Only When I Laugh (1981)

Synopsis:

A stage actress with a drinking problem, Georgia Haines (Marsha Mason, The Goodbye Girl), is determined to stay sober, but after her estranged teen daughter (Kristy McNichol, Little Darlings) unexpectedly decides to move back in with her, Georgia slowly begins to crack under the strain of being a single working mother.

Reaction & Thoughts:

“You have a movie magazine mentality.”

The perks of being married to a talented writer! Only When I Laugh was Broadway darling Neil Simon’s (The Odd Couple and Lost in Yonkers) gift to his then wife, actress Marsha Mason. If you are a fan of Mason’s work, you don’t want to miss this movie, which was clearly tailored to the actor’s particular talents.

Only When I Laugh began in 1971 as a Broadway play called The Gingerbread Lady, dramatist Simon’s first and only straight drama. It was also one of the few Simon stage plays that failed to attract an audience. A decade later, Simon dusted up the play and completely rewrote it for wife Mason as a comedy with moments of heavy drama — Only When I Laugh is a ferocious storm of humor and pathos. 

The movie isn’t perfect. Simon’s script is unrealistically wordy, and most scenes are unimaginatively shot. Simon is to blame for both problems. In order to protect his scripts from being changed, Simon always steered clear of strong-willed filmmakers. He preferred to hire talented craftsmen who stuck to the script. Glenn Jordan (TV’s Sarah, Plain and Tall: Winter’s End) directs well enough, but I’m completely sure someone like Mike Nichols (The Graduate) would have made a better movie.

In all fairness, I thought about the technical deficiencies only after the movie had ended. My eyes were firmly planted on Mason. Only When I Laugh is all about Mason. She laughs. She gets mad. She cries a lot too. Mason even sings a bit. It’s an epic-scale, diva-ish performance that runs the whole spectrum of human emotions. 

Unfortunately, Mason falters a bit towards the end. I thought Mason’s much-anticipated meltdown scenes fell a little flat. To her credit, Mason hams it up without ever slipping into camp — she comes close, very close, but she never quite crosses the line. Wrinkles and all, it’s a fearless, no-holds-barred, super-entertaining performance — Mason received a well-deserved Oscar nomination for her work in the movie.

Although it’s Mason’s show, all the performances are great. James Coco (Man of La Mancha), who plays Mason’s gay confidant, was nominated for both an Oscar and a Razzie, so I’m assuming people couldn’t decide if he was good or not. I thought he was excellent. Coco breathes life into a cliché role. I also appreciated the fact that Coco managed to avoid Hollywood’s stereotypical portrayal of a gay man. 

Joan Hackett (The Last of Sheila) also received an Oscar nomination. Hackett is superb as Mason’s vain but kindhearted upper-class friend. Ironically, she lost the Oscar to Maureen Stapleton (she won for Reds), the actress who played Mason’s role on Broadway. As expected, 19-year-old Kristy McNichol holds her own against the older cast members. Kevin Bacon (Footloose) has a small role as a college kid. 

Conclusions & Final Thoughts:

On an interesting note, Only When I Laugh was allegedly based on actress-singer Judy Garland and her relationship with daughter Liza Minnelli (by the way, Neil Simon vehemently denied the rumor). Anyhow, Only When I Laugh is a lot of fun if you don’t get too hung up on the film’s flaws. Plus, Marsha Mason gives a genuinely powerful performance. Recommended. Color, 120 minutes, Rated R.

Theatrical Trailer: