviors from the leads and the agency staff.At its worst, in the last couple of seasons, Moonlighting became brooding and somewhat depressing. Of course, as with many shows like this, the never released sexual tension between the male and female leads (David and Maddie) was what drove the show. The show "Jumped the Shark" at the same time the writers made the mistake of letting David jump Maddie. It was all downhill from there.But the first seasons were glorious and inventive, some of the best TV series entertainment ever.Gobble them up when you have the chance.

Only 21 comments proceed this one on this particular thread. That is incredible to me. For in the middle and late 1980s MOONLIGHTING was one of the biggest (if not the biggest) phenomenons to hit television.It dared to take a normal type of show - the detective show - and turn it into a mind blowing experience as it's battling heroine and hero confronted cases, each other, and the universe weekly. Mattie Hayes (Cybill Shepherd) and David Addison (Bruce Willis) ran a detective agency together, only because it was Mattie's last asset after her accountant ran off with her fortune (a later episode allowed them to confront the scoundrel). Addison was running the small agency, but since Mattie now depends on it for her income she takes over running it and collides head on with Addison. He is a self-satisfied male chauvinist, and she is a determined feminist. But despite their rigid points of view they are attracted to each other. So the result (normally) is that they get a client, and in analyzing the client's problem it raises some issues that actually confront Mattie and David in their lives, but the audience in it's lives too. The only other regulars were Allyce Beasley as Agnes DiPresto, their receptionist who always had a poetic effusion to greet the customers on the phone, and Curtis Armstrong as Herbert Viola, a late arrival who is the firm's bookkeeper and David's back-up man (and eventually Agnes' boyfriend).I think the episode most people recall from this show is the experiment with Shakespeare's TAMING OF THE SHREW, wherein Willis was Petruchio and Shepherd was Katherine. Certainly it was a nice spoof, especially as Shakespeare's play is out of step with present day views about sexual equality. But the Shakespearean dialog was also spoofed - leading to the concluding line (which suggested my "summary line" above). But it was not the only good episode. The one where Agnes and Herb solve a case by themselves was interesting - and the conclusion where Mattie and David burst into the room to congratulate them, and then turn around with Mattie saying, "And hopefully next week we'll have more to do in the episode." was a good one too. So was one with Joseph Maher as an angel talking to Willis as Mattie and David's child in embryonic state. The birth of the child was expected by the audience, but at the last moment the writers have poor Mattie miscarry. Maher cheers up Willis by saying he shouldn't fear - he may end up the new baby on one of two other current shows then on television that had expectant parents!The writing, at it's best, shoved this show to the heights. In the middle of an argument, Mattie tells David she does not give "a flying frig" for his opinion. David looks at her quizzically, and says he doesn't know what she means by "a flying frig". She looks at him casually and says, "That doesn't matter...(they turn towards the viewing audience)...THEY KNOW WHAT I MEAN!" In a moment of pure genius the dialog would suddenly pick up a life of it's own and become pure Dr. Seuss, with everyone in the scene joining in. There were in-jokes about other shows. In an episode based on IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, Mattie discovers what would have happened if she had sold the detective agency (as she originally planned). It is bought by a husband and wife pair of detectives who we never see: the Harts, from HART TO HART. But we see their factotum assistant Max (Lionel Stander) still working for them. In another episode, David (in a fit of emotion) begs Mattie to run off with him and forget the agency. "If anyone has any problems, let that old lady from the movies on the other channel solve them for them.", he says. He's referring to Angela Lansbury in MURDER SHE WROTE on CBS. With all the delays in production, all the unfortunate ego clashes, and even the dip in the series quality in the last year, MOONLIGHTING was a terrific show. It rarely is revived today, which given it's quality is a terrible shame and waste.