"Bedtime Story" is a very funny film, but it might leave some with an off taste in their mouth. That's in the subtlety and delivery of some of the comedy. Since its remake in 1988, "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," it's only natural to compare the two films. I don't know if there's any hard data, but Hollywood has a mixed record of successes and failures in movie remakes. My guess is that three out of four don't pan out, or certainly don't exceed the original film. Some that have been highly successful have had two or more remakes. In this case, though, the remake, "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" of 1988 far surpasses this original. And, this original is quite good.
The difference is in a few things. The first is the jettison in the remake of some of the extraneous material that takes quite some time in the original. The fact of Lawrence Jameson (David Niven) supporting some of the arts as a heroic charity for cultural posterity seems to be to build his character up in the eyes of the 1964 audience as somewhat justifiable for what he does. That minor subplot detracts from the main plot and the humor. The early scenes of Freddy Benson (Marlon Brando) in the Army, running illegal activities on his Army camp in Germany, and seducing German frauleins probably was intended to paint him as the less honorable of the two scoundrels in this film. But those scenes aren't that funny and are a further detraction from the main plot and humor.
Another difference is more subtle. Marlon Brando's Freddy comes close to being a misogynist. He disdains women except to conquer them in bed. His persona seems to have a little meanness about him. Steve Martin's Freddy is out to take the women for their money, and he is attracted to them otherwise. Then, there's the difference in both leads in both films, and their delivery and humor. Brando was a great actor, but only so-so as a comedian. He is too self-assured in his composure and glances in this film. Steve Martin is a good actor and a great comedian. His persona, comedy delivery and character are naturally more funny. David Niven was a very good actor, and he could do comedy well as the straight man and con man (think "Pink Panther"). Michael Caine is a great actor and he's superb at comedy.
Then, there's the overall dialog of Brando's Freddy. It's very dated with the use of slang that the remake has eliminated. He talks to Jameson and repeatedly says, "Oh, dad." When Jameson tells him the name of Sir Walter Raleigh, he says, "That's the goof." He says to Jameson, "Let me put some new colors in your paint box." And later, he says, "Have some gigs." When he outs Jameson on his con operation, he says, "Up my octane, big daddy." Even Jameson gets in the act on the train when he says they have arrived at "Deadsville."
I appreciate the background that screenwriter Dale Launer gives in his review of "Bedtime Story." He collaborated with the original writer, Stanley Shapiro, on the 1988 remake. Shapiro told him this movie "didn't do all that well in its original run." He said it fell flat in the south, possibly because of Brando's civil rights efforts. I think there may have been more than that about the film's mild reception. Most notably, among American servicemen from Germany, and their families and people who were paying attention to the news in Europe. I'm quite familiar with that period because I was stationed in the U. S. Army in (West) Germany from early 1962 to late 1964.
After the Berlin Wall went up in 1961, the U. S. began building up its forces in Germany. Since the end of the occupation forces in May 1955, the American forces (part of NATO) had dwindled to little more than a paper tiger. Studies and news of the time reported that fact. Along with the American forces buildup, German-American relations had been on the decline. A 1961 movie touches on this somewhat - "A Town Without Pity." The subject of that movie - rape of a German girl by American GIs, was not an isolated instance. In 1963, a brutal rape and murder happened near where I was stationed, and it involved a GI from my base. "Overseas Weekly" newspaper (we called it "Oversexed Weekly" for obvious reasons) reported regularly on scandals and local crimes involving American servicemen. I would bet that "Bedtime Story" didn't go over well in West Germany.
So, this movie is about - and should focus on the two scoundrels and their differences, joining of forces, parting of ways and final competition to see who will be king of the mountain. The extraneous stuff before and in between should be minimal, and only used when it adds to the plot and the humor. The remake - also written by Stanley Shapiro (with Dale Launer), cuts the calories and fat from the original and gives us a hearty, wonderful cut of a film that viewers can really enjoy for its non-stop humor. And, while the ending in this film was okay - even good for its day, the surprise ending in the remake is over the top hilarious and brilliant.
Here are some funny lines from the film. Check the Quotes section under this IMDb Web page for more humorous dialog.
Lawrence Jameson, "You do have a sort of brutish appeal to women. You're certainly unprincipled. Lying and cheating come naturally to you. You're completely without moral qualms." Freddy Benson, "There, you see. Everybody's got a good side if you look for it."
Freddy, "Look, daddy, you wanna play 'Robin Hood,' okay. But don't shoot my arrows. There's one thing the archaeologists aren't gonna dig up and that's Freddy's money, 'cause I'm spending it right now. So, hand it over, tax-free."
The difference is in a few things. The first is the jettison in the remake of some of the extraneous material that takes quite some time in the original. The fact of Lawrence Jameson (David Niven) supporting some of the arts as a heroic charity for cultural posterity seems to be to build his character up in the eyes of the 1964 audience as somewhat justifiable for what he does. That minor subplot detracts from the main plot and the humor. The early scenes of Freddy Benson (Marlon Brando) in the Army, running illegal activities on his Army camp in Germany, and seducing German frauleins probably was intended to paint him as the less honorable of the two scoundrels in this film. But those scenes aren't that funny and are a further detraction from the main plot and humor.
Another difference is more subtle. Marlon Brando's Freddy comes close to being a misogynist. He disdains women except to conquer them in bed. His persona seems to have a little meanness about him. Steve Martin's Freddy is out to take the women for their money, and he is attracted to them otherwise. Then, there's the difference in both leads in both films, and their delivery and humor. Brando was a great actor, but only so-so as a comedian. He is too self-assured in his composure and glances in this film. Steve Martin is a good actor and a great comedian. His persona, comedy delivery and character are naturally more funny. David Niven was a very good actor, and he could do comedy well as the straight man and con man (think "Pink Panther"). Michael Caine is a great actor and he's superb at comedy.
Then, there's the overall dialog of Brando's Freddy. It's very dated with the use of slang that the remake has eliminated. He talks to Jameson and repeatedly says, "Oh, dad." When Jameson tells him the name of Sir Walter Raleigh, he says, "That's the goof." He says to Jameson, "Let me put some new colors in your paint box." And later, he says, "Have some gigs." When he outs Jameson on his con operation, he says, "Up my octane, big daddy." Even Jameson gets in the act on the train when he says they have arrived at "Deadsville."
I appreciate the background that screenwriter Dale Launer gives in his review of "Bedtime Story." He collaborated with the original writer, Stanley Shapiro, on the 1988 remake. Shapiro told him this movie "didn't do all that well in its original run." He said it fell flat in the south, possibly because of Brando's civil rights efforts. I think there may have been more than that about the film's mild reception. Most notably, among American servicemen from Germany, and their families and people who were paying attention to the news in Europe. I'm quite familiar with that period because I was stationed in the U. S. Army in (West) Germany from early 1962 to late 1964.
After the Berlin Wall went up in 1961, the U. S. began building up its forces in Germany. Since the end of the occupation forces in May 1955, the American forces (part of NATO) had dwindled to little more than a paper tiger. Studies and news of the time reported that fact. Along with the American forces buildup, German-American relations had been on the decline. A 1961 movie touches on this somewhat - "A Town Without Pity." The subject of that movie - rape of a German girl by American GIs, was not an isolated instance. In 1963, a brutal rape and murder happened near where I was stationed, and it involved a GI from my base. "Overseas Weekly" newspaper (we called it "Oversexed Weekly" for obvious reasons) reported regularly on scandals and local crimes involving American servicemen. I would bet that "Bedtime Story" didn't go over well in West Germany.
So, this movie is about - and should focus on the two scoundrels and their differences, joining of forces, parting of ways and final competition to see who will be king of the mountain. The extraneous stuff before and in between should be minimal, and only used when it adds to the plot and the humor. The remake - also written by Stanley Shapiro (with Dale Launer), cuts the calories and fat from the original and gives us a hearty, wonderful cut of a film that viewers can really enjoy for its non-stop humor. And, while the ending in this film was okay - even good for its day, the surprise ending in the remake is over the top hilarious and brilliant.
Here are some funny lines from the film. Check the Quotes section under this IMDb Web page for more humorous dialog.
Lawrence Jameson, "You do have a sort of brutish appeal to women. You're certainly unprincipled. Lying and cheating come naturally to you. You're completely without moral qualms." Freddy Benson, "There, you see. Everybody's got a good side if you look for it."
Freddy, "Look, daddy, you wanna play 'Robin Hood,' okay. But don't shoot my arrows. There's one thing the archaeologists aren't gonna dig up and that's Freddy's money, 'cause I'm spending it right now. So, hand it over, tax-free."