Flirting With Disaster (1996)
Average Rating: 7.4/10
Reviews Counted: 43
Fresh: 37 | Rotten: 6
Darkly funny, solidly cast, and surprisingly thoughtful, Flirting with Disaster proved David O. Russell's Spanking the Monkey was no fluke.
Average Rating: 8.2/10
Critic Reviews: 7
Fresh: 7 | Rotten: 0
Darkly funny, solidly cast, and surprisingly thoughtful, Flirting with Disaster proved David O. Russell's Spanking the Monkey was no fluke.
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Average Rating: 3.4/5
User Ratings: 8,665
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Movie Info
In this satirical comedy, Mel Coplin (Ben Stiller) has a beautiful wife, Nancy (Patricia Arquette), and a four-month old son, and on the surface his life is good. But something's been troubling him: Mel knows he was adopted, and he can't resolve his issues with the mother who gave him away years ago, much to the annoyance of his adoptive parents (George Segal and Mary Tyler Moore). Mel decides it's time he met his birth parents and resolved his feelings once and for all, and Tina (Tea Leoni), a
Mar 22, 1996 Wide
Jun 15, 1999
Miramax Films
Watch It Now
Cast
-
Ben Stiller
Mel Coplin -
Patricia Arquette
Nancy Coplin -
Téa Leoni
Tina Kalb -
Mary Tyler Moore
Mrs. Coplin -
George Segal
Mr. Coplin -
Alan Alda
Richard Schlicting -
Lily Tomlin
Mary Schlicting -
Josh Brolin
Tony -
Richard Jenkins
Paul -
David Patrick Kelly
Fritz Boudreau -
Tony Kruk
Detective -
John Ford Noonan
Mitch -
Suzanne Snyder
Alternative Wife -
Celia Weston
Valerie Swaney -
Glenn Fitzgerald
Lonnie Schlicting -
Nadia Dajani
Jill -
Shawn Michael Howard
Roger -
Don Creech
Cop #1 -
Clarke Bittner
Cop #2 -
Jonathan Teague Cook
Sheriff -
Cynthia Lamontagne
Sandra -
Beth Ostrosky
Jane -
Charlet Oberly
B&B Lady -
Steve Moreno
Deputy -
Tori Davis
Flight Attendant
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All Critics (60) | Top Critics (15) | Fresh (40) | Rotten (6) | DVD (16)
Dark comedy about family includes some sexy stuff and drugs.
Entertainment for the whole dysfunctional family.
Boasting a clever title, this is an inspired piece of lunacy about sociology versus biology, with terrific performances from Ben Stiller and his two sets of parents.
When I caught this modern-day screwball comedy in theaters I didn't think much of it, and it's even less appealing now.
One Stiller movie I actually enjoyed.
If Russell is erratic with plot and the slightest bit smug in attitude, he makes up for these flaws by drawing fun, inspired performances from his ace cast.
Avoiding the safety of the PC blanket, David O. Russell has crafted a canny, crafty and altogether adorable little misfit of a movie.
Wild, funny and smart.
Outstanding, uproariously funny dark comedy
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"Have you flirted yet?"
I absolutely loved Flirting with Disaster. It is almost a picture perfect comedy. I'll admit that I didn't think it was going to be as funny as it was, but once I turned it on; it was nonstop hilarious. I'm not the biggest fan of anyone in this cast, but they were all marvelous here. I like Ben Stiller to a degree, but he isn't what I think of when I think of extremely funny guys. Arquette and Leoni are also not two of my favorite actresses, but their presence in this one was great. Also, Josh Brolin is pretty funny as well. There's a good supporting cast including the likes of Mary Tyler Moore and Alan Alda.
So, Flirting with Disaster is about Mel, a married man with a baby that hasn't been named yet. He's the product of adoption and he wants to know where his "roots" are, much to the chagrin of his adoptive parents. When a case worker said she has located his mother in San Diego, the couple, their baby and the case worker take off for San Diego. Well, the case worker was wrong. It isn't his mother. Then they take off to Michigan on another lead, and finally end up in New Mexico. Along the way they pick up a bi-sexual federal agent who went to school with Mel's wife and his also federal agent man lover. They deal with a B&B, a truck accident, and an accidental LSD trip; and it is all hilarious.
I haven't seen too many movies from David O. Russell. I always mean to watch some of his films, but I haven't really got around to it. Both the films I've seen from him, I've loved. The Fighter and now, Flirting with Disaster, while completely different, are both extremely well written and directed by Russell. I love the kind of screwball, quirky way this movie moves from one comedic scene to another. I would never call it a screwball comedy, but it definitely has screwball elements. I would also never call it a purely quirky film, but there are moments of quirk.
Flirting with Disaster was a fun movie and actually quite a surprise. I really did fall in love with it quickly. The dialogue is great and the chemistry between all the actors is great. Russell really got everything out of every performance just as he did recently with The Fighter. This is a great little hybrid between family drama, road movie, and screwball comedy, and Russell mixes all the elements together to make for an extremely pleasing experience.