PLAZA SUITE (DVD) (WS ENHANCE 16X9/DOL DIG(ENG SUB/ENG MONO) DVD

Plaza Suite
It is not uncommon for actors to double and triple in roles while appearing in the "omnibus" plays of Neil Simon. Plaza Suite was the first film version of a Simon play to carry over the multiple-role device to the screen. Walter Matthau appears in all three one-act playlets comprising Plaza Suite, with a different leading lady in each. First we see Matthau as the husband of Maureen Stapleton, nostalgically returning to the same hotel suite where they'd spent their honeymoon 24 years earlier. Times have changed, however, and the twosome spend more timing sniping at one another than pitching woo. The second vignette casts Matthau as an effusive movie producer (lavish toupee and all) who hopes to seduce his old sweetheart Barbara Harris. The third and best sequence finds Matthau and Lee Grant playing the parents of a bride who steadfastly refuses to leave her locked room to attend her own wedding. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast Walter Matthau as Jesse Walter Matthau as Roy Walter Matthau as Sam Maureen Stapleton as Karen Nash Barbara Harris as Muriel Tate Lee Grant as Norman Hubley Louise Sorel as Miss McCormack

Crew Jack Bear - Costume Designer Howard Roessel - First Assistant Director Arthur Hiller - Director Frank Bracht - Editor Maurice Jarre - Composer (Music Score) Maurice Jarre - Musical Direction/Supervision Johnny Mercer - Songwriter Gary Morris - Makeup Arthur Lonergan - Production Designer Jack A. Marta - Cinematographer Howard W. Koch - Producer Reg Allen - Set Designer David Dockendorf - Sound/Sound Designer Ben Winkler - Sound/Sound Designer Neil Simon - Screenwriter Victor Schertzinger - Featured Music Neil Simon - Play Author

Plaza Suite
The plays of Neil Simon have not always transferred successfully to the screen, often due to the difficulty in "opening up" the usual one-set properties for the film. It's a surprise, therefore, that Plaza Suite -- which is entirely built around the one-set concept -- works so well. True, director Arthur Hiller has managed to sneak in some "outside" segments, but most of the action still takes place indoors. A large portion of the credit for its success goes to Walter Matthau, playing three different yet recognizably "Matthau-ian" characters and imbuing them with the arrogance, anger, and snarl that are part of his charm -- as well as several shakes of sympathy and vulnerability when appropriate. He is well served by his leading ladies, with Maureen Stapleton touching, Barbara Harris hysterical, and Lee Grant carefully over-the-top. (Viewers are well advised to pay special attention to Harris; one of our most gifted comic actresses, she rarely received the roles she deserved.) There's always a problem with "anthology" films, in that some sequences will seem stronger and some weaker than others. How one rates these three probably depends upon one's taste. Suffice it to say that the first has a lovely rueful quality to it, the second a lightheartedly sexiness, and the third a professional zaniness. Take your pick or enjoy all three. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
 

Maureen Stapleton: Golden Globe, Best Supporting Actress (nominated)

Golden Globe, Best Picture - Musical or Comedy (nominated)

General Specifications: Language Options: English, French Subtitle Options: English Sound Processing: DD1: Dolby Digital Mono Additional Features: none specified DVD Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1: Theatre Wide-Screen MPAA Rating: PG13 DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 114 min Part of Series: Paramount Widescreen Collection   DVD Chapters: Side #1 -- 1. Mrs. Sam Nash [5:39] 2. Happy Anniversary [10:19] 3. Some Lousy Couple [7:27] 4. Miss McCormack [9:47] 5. Honesty and Choices [10:53] 6. Jesse Kiplinger [4:40] 7. One Quick Drink [12:32] 8. The Kind of Man I Really Am [10:06] 9. A Barrel Full of Happiness [5:45] 10. The Hubley-Eisler Wedding [12:47] 11. Where Did We Fail Her? [5:07] 12. Coming After Mimsey [5:06] 13. Love, Understanding, and Hysterics [12:17] 14. The Players [1:36]