Behind the Camera: The Unauthorized Story of 'Mork & Mindy' (2005) (TV)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Neill Fearnley

Writers (WGA):

Andy Dougan (book)
David Misch (written by)

Release Date:

4 April 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

An inside look at the ABC sitcom which turned Robin Williams into a star in 1978.

Plot Keywords:

Television Show | Character Name In Title

Awards:

3 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Chris Diamantopoulos	...	Robin Williams
Daniel Roebuck	...	Garry Marshall
Erinn Hayes	...	Pam Dawber
Michelle Harrison	...	Valerie Velardi
David Richmond-Peck	...	Harvey Severson
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Kwesi Ameyaw	...	Cop
Johnathan Brownlee	...	Jay Thomas
Peter Bryant	...	Detective
Lisa Calder	...	Pretty Fan
Robert Clarke	...	Conrad Janis
Brad Dryborough	...	Stagehand
Sarah Edmondson	...	Gina Hecht
Stacy Fair	...	Penny Marshall
Neill Fearnley	...	Loud Guy
Ona Grauer	...	Raquel Welch
Peter Hanlon	...	Glen Langley
Adrian Hough	...	Robert Evans
Jesse Hutch	...	Crazed Fan
Pascale Hutton	...	Secretary
David Josefsberg	...	Henry Winkler
Richard Kahan	...	Alan Davis
Tyler Labine	...	John Belushi
Dion Luther	...	Interviewer
Cameron MacDonald	...	Doctor
Shaw Madson	...	Ron Howard
Meredith McGeachie	...	Lila Milford
Maxine Miller	...	Elizabeth Kerr
David Nykl	...	John Byner
Ryan Robbins	...	Street Performer
Kirsten Robek	...	Cindy Williams
Greg Rousseaux	...	Assistant Director
Chris Shields	...	Richard Pryor
Jeff Skinner	...	Jonathan Winters
April Telek	...	Woman in Bungalow 5 at Chateau Marmont
Venus Terzo	...	Isabelle Garcia
Maureen Thomas	...	Female Minister
Greig Thorlacius	...	Drunk
Robert Thurston	...	Spencer the Censor
Sam Vincent	...	Sherman Miles
Jerry Wasserman	...	Frank

Runtime:

USA:120 min (including commercials)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Filming Locations:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

NBC Studios

Trivia:

In the scene at the club, where an NBC talent exec is there to see Jay Leno but finds Robin Williams instead, a quick shot is shown of someone 'playing' Jay Leno in his younger days. The actor is actually the winner of a "Jay Leno Look-alike" contest run in 2004 on The Tonight Show.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The show takes place in the late-'70s and early-'80s, but Robin throws a series 1996 $100 bill in the hat of the panhandler doing an imitation of him.

Quotes:

Ted: Can I call you Garry?
Garry Marshall: It would be the highlight of my day.

Movie Connections:

References "The Muppet Show" (1976)

Robin's Interesting Story

I just watched this movie on it's premier night out of curiosity and sheer nostalgia. I liked (not loved) "Mork & Mindy" as a kid, mostly for Robin William's zany energetic performance. This movie made me remember why. Was the original show great? Not really, but Robin certainly was. Which brings me to this movie.

I was pleasantly surprised, expecting nothing more than a paint by numbers chronological retelling of the show (which in a way it was). But, of course, the real focus was on Robin. It was interesting to see Robin's journey from struggling street jester to national t.v star, and how such a drastic difference affected him and his long suffering wife. And my hat is off to star Chris Diamantopoulos as he portrayed Mr. Williams with integrity, sensitivity, and heart; not just a cute impression, although it was even dead-on. (On an unrelated note, I noticed that Robin's struggles were in some ways similar to Andy Kaufman, who was under-appreciated by network t.v. and held back creatively, but that's the "Taxi" behind the scenes biopic.)

All in all, this was a very enjoyable flick, in which I felt I got to know a little more of the man behind the Orkan. The acting was solid by all- never melodramatic like I suspected- and the story moved along well. Performances that were particularly good were by those who played Garry Marshall and John Belushi (the scene in which Belushi heckles Robin was a hoot!). Not a great masterpiece by any means (I would have liked to have seen a tad more about Pam Dawber), but definitely watchable, especially for those Robin Williams and "Mork & Mindy" fans out there. Nanoo, nanoo!