''Modern Romance'' is a 1981 American

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

romance film Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typica ...

directed by and starring

Albert Brooks Albert Brooks (born Albert Lawrence Einstein ; July 22, 1947) is an American actor and filmmaker. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for 1987's '' Broadcast News'' and was widely praised for his performance as a ...

, who also co-wrote the script with Monica Mcgowan Johnson. It co-stars

Kathryn Harrold Kathryn Harrold (born August 2, 1950) is an American counselor and retired actress, best known for her leading roles in films '' The Hunter'' (1980), '' Modern Romance'' (1981), '' The Pursuit of D. B. Cooper'' (1981), '' Yes, Giorgio'' (1982), ...

and

Bruno Kirby Bruno Kirby (born Bruno Giovanni Quidaciolu Jr.; April 28, 1949 – August 14, 2006) was an American actor. He was known for his roles in ''City Slickers'', '' When Harry Met Sally...'', '' Good Morning, Vietnam'', ''The Godfather Part II'', and ...

Plot

Robert Cole (

) is a Hollywood film editor right in the middle of cutting a new

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

featuring

George Kennedy George Harris Kennedy Jr. (February 18, 1925 – February 28, 2016) was an American actor who appeared in more than 100 film and television productions. He played "Dragline" opposite Paul Newman in ''Cool Hand Luke'' (1967), winning the Academ ...

. His relationship with very patient bank executive Mary Harvard (

) is caught between undying devotion and endless agony. It's all because selfish Robert is a bit of a self-involved neurotic who can't quite decide if their relationship is meant to be, mainly because he's not sure if she's the one or there's someone else. Robert breaks off their relationship only to find that modern romance isn't as easy as it seems, and the people you love might be the ones you constantly hurt the most. He and Mary end up driving to a cabin in Idyllwild, California, where intense jealousy causes Robert to alternately accuse and annoy Mary and propose marriage to her.

Cast

as Robert Cole *

as Mary Harvard *

as Jay *

James L. Brooks James Lawrence Brooks (born May 9, 1940) is an American director, producer, screenwriter and co-founder of Gracie Films. His television and film work includes ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'', ''Taxi'', ''The Simpsons'', '' Broadcast News'', ''As G ...

as David *

as Himself; Zoron * Albert Henderson as Head Mixer

Production

co-stars as Jay, Robert's co-worker and confidant, and Brooks' brother

Bob Einstein Stewart Robert Einstein (November 20, 1942 – January 2, 2019) was an American actor, comedy writer, and producer. He created and performed the satirical stuntman character Super Dave Osborne, and was also known for his roles as Marty Funkh ...

, best known as hapless daredevil

Super Dave Osborne Super Dave Osborne is a character created and played by comedian Bob Einstein. Einstein's comedic depiction was of a naïve but optimistic stuntman who was frequently comically injured when his stunts went spectacularly wrong. Character sketch Su ...

, plays a pushy salesman at a sporting goods store. A third brother, Cliff, has a cameo in the scenes set in the recording studio. He plays the music mixer, the bald man sitting to the left of the head mixer, who gets up and goes to his car during the break. David, the director of the film that Robert is editing, is played by real-life film director

– no relation to Albert. He would later return the favor by casting Albert in his

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-nominated role of Aaron Altman in '' Broadcast News''. According to Albert Brooks,

Stanley Kubrick Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, his films, almost all of which are adaptations of nove ...

was a big fan of the film. He tells the story that Kubrick called him after viewing the film and asked, "How did you make this movie? I've always wanted to make a movie about jealousy."

Reception

The film holds an 82% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 22 reviews. The site's critical consensus states: "''Modern Romance'' contains all the hallmarks of Albert Brooks' best work: darkly funny, confrontational, and chock full of pithy observations about human behavior."

References

External links

* * * {{Albert Brooks 1981 films 1981 comedy films American comedy films Films about filmmaking Films directed by Albert Brooks Films set in California Films with screenplays by Albert Brooks Films with screenplays by Monica Johnson Columbia Pictures films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films