Mr. Wonderful (1993)

In an attempt to end alimony payments, a working class man tries to set up his ex wife with potential husbands.

Director:

Anthony Minghella

Writers:

Amy Schor Ferris (as Amy Schor), Vicki Polon

Stars:

Matt Dillon, Annabella Sciorra, Mary-Louise Parker

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Matt Dillon	...	Gus
Annabella Sciorra	...	Leonora
Mary-Louise Parker	...	Rita
William Hurt	...	Tom
Vincent D'Onofrio	...	Dominic
David Barry Gray	...	Pope
Dan Hedaya	...	Harvey
Bruce Kirby	...	Dante
Luis Guzmán	...	Juice
Jessica Harper	...	Funny Face
Joanna Merlin	...	Loretta
Jennifer Alonzi	...	Woman on Train
Frank E. Smurlo Jr.	...	Man on Train
Bruce Altman	...	Mr. Wonderful
Peter Appel	...	Harry

Storyline

Electrician Gus gets the chance to fulfill a childhood dream by buying an old bowling-alley with some of his friends. Unfortunately, due to the alimony payments he has to make to his ex-wife Leonora, the bank refuses to loan him the down payment. Knowing that when she marries again she loses her alimony rights, Gus tries to speed things up by bringing Leonora together with all the potential husbands he can find. Although this approach isn't very successful, it awakens feelings in both of them they didn't know they still had.

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Plot Keywords:

woman wearing bra and panties | brief female frontal nudity | blind date | nurse | subway | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes love is a stranger. And sometimes it's someone you've known all your life.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some language and sensuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 October 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Con quién caso a mi mujer

Filming Locations:

19 Minetta Street, New York, NY 10012, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$13,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$3,125,424

Company Credits

Production Co:

Night Life Inc., The Samuel Goldwyn Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Annabella Sciorra would go on to play James Gandolfini's love interest for 7 episodes on The Sopranos (1999).

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Goofs

As hired public-works servicemen, Gus and his co-worker would have been wearing OSHA-approved safety-goggles when servicing the fuse-bank, since there were such large sparks present.

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Quotes

Leonora: [in disgusted sarcastic response to Gus's complaining that she appears to have "traded down" by divorcing him and hooking up with her current romantic interest whom Gus views as just a high-class dandy and clueless dude who's probably incapable of even simple tasks; Gus opines that the guy "likely doesn't even know how to change a fuse"] Who really cares whether or not you can change a fuse, if the WIRES aren't even HOOKED UP INSIDE YOUR HEAD?

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Connections

References The Geraldo Rivera Show (1987)

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Soundtracks

Still It's You
(Theme song)
Written by Michael Gore and Carole Bayer Sager
Performed by Phil Perry & Wendy Moten

User Reviews

Church Bells Take Their Toll

New York electrician Matt Dillon (as Gus DeMarco) wants to buy a bowling alley in Brooklyn, with his buddies from work; but, he doesn't have the money. To get his share of the bucks, Mr. Dillon must either sell his beloved Corvette, or marry off his alimony-collecting wife. If Dillon can find "Mr. Wonderful" for ex-wife Annabella Sciorra (as Leonora "Lee" DeMarco), he can stop payments. Making her ex-husband's job more challenging, Ms. Sciorra has hooked up with married college Professor William Hurt (as Tom). Sciorra has returned to school, and is learning Latin. Meanwhile, Dillon is dating sexy nurse Mary-Louise Parker (as Rita).

This Anthony Minghella film will be very disappointing if you're looking for anything approaching the caliber of "The English Patient" or "The Talented Mr. Ripley". As good as they are, director Minghella and his bickering leads, do simply nothing with this ordinary, predictable story.

There are a few nice moments, like a young downs syndrome couple sneaking a kiss as NYC subway light flicker. But, It's difficult to believe Sciorra suddenly dating the series of men recommended by Dillon. And, it's hard to fathom Dillon giving up a woman as desirable and intelligent as the gainfully employed Nurse Parker (a part filmmakers should have considered making an "airhead"). Second-stringers, like Parker and Con Edison worker David Barry Gray (as Pope), are more interesting to watch than the stars.

***** Mr. Wonderful (10/15/93) Anthony Minghella ~ Matt Dillon, Annabella Sciorra, Mary-Louise Parker, William Hurt