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Filmography
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All
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neWallpaper.com
features comprehensive database of movies with film synopses, reviews, casts and characters, theatrical trailers and photos
and wallpapers of upcoming films, production notes, official sites and photos from new releases, as well as exclusive interviews and articles, news, Read movie reviews of current films from top critics and many other
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Mrs. Doubtfire 2 (2006)
Sequel to the smash hit 1993 film
sees Robin Williams return as the man who disguises himself as a
elderly woman with a dodgy Scottish accent.
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The Krazees (2006)
Unable to deal with his daughter
reaching puberty, a psychologist (Williams) has to get a handle on
his emotions, which have come to life as different characters.
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Man of the Year (2006)
On a lark, the host of a
late-night political talk show (Williams) decides to run for
president. The thing is, he never expected to win.
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Happy Feet (2006)
Into the world of the Emperor
Penguins, who find their soul mates through song, a penguin is
born who cannot sing. But he can tap dance something fierce!
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R.V. (2006)
Bob McNeive (Williams) and his
dysfunctional family rent an RV for a roadtrip to the Colorado
Rockies, where they ultimately have to contend with a bizarre
community of campers.
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The Night Listener (2006)
In the midst of his crumbling
relationship, a radio show host begins speaking to his biggest
fan, a young boy, via the telephone. But when questions about the
boy's identity come up, the host's life is thrown into chaos
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The Big White (2005)
To remedy his financial problems,
a travel agent has his eye on a frozen corpse, which just happens
to be sought after by two hitmen.
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The
Aristocrats (2005)
Comedy veterans and co-creators
Penn Jillette and Paul Provenza capitalize on their insider status
and invite over 100 of their closest friends, (who happen to be
some of the biggest names in entertainment, from George Carlin,
Whoopi Goldberg, Drew Carey to Gilbert Gottfried, Bob Saget, Paul
Reiser and Sarah Silverman, just to name a few) to reminisce,
analyze, deconstruct and deliver their own versions of the world's
dirtiest joke, an old burlesque routine, too extreme to be
performed in public, called "The Aristocrats".
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House
of D (2005)
A man tries to resolve the turmoil
of his present relationships by looking for keys to the past. He
flashes back to his often hilarious and deeply touching teen
escapades with his best friend (Robin Williams), a slow-witted
janitor at his high school. Duchovny makes his directorial debut
with this emotional and at times comical fable about New York City
and the sweeping power of friendship.
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Robots
(2005)
Set on a world populated entirely
by robots, this is the story of a young genius, Rodney (Ewan
McGregor), who wants to make robots capable of making the world a
better place, but he finds his dream challenged by a corporate
tyrant and a master inventor, Big Weld (Mel Brooks), while also
being seduced by a sexy corporate robot, Cappy (Halle Berry).
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Noel
(2004)
It's Christmas Eve in New York
City, and with a little help from each other, five people will
discover new meaning on Christmas Day. As Jules (Marcus Thomas)
finds the courage to step beyond his past, Artie's (Alan Arkin)
own tragic history shows Mike (Paul Walker) where jealousy can
lead, bringing renewal to his relationship with Nina (Penelope
Cruz). And Rose (Susan Sarandon) discoveres new hope as Charlie -
an unexpected friend - reminds her that no one ever is truly alone
at Christmas.
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The
Final Cut (2004)
In the future, microchips
implanted in your brain record everything you see and here. Then
when you die, a "cutter" assembles the footage into a
memorial video for your funeral, editing out all of the
unpleasantness. The most sought-after cutter is Alan Hakman (Robin
Williams), a detached man who believes his work can absolve the
dead of their sins. While editing the memories of another cutter,
he uncovers a disturbing piece of his own past which leads him to
question the way he's lived his life.
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One
Hour Photo (2002)
Sy Parrish is the middle-aged
manager of the photo-printing department of a large Wal-Mart-like
emporium. He is a devoted perfectionist, providing service to the
self-obsessed inhabitants of this insular community, but he lives
a rather lonely existence, eating his meals in the local coffee
shops and going home to a nearly bare apartment. However, Sy
harbors a secret fantasy. Having developed the pictures of the
Yorkin clan, a model American family with their two kids, for
years, he has begun to see himself as part of it:
"Uncle" Sy, who buys toys for the kids and awaits their
homecoming while sitting on the couch. Eventually the fantasy
begins to blur with reality, and Sy's projection into the Yorkins'
life prompts a demand for order and harmony that leads inexorably
to calamity.
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Insomnia
(2002)
A sleep-deprived detective is sent
to a small Alaskan town to investigate the murder of a teenage
girl. Forced into a psychological game of cat-and-mouse by the
primary suspect, events escalate and the detective finds his own
stability dangerously threatened.
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Death
to Smoochy (2002)
DEATH TO SMOOCHY tells the comic
tale of Rainbow Randolph (Robin Williams), the costumed star of a
popular children's television show who is fired over a bribery
scandal and replaced by Smoochy (Edward Norton), a puffy, Barney-esque
fuscia rhinoceros. When Randolph discovers Smoochy is having an
affair with his ex-lover, Nora (Catherine Keener), a top
programming executive at the network, he plots his revenge.
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Bicentennial
Man (1999)
Andrew Martin (Williams) is a
household android whose intended function is thrown for a loop
when he begins to feel genuine human emotions. Over the next two
centuries the resulting dealings with his adopted family and new
acquaintances provide the film with ample opportunities to raise
important questions about individual human existence, as Andrew
seeks to become human. Based on the Isaac Asimov story of the same
name.
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Jakob
the Liar (1999)
In Nazi-occupied Poland during
World War II, poor Jewish cafe owner Jakob accidentally overhears
a forbidden radio news bulletin signaling Soviet military
successes against German forces. To combat the overwhelming
depression and suicide that pervades the ghetto, Jakob tells
fictitious news bulletins about Allied advances against the Nazis.
These lies keep hope and humor alive among the ghetto
inhabitants-spirits are lifted, hearts are refreshed and hope is
reborn. The Germans learn of the mythical radio, however, and
begin a search for the resistance hero who dares operate it…
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Patch
Adams (1998)
Tom Shadyac's (ACE VENTURA) film
tells the true story of Hunter "Patch" Adams (Robin
Williams), an aspiring doctor in the 1970's who attempted to treat
his patients with a medicine that modern science had totally
disregarded: humor. After a stint in a mental hospital where he
discovers his need to help others, a young Patch enters medical
school. There he develops his own methods of reaching patients as
an antidote to the the pomposity he witnesses in his instructors
and fellow students. While his patients and fellow staff members
appreciate his approach, the powers-that-be frown upon his
"unschooled" methods and attempt to prevent him from
practicing. Philip Seymour Hoffman (MAGNOLIA) and Monica Potter
(ALONG CAME A SPIDER) co-star in this crowd pleaser based on a
book by Adams.
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What
Dreams May Come (1998)
Despite everything we have
experienced and all we have seen, nothing can prepare us for the
wonders of what lies beyond. Academy Award¨ Winner Robin Williams
is about to take you on an amazing journey...through heaven and
hell. To rediscover the meaning of life...and the wonders of love.
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Deconstructing
Harry (1997)
Upon returning in glory to the
college from which he was expelled, sexually voracious and
dyspeptic writer Harry Block can find no companions for his
trip--except, that is, for a hooker he's hired. The trouble with
Harry, as it were, is that he's alienated everyone in his life,
from a string of wives and psychotherapists to all his living
relatives, by rehashing their dirty little secrets in his fatuous,
mean-spirited writing. A new height of self-loathing for
introspective auteur Allen, who meditates upon a self-reflection
theme based on Bergman's WILD STRAWBERRIES.
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Good
Will Hunting (1997)
Matt Damon, who created the title
character and wrote the script with costar Ben Affleck, gives a
star-making performance as a working class genius with a chip on
his shoulder.
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Flubber
(1997)
Remake of "The Absent-Minded
Professor' finds Robin Williams concocting a physics-defying
substance that may save his failing college. Uneven but good
natured.
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Fathers'
Day (1997)
Jack Lawrence is a successful Los
Angeles attorney. He's got a good job, a lovely wife, a nice home,
a great car--aside from a limited amount of patience, Jack has
pretty much every thing he wants. Dale Putley has been on the
brink of despair for so long that he's starting to enjoy the view.
A would-be writer scraping out a threadbare existence in San
Francisco, Dale is a bundle of neuroses just waiting to unravel.
Dale needs something to worry about in his life besides himself.
Suddenly, before you can say romance from the past, Jack Lawrence
and Dale Putley, two complete strangers and polar opposites, are
sharing a car, pooling their wits, and rethinking everything about
themselves as they try to track down a teenage runaway that each
believes might be his son.
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Hamlet
(1996)
Shakespeare's tortured Dane,
brought to the screen in his royal entirety by the ambitious
Kenneth Branagh. Majestic, energetic and affectionately made, but
as strewn with knots as the play itself. Chalk up one star to
sheer chutzpah. With Kate Winslet, Derek Jacobi, Julie Christie,
Richard Briers, Nicholas Farrell, Michael Maloney, Billy Crystal,
Timothy Spall, Reece Dinsdale, Gerard Depardieu, Robin Williams,
Richard Attenborough, John Gielgud, Charlton Heston, Rosemary
Harris, Jack Lemmon. Screenplay and direction by Kenneth Branagh.
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The
Secret Agent (1996)
The life of an undercover Russian
agent, posing as a quiet shopkeeper in London in order to
infiltrate a ring of anarchists, is thrown into turmoil when his
employers order him to plant a bomb at the Greenwich Observatory.
Based on the novel by Joseph Conrad. Robin Williams is featured in
an uncredited role.
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Jack
(1996)
Jack Powell appears to be an
average, middle-aged forty year old man--who plays with G.I. Joe
and wears Power Ranger pajamas. But Jack is only 10-years-old. He
suffers from a genetic disorder that causes him to physically age
four times faster than a normal person. Fearing ridicule from the
outside world, Jack's parents have kept him secluded in their
home, which they have stocked with every toy a young boy could
want. Toys can't take the place of the real friends which Jack
craves. Now he's about to embark on the greatest adventure of his
unusual life--he's about to enter the fifth grade.
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The
Birdcage (1996)
Armand and Albert have a home life
many would envy. They share a long-term committed relationship
encompassing their lives and careers and have together raised
Armand's son Val. When Val announces his engagement to the
daughter of an ultra-conservative U.S. Senator, what choice is
there but to accept his decision with love? Meanwhile, Senator
Keeley and his wife are watching his right-wing constituency
evaporate with the scandalous demise of his closest political
ally. A visit to their future in-laws could be just the thing to
take the public's focus off the Keeley's messy predicament. With
the impending visit of his fiancee's rigid family, Val asks his
father to straighten up the apartment just a bit. All is entails
is the removal of Armand's art collection, furnishings, clothes,
job... and Albert.
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Jumanji
(1995)
A magical board game serves as a
door to another dimension in this adventure fantasy based on Chris
Van Allsburg's award-winning children's book. When a pair of
orphans discover the game and start playing it they unwittingly
unleash a man (Robin Williams) who's been trapped inside--as well
as an array of stampeding jungle animals, brought vividly to the
screen courtesy of ILM's computer-generated special effects.
Directed by Joe Johnston (THE ROCKETEER, JURASSIC PARK III.)
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To
Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar (1995)
Three New York drag queens on the
way to Hollywood for a beauty pageant have their car break down in
a small Midwestern town, stranding the flamboyant trio for the
weekend. Waiting for parts for their Cadillac convertible, the
"ladies" show the locals that appearing different
doesn't mean they don't have humanity in common.
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Nine
Months (1995)
Samuel Faulkner's (Hugh Grant)
fruitful, happy life completely falls apart when long-time
girlfriend Rebecca (Julianne Moore) suddenly announces she's
pregnant. The thought of fatherhood and responsibility terrifies
Samuel -- who just happens to be a child psychologist. Although he
does try hard get used to the idea, the months fly by without a
change in his attitude -- clearly, he still does not want a baby.
So Rebecca, fed-up with his infantile behavior, walks out on him.
Miserable at the loss of his girlfriend, Samuel begins to
reconsider his life, and eventually realizes that his existence
can only be complete if Rebecca -- and their child -- remain a
part of it. Now Samuel must find a way to convince Rebecca that
he's not only ready for fatherhood, but for marriage as well...
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Being
Human (1994)
In five different ages of western
human history (the Bronze age, the Roman Empire, medieval Europe,
the 16th century and the present day) a man searches for his lost
family.
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Mrs.
Doubtfire (1993)
When an irresponsible and
child-like dad is barred from seeing his kids he disguises himself
as a woman and applies for the job of housekeeper for his ex-wife.
The disguise of a sturdy matron works a beneficial change on him
as well -- but how long can he keep this up? Academy Awards: Best
Makeup.
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Toys
(1992)
Robin Williams stars in this
surreal antiwar fantasy directed by Barry Levinson (RAIN MAN,
DINER). Williams plays Leslie Zevo, the son of a fun-loving
toymaker. Leslie and his sister, Alsatia (Joan Cusack,) grew up
surrounded by their father’s whimsical creations in the
fantastic factory that he built. When their father dies, the
children find that he has left his beloved business in the hands
of his brother, a warmonger general (Michael Gambon), thinking
that despite his children’s love of the company, they don’t
have minds for business. Unable to disregard his military
sensibilities, the general embarks on his own secret project in an
effort to make toys that fulfill his confrontational nature,
developing video games for children that actually control live
weapons. Upon discovering their uncle’s diabolical plan, Leslie
and Alsatia set out to stop the general in his tracks and save
their father’s dream factory from manufacturing lethal weapons.
Levinson’s interesting social commentary also features rapper LL
Cool J as the general’s son, Patrick, a military man who
specializes in camouflage; and Robin Wright as Leslie’s love
interest.
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Aladdin
(1992)
Disney brings a whole new world
vividly to life once again in this musical story from the Arabian
Nights. Aladdin, an eager genie (with the voice of Robin Williams)
and a sultan's daughter take a magic carpet ride through a
fireworks display of incredible animation. Direct-to-video sequel:
"The Return of Jafar." Academy Award Nominations: 5,
including Best Song ("Friend Like Me"). Academy Awards:
Best Original Score, Best Song ("Whole New World").
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Shakes
the Clown (1992)
Dark comedy about an alcoholic
clown framed for murder.
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Hook
(1991)
Director Steven Spielberg brings
J.M. Barrie’s PETER PAN to the screen with a delightfully
modernized twist. Forty-year-old Peter (Robin Williams) has grown
up to be a workaholic lawyer with more affection for his cell
phone than his wife and two children. When the family travels to
England to visit Granny Wendy (Maggie Smith), Peter’s son and
daughter are kidnapped by the villainous Captain Hook (Dustin
Hoffman). Peter’s faithful pal, Tinkerbell (Julia Roberts),
helps him return to Neverland--"Second star to the right and
straight on ‘til morning"--to the world Peter has
forgotten. There the Lost Boys welcome Peter back and try to get
him in shape for his fight with Captain Hook. Peter must somehow
remember his long-forgotten boyhood in Neverland and learn how to
fly again before he can rescue his children away from the evil
clutches of Captain Hook. Bob Hoskins costars as Hook’s
right-hand man, Smee, and Gwyneth Paltrow, in her first film role,
plays the young Wendy. The film received an Academy Award
nomination for Best Song for John Williams’s "When You’re
Alone."
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The
Fisher King (1991)
Jack Lucas (Jeff Bridges), a
self-obsessed shock jock who thinks he has it all, is about to hit
rock bottom. The cult personality spends his time on the radio
insulting and berating his listeners, but when one caller takes
Jack's advice literally and shoots up a New York City hotspot,
Jack is sent swirling down into a depression that has him suicidal
three years later. However, he is rescued out of the night by a
different kind of knight in shining armor--a homeless man named
Parry, played fabulously by Robin Williams, who thinks he's on a
quest for the Holy Grail, which he believes to be in a Fifth
Avenue town house. Parry serves as the living embodiment of Jack's
guilt--Parry's beloved wife was killed in the nightclub massacre.
Jack soon becomes conviced that by helping Parry he will also wind
up helping himself, so he tries to help Parry win his lady love
(Amanda Plummer), at the expense of risking his own relationship
with Anne (Mercedes Ruehl, in an Academy Award-winning role), who
has stood by his side during his downward spiral.
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Dead
Again (1991)
In Kenneth Branagh's stylish
suspense film, Branagh stars as Mike Church, a Los Angeles
detective who is drawn into the life of Grace (Emma Thompson), a
woman with amnesia who is plagued by disturbing nightmares.
Attempts to help her regain her memory bring them to Franklyn
Madson (Derek Jacobi), a mysterious hypnotist who runs an antique
shop. Under hypnosis, Grace claims that in a previous life she was
Margaret Strauss, a concert pianist who was murdered by her
jealous husband, Roman. Further sessions lead her to believe that
Mike is actually Roman reincarnated and that the two are destined
to re-create the murder. Mike must then attempt to solve two
mysteries--the real identity of Grace and the true story behind a
40-year-old crime. Branagh's taut thriller also features Robin
Williams, Andy Garcia, and Campbell Scott.
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Awakenings
(1990)
Based on the true story of a
research physician who uses an experimental drug to
"awaken" the catatonic victims of a rare sleeping
sickness. The first patient to receive the drug (De Niro in an
astounding performance) is filled with awe and enthusiasm that
teaches the introverted doctor to value life's simple pleasures.
Academy Award Nominations: 3, including Best Picture, Best
Actor--Robert De Niro, Best (Adapted) Screenplay.
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Cadillac
Man (1990)
When one car salesman gets the
opportunity to redeem himself from all his sleazy sales pitches,
financial philandering, and relentless womanizing, he is forced to
confront all his demons in one very long afternoon.
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Jonathan
Winters on the Ledge (1989)
From "In Your Face," an
uproarious news spoof, to a luncheonette that specializes in some
very gamey sandwiches, Winters and his wild bunch wreak comedy
havoc in this wacky walk on the wild side.
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Dead
Poets Society (1989)
An unconventional New England prep
school teacher inspires his students with poetry and encourages
them to embrace life. Academy Award Nominations: 4, including Best
Picture, Best Actor--Robin Williams, Best (Original) Screenplay.
Academy Awards: Best Original Screenplay.
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The
Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1989)
In TIME BANDITS, director Terry
Gilliam told a fantastical story filled with heroes and villains
seen through the eyes of a small boy. In BRAZIL, Gilliam focused
on a fantasy world created by a young man trapped in a
totalitarian state. And now, with THE ADVENTURES OF BARON
MUNCHAUSEN, Gilliam tells the legend of an old man who has lived a
fairy-tale life. In the late 18th century, the Age of Reason has
no room for fantasy. In a town besieged by murderous enemies, a
traveling company is putting on a stage show about the apocryphal
Baron Munchausen, who, with his motley crew of servants,
supposedly circled the globe and the universe, following each
bizarre adventure with one even more strange and ludicrous. But
then a man appears at the theater claiming to be the real Baron,
and to prove it, he goes off on one final journey to save the
town, chased all along the way by the winged specter of death.
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Good
Morning, Vietnam (1987)
Set in 1965; Produced and released
in 1987.
In GOOD MORNING, VIETNAM, which is based on a true story, Cronauer
(Robin Williams) is a nonconformist with a wicked sense of humor
who is transferred from Crete to Saigon. Outrageous and over the
top, Cronauer speaks in accents, creates characters, pokes fun at
everyone--including the President--and spins banned rock and roll
tunes. While his antics amuse the masses, they also put him in hot
water with his superior officers, particularly Lt. Steven Hauk
(Bruno Kirby), who would prefer that the radio show be censored,
sanitized, and completely noncontroversial. Cronauer takes his
show outside the radio station when he starts to teach Vietnamese
locals English in an effort to meet pretty, demure Trinh (Chintara
Sukapatana). He befriends Trinh's brother, Tuan (Tung Thanh Tran),
who becomes an unlikely comrade in uncertain times. Directed by
Barry Levinson (DINER, AVALON), the film features a tour-de-force
performance from Williams, who improvised much of the comedy used
in the radio shows, earning an Academy Award nomination for Best
Actor.
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Robin
Williams Live (1986)
This video features Robin Williams
in his one-man comedy special filmed at the Metropolitan Opera
House. His topics center on babies, sex and politics using the
improvisation and mimickry that have made him so famous. This
marks the first time a comedian has ever performed at the Met.
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Seize
the Day (1986)
A salesman who has lost his
girlfriend, his job and much of his sanity struggles to begin anew
in New York. This is, to date, the only film based on a work by
acclaimed author Saul Bellow.
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Club
Paradise (1986)
Robin Williams stars in this
tropical comedy as Jack Moniker, a Chicago fireman who retires
after suffering injuries on the job. Escaping to the tropics, he
partners with a musician/nightclub owner Ernest (Jimmy Cliff) to
transform a dilapidated Caribbean watering hole into a swinging
singles hotspot. Following the wacky hijinks of the fellow
vacationers, this film is big on laughs as the locals and tourists
band together against the corrupt Prime Minister Soloman Grundy
(Adolph Caeser), who is desperately trying to close the club. The
film features a fabulous reggae soundtrack by costar Jimmy Cliff.
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The
Best of Times (1985)
In an attempt to see what his life
would be like if he hadn't fumbled the ball during a critical game
in high school, a former "could have been" athletic star
arranges to play on the team once more -- in a game against the
same rival.
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Moscow
on the Hudson (1984)
Vladimir Ivanoff (Robin Williams)
is a Russian saxophone player for the Moscow circus. Life in
Russia is difficult and unrewarding, but he silently accepts the
corruption of the Communist party and the constant threat of KGB
spies because he enjoys his job, has a steady girlfriend, and
loves his family. However, his friend Anatoly (Elya Baskin) dreams
of freedom in America and makes plans to defect when the circus
announces an American tour to New York. Their trip to the Big
Apple is thrilling, full of exciting revelations, and on their
last day in New York they are allowed 30 minutes to shop in
Bloomingdale's, surrounded by tempting American merchandise. While
Anatoly loses his nerve, Vladimir is awakened with the desire to
defect and manages to outrun the KGB. Suddenly Vladimir is a free
man with no family or friends and no chance of ever returning to
his homeland. With the help of a Bloomingdale's security guard (Cleavant
Derricks) and a pretty Italian makeup counter saleswoman (Maria
Conchita Alonso), Vladimir finds a place to stay and a wide
variety of odd jobs to start out his new life in the United
States. As Vladimir struggles to make it in America, he longs for
his family and his homeland, wrestling with the magnitude of his
choice. Williams gives an honest and heartfelt performance in this
touching and witty comedy by Paul Mazursky.
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The
Survivors (1983)
Michael Ritchie’s comedy
concerns an unlikely friendship that forms between two
down-on-their-luck men who have just recently lost their jobs.
Donald Quinelle (Robin Williams) was fired by his boss’s parrot
because his boss couldn’t bear to confront Donald with the
terrible news. Meanwhile, Sonny Paluso (Walter Matthau) lost his
gas station to an explosion. Drowning their sorrows in a bar one
day, a criminal tries to rob the establishment. Surprising even
themselves, Donald and Sonny become local celebrities when they
identify the perpetrator. Unfortunately, this robber, Jack (Jerry
Reed), also happens to be a hit man, and when Jack sees their
faces on television, his uncontrollable anger triggers him into
tracking them down and making them pay for ruining his bid at
scoring some quick cash. While he searches for the inept duo,
Donald has an awakening in which he moves to the mountains and
learns to survive out in the wild. Jack’s pursuit of Donald and
Sonny unleashes a series of comical escapades that provide THE
SURVIVORS with its biggest laughs. Not as personal a work as his
1970s comedies, Ritchie’s film is nonetheless an entertaining
ride because of the energetic performances of Williams and Matthau.
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An
Evening With Robin Williams (1982)
Robin Williams performs live and
uncensored at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco. His
zany, off-the-wall humor never lets down as he performs a series
of improvisations, one-liners, and routines.
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The
World According to Garp (1982)
George Roy Hill's intermittently
faithful adaptation of John Irving's best-selling novel lightens
the tone of the book's black comedy while retaining at least part
of its effect. It stars Robin Williams as T.S. Garp--the
fatherless son of well-known eccentric feminist activist Jenny
Fields (Glenn Close) who spends much of his life trying to escape
the influence of his unusual upbringing and the ever-expanding
shadow of his mother's fame. Intent on becoming a writer, living a
normal life, and raising a family, Garp marries college sweetheart
Helen Holm (Mary Beth Hurt) and starts a family, but he is plagued
by the feeling he must wage war against all that is violent in the
world that can possibly bring harm to them. When he finally
publishes his first book, his mother simultaneously publishes a
feminist manifesto that makes her a lightning rod for all manner
of victimized women. Among her followers is the transsexual
ex-football player Roberta Muldoon (John Lithgow), a model of
sanity, who becomes a friend of Garp's and leads him toward a
reconciliation with his mother and her cause. The briskly paced
film captures much of the spirit of Irving's quirky, neopicaresque
novel and is well served by its stellar cast, with exceptional
work by Close and Lithgow.
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Can I
Do It...Til I Need Glasses (1980)
A "naughty" comedy
filled with a wild and spicy cast who just can't seem to get
enough sex. Cameo by Williams at the end of the film.
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Popeye
(1980)
The classic comic strip and
cartoon hero comes to life in Robert Altman's film adaptation of
the adventures of the spinach-munching sailor. After he's thrown
from his ship during a storm, Popeye (Robin Williams) finds refuge
in a quaint seaside town. There he rents a room from the Oyls and
meets their daughter Olive (the perfectly cast Shelley Duvall).
Olive is engaged to Captain Bluto (Paul Smith), a bully and
ruffian who is in charge of collecting taxes for the mysterious
Commandant. Popeye, who was orphaned at an early age, is in the
midst of a desperate search for his missing father, but what he
doesn't realize is that the shipwreck has brought him unexpectedly
close to his final destination. In bringing his own distinct
vision to E. C. Segar’s legendary hero, Altman creates an
atmosphere that is breezy, loose, and filled with slapstick
shenanigans. Williams portrays Popeye with a physically comic
flair that is both honest and energetic--as do the rest of the
cast members, including frequent Altman contributors Duvall, Paul
Dooley, and David Arkin. Harry Nilsson’s songs add to the
lighthearted affair, making POPEYE an enjoyable family viewing
experience all around.
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