''No Small Affair'' is a 1984 American

comedy-drama film Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, illness, betrayal, grief, etc. ...

directed by

Jerry Schatzberg Jerry Schatzberg (born June 26, 1927) is an American photographer and film director. After establishing himself as a successful celebrity photographer, he transitioned to making feature films. He is best known for his films ''The Panic in Needle ...

and starring

Jon Cryer Jonathan Niven Cryer (born April 16, 1965) is an American actor. Born into a show business family, he made his film debut with a lead role in ''No Small Affair'' (1984); his breakout role was as Duckie in the John Hughes (filmmaker), John Hughe ...

and

Demi Moore Demi Gene Moore ( ; née Guynes; born November 11, 1962) is an American actress. After rising to prominence in the early 1980s, she became the world's highest-paid actress by 1995. List of awards and nominations received by Demi Moore, Her acc ...

. Cryer,

Jennifer Tilly Jennifer Tilly (born Jennifer Ellen Chan; September 16, 1958) is an American-Canadian actress and professional poker player. Known for her distinctive breathy voice and comedic timing, she is the recipient of a Saturn Award, and a GLAAD Award, ...

Tim Robbins Timothy Francis Robbins (born October 16, 1958) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Andy Dufresne in the film '' The Shawshank Redemption ''(1994), and Jacob Singer in '' Jacob's Ladder'' (1990), as well as winning an Academy ...

and

Tate Donovan Tate Buckley Donovan (born September 25, 1963) is an American actor, comedian and television director. He is known for portraying Tom Shayes in ''Damages'', Jimmy Cooper in '' The O.C.'', and the voice of the title character in the 1997 Disne ...

make their film debuts.

Plot

The 16-year-old amateur photographer Charles (

) accidentally takes a photo of Laura (

) while shooting at a pier and falls in love with her when he develops the photo. He loiters around the area, looking for her, even checks with local police with no luck. When his big brother Leonard comes to town with his fiancée, they sneak Charles into a bar where Laura is singing. The bouncer tries to drag him out, then the cops finish the job, but our hero hardly cares, as he has learned the name of his beloved. When the lead guitarist of Laura's band quits, her job is imperiled. Although rejected at first by the 22-year-old, Charles offers to photograph her. That night, he convinces his brother and friends to move the stag night to her bar. Even though Charles had increased the numbers that night, Laura's band was still cut, so she let him do a shoot. Afterwards, they dress up to sneak into a wedding reception. Caught by the father of the bride, Charles convinces him to let Laura literally sing for their supper. Using the publicity photos he took, and all of his savings, Charles attempts to boost her performing career by starting an ad campaign without her knowing on the city's taxis — with unexpected results. Added to the taxi ads was a short article that goes national, explaining the ad and their story. Laura has a huge gig, and a major record label picks her up. Before she moves to L.A., Charles stops by her place, spends the night and loses his virginity.

Cast

Production

''No Small Affair'' originally went into production in 1981, under director

Martin Ritt Martin Ritt (March 2, 1914 – December 8, 1990) was an American director, producer, and actor, active in film, theatre and television. He was known mainly as an auteur of socially-conscious dramas and literary adaptations, described by Stanley K ...

, and planned to star

Matthew Broderick Matthew Broderick (born March 21, 1962) is an American actor. He starred in ''WarGames'' (1983) as a teen government hacker, and ''Ladyhawke (film), Ladyhawke'' (1985), a medieval fantasy alongside Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfeiffer. He play ...

and

Sally Field Sally Margaret Field (born November 6, 1946) is an American actress. She has performed in movies, Broadway theater, television, and made records of popular music. Known for her extensive work on screen and stage, she has received many accola ...

in the lead roles. Production was shut down two weeks in as Ritt suffered health problems.

Mark Rydell Mark Rydell (born Mortimer H. Rydell; March 23, 1929) is an American film director, producer and actor. He has directed several Academy Awards, Academy Award-nominated films including ''The Fox (1967 film), The Fox'' (1967), ''The Reivers (film) ...

was considered as a possible replacement for Ritt, but the production was scrapped. Producer William Sackheim remained committed to the project and screenwriters Michael Leeson and Terence Mulcahy were brought on to do rewrites (with Mulcahy getting credit on the screenplay with Craig Bolotin). In 1984, the film was restarted with director

and the lead roles were re-cast with

and

Ellen Barkin Ellen Rona Barkin (born April 16, 1954) is an American actress. Her breakthrough role was in the 1982 film ''Diner'', and in the following years, she had starring roles in films such as '' Tender Mercies'' (1983), '' Eddie and the Cruisers'' (1 ...

. After a rehearsal, Barkin was replaced by

Box office

''No Small Affair'' grossed a little over $4.9 million against an $8.5 million budget, which made the film a box office failure.

Critical reception

''No Small Affair'' received a mixed critical response. The film holds a 57% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on seven reviews. ''

The Christian Science Monitor ''The Christian Science Monitor'' (''CSM''), commonly known as ''The Monitor'', is a nonprofit news organization that publishes daily articles both in Electronic publishing, electronic format and a weekly print edition. It was founded in 1908 ...

''s David Sterritt wrote "Jerry Schatzberg . . . who worked with still pictures before moving to cinema . . . cares more about capturing the visual charms of San Francisco than smoothly unfolding the happy-sad story. The result is friendly but bland".

References

External links

* * * * * {{Jerry Schatzberg 1984 films 1984 comedy-drama films 1980s English-language films Films set in San Francisco Films shot in San Francisco American comedy-drama films Films directed by Jerry Schatzberg Columbia Pictures films Films about photographers 1980s American films English-language comedy-drama films