Isn't She Great (2000)
A biography about Jacqueline Susann, author of the classic trashy novel "Valley of the Dolls." Nathan Lane plays Irving Mansfield, manager and husband of Jackie Susann, played by Bette Midler. Like the Birdcage, there is an all star supporting cast including David Hyde Pierce (of Frasier fame) as Jackie's uptight editor, John Cleese (of Monty Python fame) as the eccentric publisher and Stockard Channing (of Grease fame) playing Jackie Susann's best friend. As much as I like this film, in the end it flip flops too much between comedy and dramatic biography to effectively create a masterpiece. It comes off a bit too superficial with the feeling that it could have been so much more. The material is there and so are the actors but the sense of journey and character growth seems to be missing. This is a great movie to pop in the player while doing something else. The soundtrack by Bacharach is a blast to yesteryears. I saw an advance screening of this movie at the Beverly Center in Los Angeles and did not notice any changes when it was finally released in the theatres (ie despite the lackluster box office performance, the DVD most likely doesn't have special features for a reason)
Nathan Fan Rating: A-
Have you achieved the state of higher laughing?
