Portnoy’s Complaint
Moviegoers who loved Philip Roth’s comic masterpiece about the bedeviled Alexander Portnoy, his monstrous mother, and his mostly silent psychiatrist, were hard-pressed to endure Ernest Lehman’s awkward adaptation starring Richard Benjamin, Karen Black (as “The Monkey”), and Lee Grant as Sophie Portnoy, the nagging nightmare at the root of Portnoy’s (many) complaints. Critical reaction was brutal but nothing compared to the backlash from various religious groups like the U.S. Catholic Conference, the Protestant Film Bulletin, and the Jewish Film Review. Poor Portnoy.
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About Larry Karaszewski
Larry Karaszewski and his writing/directing/producing partner Scott Alexander are best known for writing unusual true stories. Their current release is “Dolemite is My Name” featuring Eddie Murphy as Rudy Ray Moore. The duo previously created the hit television miniseries “The People v O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story” for which they won the Golden Globe, Emmy, PGA and WGA Awards. They also won the Golden Globe and WGA Award for the film “The People vs Larry Flynt.” Other movies include the Oscar winning “Ed Wood” (WGA nomination), “Big Eyes” (Independent Spirit nomination), “Auto Focus" and “Man on the Moon.” The team has been inducted into the Final Draft Screenwriting Hall of Fame. Larry is also a Governor for writers branch, co-chair of the International Feature Film category, and a Vice President of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.
I think the issue here is Benjamin. He seems like a nice fella, but best in small doses.
Watched him shoot a terrible movie here (Vancouver) in ’83 (‘Packin’ It In’).
Like the earlier adaptation of a Roth novel (Goodbye Columbus, also starring Richard Benjamin in the lead role), it looks at Jewish angst. If I’d had a mom like the mom in this movie, I’d have probably gone mad and gotten confined to a mental institution.
“Is it liquid or solid?”