Review of Seems Like Old Times (1980) by Blake P — 01 Feb 2014

"Seems Like Old Times" may not be as funny as Chevy Chase and Goldie Hawn's previous venture together, 1978's "Foul Play," but it just comes to show that with the right cast, miracles can happen.

Today, comedy relies so heavily on raunch and nudity - "Seems Like Old Times" looks to physical comedy (to the brink of being a throwback to the screwball comedy of the 1930s) and dynamic performances from its ensemble. That's what comedy should be, after all.

Chase plays Nick Gardenia, a divorced writer whose luck goes off the deep end when he is kidnapped by a pair of crooks (Judd Omen, Marc Alaimo), who plan to force him to rob a bank at gunpoint. Of course, this wouldn't be a comedy if the plan didn't go through. When the two criminals throw Nick out of there car, he decides the best way to get help is to seek shelter at his ex-wife Glenda's (Hawn) home. He can't go to his house - he's now a wanted man.

This might not be such a good idea: Glenda is married to Ira Parks (Charles Grodin), the District Attorney. Glenda has a sweet heart, but knows it's a terrible idea to let Nick hide out with her and Ira, considering the consequence that could occur. But as time goes, she feels guilty and lets him stay - without Ira knowing.

"Seems Like Old Times" plays out like a sitcom. Though most films would suffer from this aspect, the film is so good that you'd only hope it could someday become a TV show (even if it would never work). Not only is it fun to watch, but it manages to be madcap to the brink of insanity, making use of Chase and Hawn's flawless comedic timing and bringing in a gigantic group of cats and dogs (it's a long story) to add to the situation.

Simon's writing is brilliant, giving us scene after scene of utter comedic perfection - the climax of the film, which sees Ira and Glenda hosting a dinner party (which includes the Governor), has Nick hiding out in the kitchen, with the butler drunk out of his mind. The situation plays out with such witty dialogue, so many unthinkable occurrences, that from beginning to end it's completely dynamic.

In the end, you can't call "Seems Like Old Times" 100% perfect, because it's not. Sometimes the plot doesn't really go anywhere, and it's hard to tell whether or not we're supposed to expect Glenda and Nick to get back together again. But no matter what, we're never bored, and we laugh instead, and there's nothing wrong with that. And on a level of "perfection", I'd give it 85%, and that isn't half-bad now, is it?