Siskel & Ebert (TV Series)

Arthur 2: On the Rocks/Short Circuit 2/Coming to America/A Handful of Dust/License to Drive (1988)

Roger Ebert: Self - Host

Quotes 

• Gene Siskel - Host : [reviewing "Coming to America"]  Good comic cameo material in this thoroughly satisfying movie.

  Roger Ebert - Host : Well, I was also impressed by Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall in terms of what they did on the screen. I thought that both of them showed an enormous range of comic ability.

  Gene Siskel - Host : Right.

  Roger Ebert - Host : What surprised me, though, Gene, was the screenplay.

  Gene Siskel - Host : Why?

  Roger Ebert - Host : First of all, this plot is SO old-fashioned, and so hackneyed, and so recycled out of a hundred other fairy tales and movies, and I was waiting to see what kind of twist or spin Eddie Murphy was gonna put on it, and there isn't any. And the second thing is, the energy level of the movie is too low. This is the first Eddie Murphy movie I've ever seen that can accurately be described as lethargic.

  Gene Siskel - Host : Oh, I didn't think...

  Roger Ebert - Host : I mean, you talk about how he's sweet and laid back, I think he was TOO laid back. I wanted to see Eddie Murphy take this prince and NOT play him so straight and so sweet, but give him a little bit of an edge.

  Gene Siskel - Host : Well, I'll tell you, I think Eddie Murphy, by his very nature, can't help but give a character his edge, I think he's got energy inside him, but I think it's a romantic lead, he goes back to old-fashioned style movie making, and I thought it was perfectly handled. This is just the movie that I wanted to see.

  Roger Ebert - Host : You want to talk about the romantic lead, it really IS old-fashioned.

  Gene Siskel - Host : Yes.

  Roger Ebert - Host : Because there is nothing new-fashioned about this relationship...

  Gene Siskel - Host : And I liked it.

  Roger Ebert - Host : And the whole idea of judging women on the basis of just their physical appearance and their external qualities...

  Gene Siskel - Host : Oh, that's sweet the way he comes off. I bought the whole thing,

  Roger Ebert - Host : Oh, well, I think that in 1988...

  Gene Siskel - Host : Did you like the movie, or not?

  Roger Ebert - Host : No.

  Gene Siskel - Host : But you like, you like what both of the leads did...

  Roger Ebert - Host : They're both talented guys, give 'em a screenplay.

  Gene Siskel - Host : I think they got one.

  Roger Ebert - Host : See what they can do with it.

  Gene Siskel - Host : They did a great job with it.

• Roger Ebert - Host : [reviewing "License to Drive"]  I don't recommend the movie either, but I sure did like it a lot more than you did, especially the first hour. Now, I think what you're reacting to, probably, is the last half of the movie, which is all of the chase stuff, all of the stunts, all of the special effects, all of the weird driving and the things...

  Gene Siskel - Host : Who cares.

  Roger Ebert - Host : ...They can do with cars. Who cares. In fact, I would almost make it as a rule that it is no longer possible for anything involving fast moving cars to be funny. It's just kinda like a basic principle.

  Gene Siskel - Host : I have seen a movie, and I won't say what it is, but I've seen a movie in which they do a joke about fast moving cars that's very good. In fact, I WILL tell you what the name of the movie is: The Dirty Harry movie!

  Roger Ebert - Host : The new Dirty Harry movie. Yes, I know that. But that is not a real car, so I've STILL got you. So I would make that as a basic rule. But apart from that, the first part of this movie, you remember, we're reviewing "License to Drive"...

  Gene Siskel - Host : Yeah, I wanna forget that.

  Roger Ebert - Host : I thought there were a lot of big laughs, especially in a scene where a driving license examiner, played by a man named James Avery, is absolutely hilarious. He gets this totally frightened kid in the car, and he takes his brim-full cup of coffee, and puts it up on the dashboard, and says "I don't like to get that coffee spilled on my pants", he tells the kid. You know, the kid is going over bumps and so forth, and the coffee's going... now that was a hilarious scene. And there were some other scenes in the first part of this movie that were very funny, then I agree with you, it went to pot.

  Gene Siskel - Host : [chuckles]  Well, I'm glad you liked the cup of coffee. Next time you look at that film, and there will never BE another next time, because you really didn't like the movie...

  Roger Ebert - Host : I'm not giving it thumbs up! I didn't say I...

  Gene Siskel - Host : ...There's a continuity error in the amount of coffee in the guy's cup. You'll see that there's more coffee after he's drunk some a little later on, or some has spilled out. So even the scene that you liked...

  Roger Ebert - Host : And that...

  Gene Siskel - Host : EVEN the scene that you liked...

  Roger Ebert - Host : And that spoiled the joke for you.

  Gene Siskel - Host : Uh, Roger, NOTHING would've made this movie work for me at that point. I think the whole movie stunk.

  Roger Ebert - Host : You're too harsh, Gene, you're much too harsh.

  Gene Siskel - Host : I know.

  Roger Ebert - Host : You're too harsh.