Films about actors playing actors can easily fall into cliché. But Who Am I This Time gives the concept a truly original and profound twist, while giving the two stars the roles of a lifetime.I vaguely remember seeing this many years ago, probably when it was on public television in the 1980s, but I don't think it made the impression on me it did this time. Back then I had barely heard of Kurt Vonnegut, and Christopher Walken and Susan Sarandon were just actors. But now I'm a huge fan of Vonnegut, and have seen and admired Walken and Sarandon in countless roles, so I was better able to appreciate the marvelous acting here. And while the story is not 45 degrees off plumb from reality, as with other Vonnegut works like Slaughterhouse Five or Breakfast of Champions, it has the true originality and charm of a great writer. Many famous actors and actresses fall into well-worn grooves as they get older, playing their personas almost more than their roles. This is not quite true of this pair, but there is a wonderfully fresh creativity to their performances here that you might not see in more seasoned actors. This is vital to their roles because they must transform themselves, both when they switch between their street selves and their community playhouse selves, and as they are transformed over the course of the story. So the story, itself, demands great acting, but so does the play they perform, A Streetcar Named Desire, surely one of the most demanding of all, which the viewer can appreciate from the great performances of Walken and Sarandon. In Who Am I This Time you see the two leads constantly transforming themselves in a tour de force of acting. I can't act for beans, but I have heard actors say repeatedly that the key is to truly watch the other actor, and react honestly. You see that exemplified in Sarandon's tryout when she falls flat reading her lines, but soars as soon as she reacts to Walken. This is set in a small town, much like a thousand other small towns across America, and the key here is to act like real people, to feel like people who could be your neighbors. And that's what the rest of the cast does, avoiding any temptation to ham it up. But above all, this is a great story with a delightful ending. The chemistry between the two seems so genuine you half expect Sarandon and Walken to get married in real life. I appreciate Who Am I This Time more now, in part because I have seen the later work of these great actors. I hope some interviewer, such as Terry Gross, asks Walken and Sarandon how they feel about this film, little seen in recent years. My guess is they consider it one of their finest works. I also suspect their magnificent performances here helped move their careers into high gear. But it also benefits from being able to see it on a recording you can control, so you can better compare the performances at different points in the film. For example, in the opening with Cyrano, it is not immediately clear whether you are looking at a great actor or an over- acting ham. You soon realize this guy can really act! You also wonder how many actors are really as shy as Harry Nash, deep down inside.

To answer that question: that it was longer. Then again to counter that own point, maybe this was a film that was very close to Vonnegut's original story, thus not extending it to feature length or making it an actual theatrical release. As it is it should be just a trifle, but it's more than that. Director Jonathan Demme adds a light air of circumstance to the proceedings, and plants some of his trademarks (notably the precise positioning of the camera on faces, as we all know from most of his films) while letting the actors have at it. And it's quite an amazing piece for those who love theater, and how an actor's mind meets with heart. At the same time it's not sentimental; this story of a woman (Sarandon) who keeps moving from town to town and never settling anywhere or meeting anyone, and a man (Walken) who is an introvert who lets himself out through incredible community theatre productions, who meet on the set of Streetcar Named Desire and fall for each other in the oddest way is about as charming as one could imagine.Aside from the power of seeing Walken take on iconic parts (i.e. Cyrano, Stanley Kowalski), he's fantastic at being incredibly subtle and at underplaying his meek clerk-turned-star. If you want to see him outside of being the Continental or giving gold watch speeches, come here. And Sarandon is excellent too, in a role that requires her to be compassionate and kind and understanding and blah blah and she does it without flinching in a step. It's short, and sadly not longer (though I'd love to see the 95 minute cut from Argentina!), but it's one of Demme's better efforts of the 90s, a true small-town chamber piece of love.

If I had to to describe this in one word, it would be; Spectacular! This contains possibly the best acting that i have ever seen in my life. I wouldn't hesitate for even a second to recommend this to someone. I didn't think it was possible for a film to out shine the story, but here i have been proved wrong. Once again, Spectacular!

As a play within a play (contains scenes from Streetcar Named Desire) it is a showcase for the range of these excellent actors -- Susan Sarandon and Christopher Walken. It is also a sensitive tale of lonely people finding each other and their hearts.If the well-earned emotions generated do not bring tears of happiness at the end, perhaps you should look for your own heart.