Reworking of the main gag in 1970's "Start the Revolution Without Me" has a rich couple from New York City, driving through a small southern town, checking into a bumpkin hospital where the wife delivers twins--two girls; at the same time, in the same befuddled hospital, a local woman also delivers twins--two girls. The joke, of course, is: one of the city babies is switched with one of the daughters from the farm family and, many years later, they all meet up at the Plaza Hotel. Bright, funny comedy, one of Bette Midler's better efforts for Touchstone, although it takes its time getting started. Once the action moves to the Plaza, it becomes less a vehicle for stars Midler and Lily Tomlin than a visual effects-driven farce with overtures to the 1930s. Tomlin's small town fussbudget is colorful, but her big city counterpart never takes shape, and she doesn't quite click with Midler (one may argue their characters are not related and therefore shouldn't click, but Tomlin's timing is very different from her co-star's, and she doesn't segue into brash slapstick comfortably). There's a great deal of incidental plotting revolving around the main action, with nutty characters continually popping up, but the jokes are freshest and funniest when director Jim Abrahams simply sets the camera on Bette Midler and lets her go. The editing is sloppy and abbreviates some of Midler's liveliest moments, yet Bette is very amusing when she's allowed to take charge. Fred Ward also appealing as a country rube who loves one or both of the Tomlins--although this pairing, too, lacks charisma (it's a plot device, like much of the rest of "Big Business"). *** from ****

I know farce is supposed to be fast and furious but it is also supposed to be funny and unfortunately "Big Business"(absolutely no connection with the Laurel and Hardy masterpiece of the same name)isn't.Miss Midler and Miss Tomlin squeal,shout,wriggle and giggle to very little effect indeed. Whether playing country gals from Jupiter Holler or Manhattan sophisticates they merely go into their respective schticks no matter if it helps or hinders the creaking plot that was old when Shakespeare gave it a lick of paint. Both ladies have large vociferous followings whom I would hate to offend but I must in all honesty say that I find them an acquired taste.Perhaps it's me. The whole ragbag of identity jokes is ravaged without shame but "Big Business" brings nothing new to the party. However,if you are amongst the Midler/Tomlin fanbase you will already be ignoring me and settling down in front of your DVD with your cans of Stella and Indian Takeaway ready to belch and burp your way through it.Er,sorry,did I get that bit wrong?

This is not a movie which I would have gone to see by my own choice when it was originally issued, but at that time, my great aunt was visiting us. She was a terrific lady, and liked both Bette Midler and Lily Tomlin, so I took her to see it early in its first-run at a theater.Surprisingly, I enjoyed it, I suppose partially because she did so thoroughly. It was run on a local channel recently, and I saw it for the second time, and still found it amusing and enjoyable."Twin" stories have long been a staple on stage and screen. They have provided the opportunity for for performers to run the gamut of their acting range, and to chew the scenery like a horde of beavers. In most of these dramas, the "evil twin" represents the most reprehensible of society's creatures - often counterbalanced by the opposite "good" one. Or we're treated, say, to a pair of young girls performing sophomoric jokes on everyone in sight. (I always get the mental image that the writers were sitting around one day, and were devoid of story ideas. Finally one say, "Ah, hell. Let's just make the story about some twins; we can do all the usual identity mix-up stuff while we come up with the plot.")In this drama, two sets of twin girls are mixed at birth - the issues of two expectant couples at the same hick-town hospital: a bumpkin local couple; and a couple from New York, passing through in their limo, the father apparently among New York City's most powerful, wealthy elite.Naturally when grown, these pair of far from identical siblings are different in similar ways in their completely opposite circumstances. Timlin represents the naturally "bumpkin" family, and Midler the "elite." Lily is, of course, the more considerate, benevolent, unselfish and thoughtful in the wealthy setting, the more forcefully outgoing for the rights of her fellow townspeople in the sticks. Bette is the one who runs the family business empire, and her country version wants something more than the seedy hometown.The necessary coincidence of both pairs having the same first names is not a stretch - the unimaginative bumpkin papa simply overhears his counterpoint's expressed choices, and opts for the same.The other many occurrences necessary to this plot before the "four" personally encounter one another, require, of course, a veritable host of coincidences. But (again surprisingly) these are for the most part quite amusing, and not nearly as unbelievable or illogical as one would expect. And there are clever juxtapositions, such as when NYC Midler's country-girl doppelgänger disciplines the spoiled brat son to his father's delight (his mother has indulged the urchin to the father's despair).Besides, the writers and producers seem to have answered the question posed by psychologists from Freud to-date. In the classic genes-versus-environment quandary, this film would seem to be society's answer that the former have to prevail.

I rushed right out and located the DVD of "Big Business," even though I knew that Disney had a bad reputation for minimal value in extras on their DVD releases. That situation has improved over time, and seeing BB in wide screen made it all worthwhile. This movie started out funny for me and has gotten better with repeated viewings. It has an excellent pedigree with Jim Abrahams directing and Dean Cundey manning the camera, and the leads are definitely up to the challenge of dualie roles.It is unusual for a comedy to have the strong viewpoint and values expressed in this movie. Fred Ward's Rune talks about the simple pleasures of living in the rural country and you know that somebody involved with the script knew those pleasures personally. The characters rarely become stereotypes. Even the secondary characters are treated with respect.Dean Cundey, Director of Photography, must have been specializing in trick photography as he went on to shoot "Back to the Future 2" and "3" with even better results. The effects budget for BB was high enough to keep the believability intact.To me this is an all-around enjoyable light comedy.