I like both comedy and fantasy, so it was only a matter of time before getting around to "Goodbye Charlie"... The movie left me with mixed feelings. On the one hand, there are very good performances, especially by Tony Curtis and Debbie Reynolds. The movie also contains some seriously sharp lines and observations. For instance, during a funeral eulogy the deceased (a playboy wastrel with a nasty streak) is praised for having made "a fine extra man during parties". It is difficult to find a better description of a life wasted on empty frivolities... The costumes and sets deserve particular praise, too.
"Goodbye" also points out, accurately enough, that it is very hard to get rid of a deeply ingrained nastiness. An unpleasant and irresponsible person is likely to remain an unpleasant and irresponsible person, even after a change of sex, looks or circumstances...
On the other hand, the central idea is pretty strange, even for fantasy. The movie deals with reincarnation - well, I assume it deals with reincarnation - but in most theories this phenomenon involves the soul of a dead person migrating towards a baby yet to be born or conceived somewhere in the future. Here, the soul of the dead man immediately migrates into the body of a woman who is about thirty years of age. This smacks more of some kind of possession, which sounds considerably more sinister - and which would render part of the ending particularly tragic.
But I'm probably overanalyzing the movie, which was meant as a nicely polished and sophisticated "divertissement" for a rainy afternoon. So there.
"Goodbye" also points out, accurately enough, that it is very hard to get rid of a deeply ingrained nastiness. An unpleasant and irresponsible person is likely to remain an unpleasant and irresponsible person, even after a change of sex, looks or circumstances...
On the other hand, the central idea is pretty strange, even for fantasy. The movie deals with reincarnation - well, I assume it deals with reincarnation - but in most theories this phenomenon involves the soul of a dead person migrating towards a baby yet to be born or conceived somewhere in the future. Here, the soul of the dead man immediately migrates into the body of a woman who is about thirty years of age. This smacks more of some kind of possession, which sounds considerably more sinister - and which would render part of the ending particularly tragic.
But I'm probably overanalyzing the movie, which was meant as a nicely polished and sophisticated "divertissement" for a rainy afternoon. So there.