Arthur (1981)

(New York City; contemporary)
IMDb

Dudley Moore is a master at playing the comic drunk, this has been remarked upon before, and is on ample display in the 1981 feature Arthur. At the time Mr. Moore made the film his career was at its height, he was coming off of the success of 10, and with this feature seemed bound to be a reliable staple as a comic leading man for some time to come. However this was not be the case, his remake of Sturge's Unfaithfully Yours was a flop, the sequel to Arthur was critically panned, and before dying in near poverty in 2002, he did a short lived sitcom for TGIF (though I loved him as an elf in Santa Clause the Movie). I also understand he was quite cruel to his son. However you can still enjoy Arthur, because its a simple and well made comedy that serves booth broad one-liners, and subtler delights.

Among the subtler delights is the performance of John Gielgud, Arthur's valet and surrogate father figure. He is a cynical butler who can deliver a put-down with a cheery formality that brings a smile to my face. I even liked Liza Minnelli, who before she became a kind of trashy joke, had that endearing quality that so marked her mother. There's some other good supporting work here in, including a brief appearance by Lou Jacobi as a florist. This movies been getting some air time on TVLAND as of late, so if you have some time, say on a lazy Saturday afternoon, you might want to check it out.