Review of Flirting with Disaster (1996) by Caleb M — 18 Apr 2010

(from The Watermark 04/28/96).

Stiller plays an adult adoptee who wants to find his biological parents. He packs up his wife (Arquette), their newborn baby, and a psychologist wanna-be (Leoni) to document the event, and sets out to meet them. Mishap after mishap occurs, until Stiller finally finds the right set of parents (Tomlin and Alda). Once they're with Tomlin & Alda, the chaos that ensues is very funny, if not bordering on farce. All of the performances are first rate, plus the casting of Segal and Tyler Moore as the adoptive parents is great. Writer/director David O. Russell never falls into cliché "on the road" comedy format, and the script is full of surprises and witty dialogue. It was a fun trip. Queer Quotient: Lily! Lily! Lily! Also, Arquette meets up with an old high school buddy who is bisexual. He's actually one of the few emotionally healthy characters in the film. He and his male lover are facing common spousal issues, and completely break the mold of gays in the cinema. Cheers for an entertaining film with positive gay roles! (This will definitely please those still whining about the alleged negativity of gays in The Birdcage.).