''I'm Not Rappaport'' is a 1996 American buddy

dramedy Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

film written and directed by

Herb Gardner Herbert George Gardner (December 28, 1934 – September 25, 2003), was an American commercial artist, cartoonist, playwright and screenwriter. Early life Born in Brooklyn, New York, Gardner was the son of a bar owner. His late brother, Robert ...

and starring

Walter Matthau Walter Matthau (; born Walter John Matthow; October 1, 1920 – July 1, 2000) was an American actor, comedian and film director. He is best known for his film roles in '' A Face in the Crowd'' (1957), '' King Creole'' (1958) and as a coach of a ...

and

Ossie Davis Raiford Chatman "Ossie" Davis (December 18, 1917 – February 4, 2005) was an American actor, director, writer, and activist. He was married to Ruby Dee, with whom he frequently performed, until his death. He and his wife were named to the NAACP ...

. Based on Gardner's play of the same name, the film focuses on Nat Moyer, a cantankerous

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...

, and Midge Carter, an

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

man, who spend their days sitting on a bench, trying to mask the realities of aging, mainly through the tall tales that Nat spins. The film touches on several issues, including society's treatment of the aged, the difficulties dealing with adult children who think they know what's best for their parents, and the dangers that lurk in urban areas. Its title comes from an old

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

joke, a variation of which evolved into dialogue between the two

protagonists A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

Plot

In the park every morning, elderly, half-blind Midge Carter tries to read his newspaper, but is distracted daily by Nat Moyer, an opinionated old man who reminisces about long-ago union,

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...

activities and the love of his life. Midge is superintendent of a residential building and has been trying to steer clear of a tenant, Pete Danforth, whose committee is pushing for Midge's retirement. Nat insists that Midge stand up for his rights, going so far as to pass himself off as Midge's attorney. Nat's married daughter, Clara, is concerned about his welfare, particularly given how vulnerable a senior citizen can be in the park. She has good reason to worry because Nat encounters the Cowboy, a drug dealer who is owed money by a young woman named Laurie, and by J.C., a mugger who turns violent when Nat unwisely decides to fight back.

Cast

as Nat Moyer *

as Midge Carter *

Amy Irving Amy Davis Irving (born September 10, 1953) is an American actress and singer, who worked in film, stage, and television. Her accolades include an Obie Award, and nominations for two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award. Born in Palo Alto, Ca ...

as Clara Gelber * Craig T. Nelson as the Cowboy *

Martha Plimpton Martha Plimpton (born November 16, 1970) is an American actress. Her feature-film debut was in ''Rollover'' (1981); she subsequently rose to prominence in the Richard Donner film '' The Goonies'' (1985). She has also appeared in '' The Mosquito ...

as Laurie Campbell *

Boyd Gaines Boyd Payne Gaines (born May 11, 1953) is an American actor. During his career, he has won four Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards. Gaines is best known for playing Mark Royer on '' One Day at a Time'' (1981-1984). Early life and education ...

as Pete Danforth *

Ron Rifkin Ron Rifkin (born Saul M. Rifkin; October 31, 1939) is an American actor best known for his roles as Arvin Sloane on the spy drama ''Alias'', Saul Holden on the drama '' Brothers & Sisters'', and District Attorney Ellis Loew in ''L.A. Confidenti ...

as Feigenbaum * Guillermo Diaz as J.C.

Reception

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

, who gave the film 2 and a half stars out of 4, felt that the film diverged too far from the play, writing that "if they'd stayed on the bench and just talked--talked for two solid hours--it might have been more successful. Instead, writer-director Herb Gardner loses faith in his original impulse and adds plot--way too much plot--to force the movie into more conventional channels." ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' critic Andy Seiler wrote that "director Herb Gardner is a little too fond of writer Herb Gardner's script, which just keeps going and going and going -- until even two old pros such as Walter and Ossie have worn out their welcome." The film has a 38% score on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

References

External links

* * {{Rotten Tomatoes , im_not_rappaport, I'm Not Rappaport 1996 films American films based on plays Films about old age American buddy comedy-drama films Films set in New York City 1990s English-language films 1990s buddy comedy-drama films Gramercy Pictures films 1996 comedy films 1996 drama films 1990s American films Films about disability