Ishtar

directed by Elaine May (1987)

I watched Ishtar when it was first released.  I was one of the few people who actually saw it in theatres and enjoyed it.  When it started getting harsh reviews,  I didn't understand why this comedy about two mild mannered musicians in a mid life crisis mode who bumble their way through spy games in Morocco elicited such vitriol.  Worst movie ever???  To my mind it was pretty funny and entertaining, not much different than other comedies of the time, but for whatever reason it tanked,  HARD.  It earned a measly 12.7 million, and that only covered the salaries of the two leads. Hoffman and Beatty got 5 million each, and the total budget ran to 55 million.  So yeah, it was a financial disaster, but the film itself is not that epic a failure by any means.

Rewatching it,  I'd say the best part of the movie is the set up in New York, where you meet Lyle, (Warren Beatty), and Chuck, (Dustin Hoffman), and see how they come together. The movie is very silly in terms of the spyjinx plot once the location switches to Morocco, but the backdrops are interesting, and the fact that the same political shell games are still being played in the Middle East, gives a bit of texture and gravitas to the fluff.  It's still not very engaging though. I admit I got a bit bored by the action, but the desert shenanigans are simply the framework for the further development of Lyle and Chuck's relationship.  They are such sweet and deluded doofuses and it's their interactions that make the film worth watching.  I enjoyed seeing Beatty play against type as he's very believable as a simple good hearted hick - Lyle reminds me of Thomas Haden Church some.  Hoffman's Chuck, "call me Hawk",  and his overconfident braggadocio provides great contrast, especially when he switches to jags of piteous crying while bemoaning his lot in life.  His angsty whining provides some hilarious moments where Lyle props his self esteem back up, and Chuck does the same for Lyle in his darker moments.

Lyle to Chuck:

It takes a lot of nerve to have nothing at your age, don't you understand that? Most guys'd be ashamed, but you've got the guts to just say 'to hell with it'. You say that you'd rather have nothing than settle for less, understand? 

It's a sweet relationship, and if you like Dumb and Dumber, this has a similar appeal.

Paul Williams and Elaine May did the music and the tunes they wrote for Chuck and Lyle are really funny.  The two musicians are not great, really they aren't.  Their agent says, "You guys are old, you're white and you got no schtick!"  True dat, but they have big dreams eh?  Probably, if it were set now, they'd be satisfied doing Karaoke.  Also, I think Tenacious D and The Flight of the Conchords owe a lot to this film.

I especially like the scenes where the guys are working on their tunes.  Telling the truth can be dangerous business...

Isabelle Adjani doesn't particularly stand out, she does look good, even in dude drag, but I guess Elaine May had a hard time giving direction to women, and maybe a problem directing in general.

I ganked this from the IMDB forum on May, with thanks to Tom Cruise's Testicles.

"Everyone knew there was a problem with the film during production, most of it because of May. She killed her own career with her behavior. Even she knew she was over her head, removing entire battle scenes because she didn't know how to shoot them. When Beatty and others offered to help her storyboard it, she threatened to quit- refusing to accept help. Most of the crew learned early on that whenever they suggested something, she would do the opposite of what they proposed. So in order to get her to make the right decisions, they had to suggest the opposite of what they wanted her to do. One of the more famous stories is when shooting in the desert, because the sun moves, the light in the morning is different then the light in the afternoon. In order to get shots to match, they move the actors to a different hill and no one in the audience can tell because all areas of the desert look the same. She would not listen when the DP told her this and the result was tons of unusable footage. 

Everyone knew she was an eccentric before hiring her and a bit of a perfectionist. But no one, not even Beatty who produced the film(in fact, he got the film green lit for her because of her help on Heaven Can Wait and Reds, not just for her writing but also her incredible work helping to edit those films) were aware of her major flaws as a director. One of the major ones being she detest actresses, refusing to give any direction at all to Adjani. 

There are plenty of places where you can read about the behind the scenes stories on Ishtar(some made up, like her flattening sand dunes with a bulldozer for the film). The amount of money lost is a very small part of why she stopped directing. The main reason is her own actions and decisions. 

No one wants to work with someone who is out of control and doesn't know what they are doing. Even if they are a genius."


Charles Grodin plays a CIA operative and since he had been one of many options for casting Benjamin Braddock, I kept wondering what The Graduate would have been like if he had gotten the role instead of Hoffman. Another connection to The Graduate - Elaine May had an uncredited role.  She played the university girl who hands the note from Elaine to Benjamin.

I also noticed Max Headroom, (Matt Frewer), in a small role.  I wonder if Max will ever get a reboot?