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| language = English
| language = English
| budget =
| budget =
| gross = $13.1 million (US)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=authorauthor.htm|title=Author! Author!|work=[[Box Office Mojo]]|access-date=2016-05-02}}</ref>
| gross = $13.1 million (US)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=authorauthor.htm |title=Author! Author! |website=[[Box Office Mojo]] |access-date=2016-05-02}}</ref>
}}
}}
'''''Author! Author!''''' is a 1982 American autobiographical film directed by [[Arthur Hiller]], written by [[Israel Horovitz]] and starring [[Al Pacino]].
'''''Author! Author!''''' is a 1982 American autobiographical film directed by [[Arthur Hiller]], written by [[Israel Horovitz]] and starring [[Al Pacino]].
Line 53: Line 53:


==Production==
==Production==
Horovitz first worked with Pacino in 1968, when Pacino starred in his play ''[[The Indian Wants the Bronx]]'', for which they both received [[Obie]] Awards.<ref name= "Bennetts">{{cite news |last=Bennetts |first=Leslie |title=''Author! Author!'' Shoots in N.Y., N.Y. |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=1982-01-24 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/01/24/movies/author-author-shoots-in-ny-ny.html?pagewanted=all|access-date=February 3, 2016}}</ref> They spent over the years and jumped at the chance to work again on the film.
Horovitz first worked with Pacino in 1968, when Pacino starred in his play ''[[The Indian Wants the Bronx]]'', for which they both received [[Obie]] Awards.<ref name= "Bennetts">{{cite news |last=Bennetts |first=Leslie |title=''Author! Author!'' Shoots in N.Y., N.Y. |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=1982-01-24 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/01/24/movies/author-author-shoots-in-ny-ny.html?pagewanted=all |access-date=February 3, 2016}}</ref> They spent over the years and jumped at the chance to work again on the film.


The film was based on Horovitz's personal experience as a divorced father responsible for looking after two of his three children. "I felt there was a lot of room to explore the ease with which people get married in this country, the way kids come along in huge bunches and the irresponsibility of parents in taking care of those children."<ref name="Bennetts"/> He also talked to his three children for inspiration. He said, "The film had to be written in a comic mode, because otherwise it's too painful to deal with."<ref name= "Chase">{{cite news |last=Chase |first=Chris |title=The author of ''Author! Author!'' |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=1982-07-02 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/02/movies/at-the-movies-the-author-of-author-author.html |access-date=2010-05-10}}</ref>
The film was based on Horovitz's personal experience as a divorced father responsible for looking after two of his three children. "I felt there was a lot of room to explore the ease with which people get married in this country, the way kids come along in huge bunches and the irresponsibility of parents in taking care of those children."<ref name="Bennetts"/> He also talked to his three children for inspiration. He said, "The film had to be written in a comic mode, because otherwise it's too painful to deal with."<ref name= "Chase">{{cite news |last=Chase |first=Chris |title=The author of ''Author! Author!'' |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=1982-07-02 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/02/movies/at-the-movies-the-author-of-author-author.html |access-date=2010-05-10}}</ref>


Horovitz made the protagonist [[Armenian American]] to give him a strong ethnic identity parallel to his own Jewish background.
Horovitz made the protagonist [[Armenian American]] to give him a strong ethnic identity parallel to his own Jewish background.


The film was released by 20th Century Fox and Hiller served as a director.<ref name="wink">{{cite book|first=Irwin|last=Winkler|title=A Life in Movies: Stories from Fifty Years in Hollywood|pages=1567–1637/3917|edition=Kindle|publisher=Abrams Press|year=2019}}</ref> He was drawn to the project because it was about an extended family and that it showed "that love is what makes a family strong, not necessarily who's the natural parent."<ref name="Bennetts"/>
The film was released by 20th Century Fox and Hiller served as a director.<ref name="wink">{{cite book |first=Irwin |last=Winkler |title=A Life in Movies: Stories from Fifty Years in Hollywood |pages=1567–1637/3917 |edition=Kindle |publisher=Abrams Press |year=2019 |isbn=978-1-6833-5528-1}}</ref> He was drawn to the project because it was about an extended family and that it showed "that love is what makes a family strong, not necessarily who's the natural parent."<ref name="Bennetts"/>


===Casting===
===Casting===
Cannon was originally asked to play Gloria, but turned it down because she found the character "bitchy" and had played that kind of role before.<ref name="Bennetts"/> She was then asked to play Alice and agreed because she loved the character. Cannon enjoyed making the film and compared the experience to "being on a cruise".<ref name="Bennetts"/> Alan King also enjoyed filming, and said that his character was a cross between [[Hal Prince]] and [[Zero Mostel]].<ref name="Bennetts"/>
Cannon was originally asked to play Gloria, but turned it down because she found the character "bitchy" and had played that kind of role before.<ref name="Bennetts"/> She was then asked to play Alice and agreed because she loved the character. Cannon enjoyed making the film and compared the experience to "being on a cruise".<ref name="Bennetts"/> Alan King also enjoyed filming, and said that his character was a cross between [[Hal Prince]] and [[Zero Mostel]].<ref name="Bennetts"/>


Pacino did not get along with Hiller while filming. Pacino said, "sometimes people who are not really meant to be together get together in this business for a short time. It's very unfortunate for all parties concerned."<ref name="Grobel">{{cite book|last=Grobe l|first=Lawrence|title=Al Pacino|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NglRYSqXxN8C |year=2006|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=978-1-4169-4879-7|page=91}}</ref> Pacino told that he made the film, because he thought he would enjoy making a film "about a guy with his kids, dealing with New York and show business. I thought it would be fun."<ref name="Grobel"/> Pacino said that he enjoyed working with the actors, who spend time with his children.<ref name="Grobel"/>
Pacino did not get along with Hiller while filming. Pacino said, "sometimes people who are not really meant to be together get together in this business for a short time. It's very unfortunate for all parties concerned."<ref name="Grobel">{{cite book |last=Grobel |first=Lawrence |title=Al Pacino |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NglRYSqXxN8C |year=2006 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-4169-4879-7|page=91}}</ref> Pacino told that he made the film, because he thought he would enjoy making a film "about a guy with his kids, dealing with New York and show business. I thought it would be fun."<ref name="Grobel"/> Pacino said that he enjoyed working with the actors, who spend time with his children.<ref name="Grobel"/>


==Reception==
==Reception==
In ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'' review, [[Jay Scott]] criticized the performances of the child actors: "The brood is composed of the most appalling set of exhibitionistic child actors this side of ''[[Eight Is Enough]]''", and felt "that this comedy is not funny is bad enough; that it is resolutely and maliciously anti-female is unforgivable."<ref name="Scott">{{cite news|last=Scott|first=Jay|title=''Author! Author!'' Just a Mish-Mash of Mush|work=[[The Globe and Mail]]|publisher=[[The Woodbridge Company]]|date=1982-06-19|url=http://vhscollector.com/movie/author-author|access-date=2016-02-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204045902/http://vhscollector.com/movie/author-author|archive-date=2016-02-04|url-status=dead}}</ref> ''[[Newsweek]]'' magazine's [[Jack Kroll]] wrote, "there's nothing sadder than a movie that tries to be adorable and isn't. ''Author! Author!'' tries so hard that the screen seems to sweat."<ref name= "Kroll">{{cite news|last=Kroll|first=Jack|title=Kingdom of Cute|work=[[Newsweek]]|date=1982-07-05|url=http://rheaven.blogspot.com/2009/12/author-author.html|publisher=Newsweek LLC}}</ref> In his review for ''[[The Washington Post]]'', Gary Arnold criticized Pacino's performance: "Pacino's maddening articulation would seem to argue against further flings at comedy. Line after line is obscured by his whispery mumble, and this mangled speech seems particularly inappropriate in a character who's supposed to be a playwright."<ref name= "Arnold">{{cite news|last=Arnold|first=Gary|title=Al Pacino on the Writer's Block|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|publisher=[[Jeff Bezos|Nash Holdings LLC]]|date=1982-06-19|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1982/06/19/al-pacino-on-the-writers-block/5bb5072f-e2c5-4ca4-bad9-709cc0f9a75a/}}</ref> [[Roger Ebert]] was also unimpressed, giving the film two stars and prompting him to ask "What's Pacino doing in this mess? What's happening to his career?"<ref>{{cite news | author = Roger Ebert | author-link = Roger Ebert | url = https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/author-author | title = Author! Author! | work = [[Chicago Sun-Times]] | date = 1 January 1982 | access-date = 3 November 2019}}</ref> The film was nominated for a [[Razzie Award]] for Worst Original Song for "Comin' Home to You".<ref name="Wilson2005">{{cite book|author=John Wilson|title=The Official Razzie Movie Guide: Enjoying the Best of Hollywood's Worst|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fRdBmAEACAAJ|year=2005|publisher=Warner Books|isbn=978-0-446-69334-9}}</ref>{{page needed|date=September 2016}} Critic [[Leonard Maltin]], however, did give the film a warm review, awarding it 3 out of 4 stars, calling it a "slight but winning comedy", and Pacino was nominated for a [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy]].{{citation needed|date=December 2019}}
In ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'' review, [[Jay Scott]] criticized the performances of the child actors: "The brood is composed of the most appalling set of exhibitionistic child actors this side of ''[[Eight Is Enough]]''", and felt "that this comedy is not funny is bad enough; that it is resolutely and maliciously anti-female is unforgivable."<ref name="Scott">{{cite news|last=Scott |first=Jay |title=''Author! Author!'' Just a Mish-Mash of Mush |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |location=Toronto |date=June 19, 1982 |url=http://vhscollector.com/movie/author-author |access-date=2016-02-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204045902/http://vhscollector.com/movie/author-author|archive-date=2016-02-04 |url-status=dead}}</ref> ''[[Newsweek]]'''s [[Jack Kroll]] wrote, "there's nothing sadder than a movie that tries to be adorable and isn't. ''Author! Author!'' tries so hard that the screen seems to sweat."<ref name= "Kroll">{{cite news |last=Kroll |first=Jack |title=Kingdom of Cute |magazine=Newsweek |date=July 5, 1982 |url=http://rheaven.blogspot.com/2009/12/author-author.html}}</ref> In his review for ''[[The Washington Post]]'', Gary Arnold criticized Pacino's performance: "Pacino's maddening articulation would seem to argue against further flings at comedy. Line after line is obscured by his whispery mumble, and this mangled speech seems particularly inappropriate in a character who's supposed to be a playwright."<ref name= "Arnold">{{cite news |last=Arnold |first=Gary |title=Al Pacino on the Writer's Bloc k|newspaper=The Washington Post |date=June 19, 1982 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1982/06/19/al-pacino-on-the-writers-block/5bb5072f-e2c5-4ca4-bad9-709cc0f9a75a/}}</ref> [[Roger Ebert]] was also unimpressed, giving the film two stars and prompting him to ask "What's Pacino doing in this mess? What's happening to his career?"<ref>{{cite news |first=Roger |last=Ebert |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/author-author |title=Author! Author! |newspaper=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |date=January 1, 1982 |access-date=3 November 2019}}</ref> The film was nominated for a [[Razzie Award]] for Worst Original Song for "Comin' Home to You".<ref name="Wilson2005">{{cite book |first=John |last=Wilson |title=The Official Razzie Movie Guide: Enjoying the Best of Hollywood's Worst |url=https://archive.org/details/officialrazziemo0000wils/page/334/mode/2up?q=%22author%21+author%21%22 |year=2005 |publisher=Warner Books |isbn=978-0-446-69334-9 |page=334}}</ref> Critic [[Leonard Maltin]], however, did give the film a warm review, awarding it 3 out of 4 stars, calling it a "slight but winning comedy", and Pacino was nominated for a [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Leonard Maltin's Movie and Video Guide |url=https://archive.org/details/leonardmaltinsmo00leon_2/page/58/mode/2up?q=%22author%21+author%21%22 |first=Leonard |last=Maltin |publisher=Penguin Group |location=New York City |year=1992 |page=59 |isbn=978-0-4511-7381-2}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Al Pacino |url=https://goldenglobes.com/person/al-pacino/ |access-date=14 June 2024 |website=Golden Globe Awards}}</ref>


== References ==
== References ==

Revision as of 03:24, 15 June 2024

Author! Author!
Theatrical release poster
Directed byArthur Hiller
Written byIsrael Horovitz
Produced byIrwin Winkler
Starring
CinematographyVictor J. Kemper
Music byDave Grusin
Distributed by20th Century Fox
Release date
  • June 18, 1982 (1982-06-18)
Running time
108 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$13.1 million (US)[1]

Author! Author! is a 1982 American autobiographical film directed by Arthur Hiller, written by Israel Horovitz and starring Al Pacino.

Plot

Playwright Ivan Travalian has a Broadway play (English with Tears) in rehearsal and the backers want rewrites. His wife, Gloria, moves out, leaving him with custody of five children: four from her previous marriages and his son. His two stepdaughters and his stepson, Spike, return to their respective fathers, but two of the boys, his biological son Igor and his stepson Geraldo, accompany Ivan.

The stage producer lies to the investors, claiming that popular film actress Alice Detroit has signed on to play the lead on Broadway. Ivan meets with Alice, where she confesses that she is a big fan of his and would love to perform in his new play. They start dating and she eventually moves in with him and the remaining two children. One night, Ivan explains to her that he was an abandoned baby who was adopted by a family with the Armenian name "Travalian". Alice becomes depressed because she misses her former social life, so she and Ivan agree that their relationship has run its course and she moves out.

His two stepdaughters run away from their father's home to live with Ivan and the police come to retrieve them, but Ivan and the children stage a standoff on the roof of their building, convincing the police and their father to let the girls stay. Spike returns to the house with his father’s blessing, meaning all the children can stay with Ivan. Ivan decides that his wife should return as well so he takes a taxi to Gloucester, Massachusetts to retrieve her. He finds her painting on a snowy dock with her new boyfriend, where she resists his efforts to force her to return for the good of the children. Realizing her selfishness, Ivan leaves her in Gloucester, returns to New York City and promises his stepchildren they will always have a home with him. They attend the opening night of the play which receives a rave review in The New York Times.

Cast

Elliott and Goulding, the longtime comedy duo of "Bob and Ray", were billed together in the opening credits. Reflecting the film's theme of family, producer Irwin Winkler's wife, actress Margo, and then-teenaged son, future UCLA School of Law professor Adam, along with the film's autobiographical screenwriter Israel Horovitz' children, future film producer Rachel and future television producer Matthew, make brief appearances.

Production

Horovitz first worked with Pacino in 1968, when Pacino starred in his play The Indian Wants the Bronx, for which they both received Obie Awards.[2] They spent over the years and jumped at the chance to work again on the film.

The film was based on Horovitz's personal experience as a divorced father responsible for looking after two of his three children. "I felt there was a lot of room to explore the ease with which people get married in this country, the way kids come along in huge bunches and the irresponsibility of parents in taking care of those children."[2] He also talked to his three children for inspiration. He said, "The film had to be written in a comic mode, because otherwise it's too painful to deal with."[3]

Horovitz made the protagonist Armenian American to give him a strong ethnic identity parallel to his own Jewish background.

The film was released by 20th Century Fox and Hiller served as a director.[4] He was drawn to the project because it was about an extended family and that it showed "that love is what makes a family strong, not necessarily who's the natural parent."[2]

Casting

Cannon was originally asked to play Gloria, but turned it down because she found the character "bitchy" and had played that kind of role before.[2] She was then asked to play Alice and agreed because she loved the character. Cannon enjoyed making the film and compared the experience to "being on a cruise".[2] Alan King also enjoyed filming, and said that his character was a cross between Hal Prince and Zero Mostel.[2]

Pacino did not get along with Hiller while filming. Pacino said, "sometimes people who are not really meant to be together get together in this business for a short time. It's very unfortunate for all parties concerned."[5] Pacino told that he made the film, because he thought he would enjoy making a film "about a guy with his kids, dealing with New York and show business. I thought it would be fun."[5] Pacino said that he enjoyed working with the actors, who spend time with his children.[5]

Reception

In The Globe and Mail review, Jay Scott criticized the performances of the child actors: "The brood is composed of the most appalling set of exhibitionistic child actors this side of Eight Is Enough", and felt "that this comedy is not funny is bad enough; that it is resolutely and maliciously anti-female is unforgivable."[6] Newsweek's Jack Kroll wrote, "there's nothing sadder than a movie that tries to be adorable and isn't. Author! Author! tries so hard that the screen seems to sweat."[7] In his review for The Washington Post, Gary Arnold criticized Pacino's performance: "Pacino's maddening articulation would seem to argue against further flings at comedy. Line after line is obscured by his whispery mumble, and this mangled speech seems particularly inappropriate in a character who's supposed to be a playwright."[8] Roger Ebert was also unimpressed, giving the film two stars and prompting him to ask "What's Pacino doing in this mess? What's happening to his career?"[9] The film was nominated for a Razzie Award for Worst Original Song for "Comin' Home to You".[10] Critic Leonard Maltin, however, did give the film a warm review, awarding it 3 out of 4 stars, calling it a "slight but winning comedy", and Pacino was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.[11][12]

References

  1. ^ "Author! Author!". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2016-05-02.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Bennetts, Leslie (1982-01-24). "Author! Author! Shoots in N.Y., N.Y." The New York Times. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  3. ^ Chase, Chris (1982-07-02). "The author of Author! Author!". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-05-10.
  4. ^ Winkler, Irwin (2019). A Life in Movies: Stories from Fifty Years in Hollywood (Kindle ed.). Abrams Press. pp. 1567–1637/3917. ISBN 978-1-6833-5528-1.
  5. ^ a b c Grobel, Lawrence (2006). Al Pacino. Simon and Schuster. p. 91. ISBN 978-1-4169-4879-7.
  6. ^ Scott, Jay (June 19, 1982). "Author! Author! Just a Mish-Mash of Mush". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Archived from the original on 2016-02-04. Retrieved 2016-02-03.
  7. ^ Kroll, Jack (July 5, 1982). "Kingdom of Cute". Newsweek.
  8. ^ Arnold, Gary (June 19, 1982). "Al Pacino on the Writer's Bloc k". The Washington Post.
  9. ^ Ebert, Roger (January 1, 1982). "Author! Author!". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  10. ^ Wilson, John (2005). The Official Razzie Movie Guide: Enjoying the Best of Hollywood's Worst. Warner Books. p. 334. ISBN 978-0-446-69334-9.
  11. ^ Maltin, Leonard (1992). Leonard Maltin's Movie and Video Guide. New York City: Penguin Group. p. 59. ISBN 978-0-4511-7381-2.
  12. ^ "Al Pacino". Golden Globe Awards. Retrieved 14 June 2024.
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