Naked in New York ** (1993, Eric Stoltz, Mary-Louise Parker) – Classic Movie Review 13,295

Daniel Algrant’s 1993 American romantic comedy film Naked in New York stars Eric Stoltz, Mary-Louise Parker, Ralph Macchio, Jill Clayburgh, Tony Curtis, Timothy Dalton, Kathleen Turner and Chris Noth. They tried to sell it as ‘Martin Scorsese Presents’, but the film flopped.

Debut co-writer/ director Daniel Algrant’s 1993 American romantic comedy film Naked in New York stars Eric Stoltz, Mary-Louise Parker, Ralph Macchio, Jill Clayburgh, Tony Curtis, Timothy Dalton, Kathleen Turner and Chris Noth.

Eric Stoltz stars as Jake Briggs, a young aspiring new playwright who has both career and girlfriend (Mary-Louise Parker) problems as he tries to get his play performed in New York, in this excitingly cast but slackly handled and none too clever comedy melodrama.

Jake (Eric Stoltz) narrates the story in flashbacks. In college he meets pert and perky Joanne White (Mary-Louise Parker), who loves photography, and they move in together, but then she meets gallery owner Elliot Price (Timothy Dalton) and goes to work for him.

Produced off-Broadway by agent Carl Fisher (Tony Curtis), the play flops, mainly because the leads, Dana Coles and Jason Brett (Kathleen Turner and Chris Noth), are not right for the roles.

Among the highly intriguing players, Tony Curtis plays the show’s producer Carl Fisher, Kathleen Turner and Chris Noth are its stars, and Whoopi Goldberg is the masks of comedy and tragedy. Ralph Macchio plays the hero’s gay best friend Chris, Jill Clayburgh plays his mother Shirley, and Paul Guilfoyle plays his mostly absentee father Roman. It is quite a cast, and worthwhile for them of course. Eric Stoltz and Mary-Louise Parker are good, as always.

It is brave and good to go for weird and wonderful, but unfortunately it does not come off here: the lack of real wit in the script by Daniel Algrant and John Warren is the main problem. However, there are marks for trying, the off-Broadway atmosphere, and certainly the cast.

Quentin Crisp, Eric Bogosian, Arthur Penn, Marsha Norman, Richard Price and William Styron all appear as themselves. William Styron lists all his work and former New York Dolls singer David Johansen appears as a talking orangutan.

Executive producer Martin Scorsese arranged the many celebrity cameos.

They tried to sell it as ‘Martin Scorsese Presents’, but like the play, the film flopped. On a budget of $5 million, it took only $1,038,959 at the box office.

It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 1993, won the Critics Prize at the Deauville American Film Festival in 1993, and competed at the Tokyo International Film Festival.

Release date: April 13, 1994.

The cast are Eric Stoltz as Jake Briggs, Mary-Louise Parker as Joanne White, Ralph Macchio as Chris Jill Clayburgh as Shirley Briggs, Tony Curtis as Carl Fisher, Timothy Dalton as Elliot Price, Kathleen Turner as Dana Coles, Lynne Thigpen as Helen, Roscoe Lee Browne as Mr Red, Paul Guilfoyle as Roman Briggs, Burr Steers as Shipley, Lisa Gay Hamilton as Marty, Chris Noth as Jason Brett, Whoopi Goldberg as mask, Calista Flockhart as acting student, Arabella Field as acting student, Colleen Camp as auditioner, Griffin Dunne as auditioner, Luis Guzmán as auditioner, and David Johansen as orangutan.

Naked in New York is directed by Daniel Algrant, runs 89 minutes, is made by Some Film, is distributed by Fine Line Features, is written by Daniel Algrant and John Warren, is shot by Joey Forsyte, is produced by Fred Zollo [Frederick Zollo] and Martin Scorsese, is scored by Angelo Badalamenti, and is designed by Kalina Ivanov.

Algrant directed People I Know (2002) starring Al Pacino and episodes of the TV sitcom Sex and The City.

© Derek Winnert 2024 – Classic Movie Review 13,295

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