Simon [1980] Alan Arkin (by request)

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Simon (1980)


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081518/

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Simon is a 1980 American comedy film.


Alan Arkin ... Prof. Simon Mendelssohn
Madeline Kahn ... Dr. Cynthia Malloy
Austin Pendleton ... Dr. Carl Becker
Judy Graubart ... Lisa
William Finley ... Fichandler
Jayant ... Barundi
Wallace Shawn ... Eric Van Dongen
Max Wright ... Leon Hundertwasser
Fred Gwynne ... Maj. Gen. Korey
Adolph Green ... Commune leader
Keith Szarabajka ... Josh
Ann Risley ... Pam
Pierre Epstein ... Military aide
Roy Cooper ... General's aide
Rex Robbins ... Army doctor

The Institute for Advanced Concepts, a group of scientists with an unlimited budget and a propensity for elaborate pranks, brainwash a scientist who was abandoned at birth (played by Alan Arkin) to convince him that he is of extraterrestrial origin. He then escapes and attempts to reform American culture by overriding TV signals with a high power TV transmitter, becoming a national celebrity in the process.

After co-writing Sleeper, Annie Hall, and Manhattan with Woody Allen, Marshall Brickman struck out on his own -- as both writer and director -- with the uneven but often hilarious Simon. A peculiar comedy with a style all its own, it features moments of strange comedic genius, such as Alan Arkin's re-enactment of the evolution of man in the space of five minutes, as well as the bizarre but terribly funny sight of Austin Pendleton getting heavily "involved" with a computer. The dialogue, like all of the film, has its ups and downs, but features a number of funny lines that echo Brickman's earlier work; for example, during a debate about the existence of God, a rabbi states, "There is clear proof there is a God -- and He doesn't know what he's doing." Brickman's timing is generally good, but the pacing of the film overall suffers, possibly because the film doesn't really have a plot and just bounces from situation to situation; it also doesn't really have a focus, taking on any number of satirical targets but not following through completely on any of them. Arkin's performance suffers somewhat because of these flaws, but on the whole he's delightful and fully committed to the material. Pendleton creates another of his strangely appealing characters, and Madeline Kahn and Judy Graubart also turn in strong support. Brickman would follow this with the more conventional Lovesick.

There are elements in this film found in Altered States, Network, Sleeper and others as well.


Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA
1981 Nominated Saturn Award Best Actor Alan Arkin