Punchline (1988)

Director:

David Seltzer

Writer:

David Seltzer (written by)

Release Date:

7 October 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

It only hurts when you LAUGH!

Plot:

Steven Gold is a stand-up comedian who is flat broke and has recently dropped out of medical school...

Plot Keywords:

Comedian | Stand Up Comedian | Housewife | Elvis Presley | Nightclub

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Sally Field	...	Lilah Krytsick
Tom Hanks	...	Steven Gold
John Goodman	...	John Krytsick
Mark Rydell	...	Romeo
Kim Greist	...	Madeline Urie
Paul Mazursky	...	Arnold
Pam Matteson	...	Utica Blake
George McGrath	...	Singing Nun (as George Michael McGrath)
Taylor Negron	...	Albert Emperato
Barry Neikrug	...	Krug
Ángel Salazar	...	Rico (as Angel Salazar)
Damon Wayans	...	Percy
Joycee Katz	...	Joycee
Mac Robbins	...	Billy Lane
Max Alexander	...	Mister Ball

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Finland:S | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Australia:M | Iceland:L | South Korea:15 | Norway:10 | Sweden:Btl | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:12 (w)

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Both Tom Hanks and Sally Field did stand-up routines in comedy clubs to prepare for this film. Stand-up comedian Susie Essman and comedy writer Dottie Archibald coached Field for her role. Archibald also served as consultant for the film, recruiting real stand-up comedians to appear in the film. Hanks enlisted stand-up comedian Barry Sobel and comedy writer Randy Fechter to help write his routine. One night, a young, up-and-coming Chris Rock shared a set with Hanks, and has stated since that Hanks was the funniest stand-up he had ever seen.

Quotes:

Madeline Urie: Is - is this a joke?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Through the Eyes of Forrest Gump (1994) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Saber Dance

Making People Laugh Will Cost You Dearly!!!!

So much for my family, my kids, my sanity, and my discretionary money, what little of it I have...I want to tell jokes!!!...This bittersweet relationship between Tom Hanks and Sally Field has husband, John Goodman, totally perplexed...The nightclubs, the fast food, the partial housewife thing, the spending money on jokes..None of this makes any sense for a struggling married couple..Yet somehow, Sally Field must find herself..."Be supportive of my quirkiness!!"This was a precarious instinct that Sally Field felt compelled to necessitate!! The film "Punchline" spends most of the time making personality confusion the culprit to domestic shaky grounds, but in the end, it shows how Sally Field can be a good wife, a good mother and yet express a part of herself for herself by being a stand-up comic...The challenge stand-up comedy represents by being as painful as Russian roulette with five bullets, plays itself out as a frustrating dilemma that confuses both Tom Hanks and Sally Field!!!!...What was finally attainable in both their lives was recognition at a humanistic level...What is seemingly unacceptable to the run of the mill rational person, as opposed to a stand-up comic, is that there is no comprehension of the fact that a stand-up comic views the ability to make people laugh as one of the most coveted qualities in the world!! To be funny is more rewarding than wealth, power, and/or a wonderful physical appearance!!! Stand-Up Comedy is not necessarily a lucrative talent, and you do not have to constantly make people laugh, but when Sally Field won the contest that night, it meant she had the ability to be a stand-up comic,,this was important to her!!!! The desire Sally Field had to tell jokes at various New York nightclubs, transcended selfishness, and merely pointed out that having a family and a husband does not mean your life stops totally!!..Bottom line, if Sally Field were on trial for negligence and self centered preoccupation, she would have been acquitted!! Ultimately what gave her stand-up comic hobby a sense of gratification was the emerging approval and encouragement of her family!! The "Singin in the Rain" scene that Tom Hanks performed was FABULOUS!!! as this film just oozes with talent...This movie is identical to the plot of this movie...BEING DIFFERENT IS BETTER...JUST ASK SOMEONE WHO OWNS A ROLLS ROYCE!!!!