Rotten Tomatoes Logo Do you want to see ‘Mistress’?

Mistress (1992)

tomatometer

67

Average Rating: 7.8/10
Critic Reviews: 6
Fresh: 4 | Rotten: 2

No consensus yet.

audience

38

liked it
Average Rating: 3/5
User Ratings: 507

My Rating

Movie Info

Successful character actor Barry Primus spent seven years trying to get financing for his feature debut as a writer-director, Mistress. In the film, a once-promising writer-director, Marvin Landisman (Robert Wuhl), who now directs instructional videos, is sitting home one night, watching his own print of Jean Renoir's Grand Illusion, when he gets a strange phone call. A producer, Jack Roth (Martin Landau), formerly a bigwig at Universal, tells Marvin he was cleaning out his office when he came

R, 1 hr. 50 min.

Comedy

Barry Primus, J.F. Lawton

Mar 23, 1999

Live Home Video

Cast

All Critics (16) | Top Critics (6) | Fresh (11) | Rotten (5)

Can't seem to decide if it's supposed to be a comedy about Hollywood small-timers trying to get an indie pic off the ground, or a somber drama in which greed and lust overwhelm art.

May 16, 2008 Full Review Source: Variety | Comment
Variety
Top Critic IconTop Critic

"Mistress" abounds with sharp comic performances that never stray into caricature or sentimentality.

May 20, 2003 Full Review Source: New York Times | Comment
New York Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Seeing Mistress is like getting a bad table at the in Hollywood restaurant. You're eavesdropping on all the dull conversations.

May 12, 2001 Comment
Rolling Stone
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The movie has been described as a low-rent version of Robert Altman's "The Player," but it would be more accurate to say it's about low-rent players.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | Comment
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Although it's never worse than watchable, the story barely expands beyond its own boundaries. It starts off appealingly small -- the way the old Albert Brooks movies used to. But it stays small.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Washington Post | Comment
Washington Post
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Primus brings a scruffy intimacy to "Mistress," which distinguishes it still further from "The Player" with its palmy California setting.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Washington Post | Comment
Washington Post
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The gags are too obvious; the conflict between art and money is hackneyed; and the plot goes badly off the rails in the later reels.

June 24, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out | Comment

A pitch black dark comedy.

November 14, 2005 Comment
ColeSmithey.com

Deft Hollywood satire with a top-drawer cast.

July 24, 2003 Comment
Capital Times (Madison, WI)

One of De Niro's less essential outings.

May 24, 2003 Full Review Source: Film4 | Comment

The performances are all strong (particularly Landau's) but, as a whole, the movie suffers from competing impulses that push and pull Mistress from comedy to drama and back again.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | Comment
Austin Chronicle

The energetic cast and the wealth of comic possibilities that are achieved make for an enjoyable romp.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | Comment
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Mistress

I appreciate this film more and more.

July 7, 2008
threefolddado

Super Reviewer

Kind of stupid and hard to compare to much better "The Player" thou it's obviously something Barry Primus wanted. It's stupid but fun while it lasts.

June 10, 2011
Matthew J.
Matthew James

Mistress Quotes

No quotes approved yet for Mistress. Logged in users can submit quotes.

Latest News for Mistress

What's Hot On RT

Critics Consensus
Critics Consensus

Journey 2 Not Worth the Trip

Luis Guzman
Luis Guzman

What are his 10 best movies ever?

<em>Amazing Spider-Man</em>
Amazing Spider-Man

See the all-new action-packed trailer!

The Avengers!
The Avengers!

Five new Marvelous pictures

Top Movie Quizzes

LEGO Mania: 2011 Best Picture Nominees
by natalie - 18,606 taken
created 12 months ago
How Much Do You Know About Leonardo DiCaprio?
by natalie - 44,528 taken
created 15 months ago
Pixar Movies!
by jdikwlzviv - 27,205 taken
created 15 months ago
The Wizards of Harry Potter
by jdikwlzviv - 27,704 taken
created 15 months ago
Help | About | Jobs | Newsletter | Critics Submission | API | Licensing | Blog | Developers | Mobile