Robert Altman's O.C. and STIGGS is one of his most harshly critiqued movie. This is partly due to the expectations of the fans of the O.C. and STIGGS articles in National Lampoon. From what I can tell, this movie is *not* what fans expected. However, I never read those articles before discovering this film, and so my expectations were quite different. This movie could've been a standard "It's fun to be a teenager in summer" movie, but not with Robert Altman at the helm. There are some excellent performances by Martin Mull, Dennis Hopper, and Jane Curtin. Ray Walston (also known as Mr. Hand in Fast Times at Ridgemont High) gives an incredible performance as the senile "Gramps". I personally thinks he deserves a "Best Supporting Actor" Oscar for this role, but when a movie only makes $30,000 at the box office, I guess the academy doesn't even consider you. Plus Cynthia Nixon, one of the four stars of Sex and The City, plays the love interest. The entire sequence of events is well contrived and although you may not laugh out loud, if you listen closely (which is hard to do given Altman's style of overlapping lines) you will be smiling throughout the film. I've always been surprised how much people disliked this movie, but I suppose the genre and director are a bit like oil and vinegar: They don't mix well, but what a tasty combination.
Review of O.C. and Stiggs
