For years, all I knew of this movie was who was involved in it: director Elaine May, screenwriter Neil Simon, author Bruce Jay Friedman (I was previously familiar with two of his '80s comedies I remember enjoying-Stir Crazy and Splash) and stars Charles Grodin, Cybill Shepherd, and Eddie Albert. Oh, and also another player-Jeannie Berlin-is Ms. May's daughter. I also knew of the premise-Grodin marries Ms. Berlin, finds out she's not very appealing, dumps her after meeting Ms. Shepherd during their honeymoon, tries to get Ms. Shepherd's father-played by Albert-to approve of him for her and then...Well, I'll just say that this was both funny and a little painful to watch but it was mostly quite an enjoyable one to finally see for myself just how well put this was. So on that note, I highly recommend The Heartbreak Kid. Oh, and I just remembered that Audra Lindley-years before playing Helen Roper in "Three's Company"-is in this, too! Also, Doris Roberts-a couple of decades before her Emmy-wining role in "Everybody Loves Raymond"-plays Grodin's mother during the first-wedding sequence.

The movie's a comedy, I think, though it produces as many cringes as laughs. It's hard not to laugh at poor Lila (Berlin) as she flubs her honeymoon with sunburn crème blotches, oozing egg sandwiches, and ill-timed bathroom breaks. But then she's so emotionally needy, it's hard not to laugh and cry at the same time. On the other hand, husband Lenny's (Grodin) got all the empathy of a ham sandwich, as he chases after blonde goddess Kelly (Shepherd), piling one absence excuse on Lila after another. This is the honeymoon from heck, especially after the goddess-struck Lenny sues for divorce. But then he does grant Lila "the luggage".The humor's in the character set-ups, and Lenny's special brand of chutzpah. A little fast- talking, he thinks, gets him out of any situation. That is, until he runs into Kelly's humorless dad (Albert). Seems like the proverbial irresistible force has run into the immovable object. But has it. Grodin's appropriately obnoxious when Lenny needs to be; Berlin's vulnerable when Lila needs to be; Shepherd's gorgeous without trying; while Albert's stony mug belongs on Mt. Rushmore. And catch that contemplative ending, not what I expected, but probably appropriate for what's gone before.All in all, the movie's something of a guilty pleasure and certainly one of a kind. I do, however, miss Grodin's smirking brand of put-on.

I had seen Ben Stiller's 2007 remake of this film.It was nothing short of awful,but I thought to myself,surely the original,which I had not as yet seen,isn't this bad.I went with the film's basic idea,which was funny yet tragic in a way,and decided to see if it told the story better.Took a while to find it because I can never find it on television,and it isn't available through my video mailing service.Finally found it on the web and gave it a gander.Overall,I was impressed.It was perfectly casted from top to bottom.Who wouldn't fall in love with Cybill Shepherd? I also enjoyed Eddie Albert as the "rich brick wall" of a father to Cybill's character.I did feel bad for the Grodin's bride and I do wish that they hadn't left her fate so open ended.The moral of the story is clear;Don't marry someone just because you are in a hurry to settle down.Sometimes true love takes a while.Wait for it.

Charles Grodin plays a Jewish New Yorker who takes his earthy new bride to Miami for their honeymoon, but becomes increasingly disillusioned with her on the trip--most especially because of a flirty, leggy blonde from Minnesota whom he meets on the beach. With Neil Simon writing this screenplay, one is almost instantly aware not of the class issue (it doesn't matter to Simon who has more money than who) but of the Jewish angle. Simon makes the bride gross and vulgar, and Jeannie Berlin has been encouraged to play these non-attributes to the hilt, while Cybill Shepherd's Protestant sex-goddess is the epitome of sarcastic poise. Simon wins points against the new wife by playing up her Jewishness in all its stereotypical brashness; it's as if the volume is up too loud. "The Heartbreak Kid" has many things going for it--the excellent performances and some very humorous asides to name two--but the intentional lewdness behind Grodin's marital predicament, and the queasy way he ingratiates himself into Shepherd's family, isn't so much hilarious as it is cringe-inducing. Shepherd's no-nonsense father, wonderfully played in an I've-seen-everything-now way by Eddie Albert, reacts accordingly to Grodin's new proposals with anger and confusion, and in these instances the film touches on something much deeper than the modern Jewish man's internal struggle. Unfortunately, this is mainly what Simon has on his plate, and it wears the audience down--and seems very dated now, anyway. Elaine May's direction is fashionably ragged and somewhat detached, and her ending is thoughtful (if, in retrospect, uneventful). The story certainly needed a modern tweaking, as this version is just a little bit undernourished (more mean-spirited than funny), however a 2007 remake fared even worse. **1/2 from ****