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Only When I Laugh (1981)

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Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 1
Fresh: 0 | Rotten: 1

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40

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Average Rating: 3.1/5
User Ratings: 650

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Movie Info

Playwright Neil Simon made one of his periodic forays into serious themes with the drama The Gingerbread Lady, and while this screen adaptation adds a bit more wit to the proceedings, it remains a change of pace from his usual breezy comedies. Georgia (Marsha Mason) is a successful actress who has just spent 90 days in a rehab clinic in an effort to beat her addiction to alcohol. A number of crises are waiting for Georgia upon her return; her teenage daughter Polly (Kristy McNichol), whom she

R, 2 hr.

Drama, Comedy

Sep 23, 2003

Cast

All Critics (9) | Top Critics (3) | Fresh (3) | Rotten (3)

Neil Simon reworked his play Gingerbread Lady for this tale of alcoholic actress (real wife Marsha Mason) and precocious daughter, but the result is just as stagy, schmaltzy and predictable, with the expected witty but utterly theatrical one-liners.

January 11, 2008 Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | Comment

Belabored Neil Simon script with Marsha Mason.

July 13, 2005 Comment
Video-Reviewmaster.com

Only When I Laugh is a film about family ties, friendship and coping in a competitive world.

January 31, 2004 Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | Comment
Spirituality and Practice
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Only When I Laugh

This starts out as a good drama about a mother and daughter, but it gets more and more predictable as it goes on. The actors are good, and I like theatre themed movies, but this one is just okay.

September 6, 2010
ajv2688

Super Reviewer

Although this film has the word laugh in the title it is not a comedy, it's a drama. It's a pretty good drama too, it's a slice of life type story about an actress and her daughter. The movie starts out good, but then you realize how predictable it is, and that it's not so good. Overall, it's an okay movie, though,

August 22, 2010
The80sExpert
Severine Le Bon

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