Cracking Up

Director: Jerry Lewis, Arnold Orgolini, Peter Nelson Jerry Lewis

Overview

Jerry Lewis reprises his previous movie persona, this time as Warren Nefron, a man unable to successfully kill himself, while Herb Edelman is Dr. Jonas Pletchick, the psychiatrist out to cure him of his failure, in this undistinguished slapstick comedy. Many of Lewis' past routines crop up again through the device of flashbacks, as he sits in the doctor's office and remembers vignettes from his past. As usual, the French love his humor and flocked to see this film when it was first released.

Product Details

Release Date:	05/18/2010
UPC:	0883316248751
Original Release:	1983
Rating:	PG
Source:	Warner Archives
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:30:00
Sales rank:	26,874

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Jerry Lewis	Warren Nefron
Milton Berle	Ms. Sultry
Herb Edelman	Dr. Jonas Pletchick
Foster Brooks	The Pilot
Zane Buzby	Waitress
Dick Butkus	Anti-Smoking Enforcer
Francine York	Marie Du Bois
Donna Ponterotto	Stewardess
Buddy Lester	Passenger
Tori Lysdahl	Warren's Date
Meg Wyllie	Anti-Smoking Enforcer
Sammy Davis Jr.	Mr. Billings
Jodean Lawrence	Actor
Sammy Davis	Actor
Morton Stevens	Composer

Technical Credits

Jerry Lewis

Peter Bergman

Bill Richmond

Phil Proctor

Jerry Lewis	Director,Screenwriter
Arnold H. Orgolini	Producer,Director
Peter Bergman	Screenwriter
Peter Nelson	Producer
Bill Richmond	Screenwriter
Phil Proctor	Screenwriter
Peter Nelson	Director

Editorial Reviews

Jerry Lewis's last feature film to date as director is totally informed by his style and comedic obsessions. Unfortunately, Cracking Up is one of his lesser works despite its distinctive approach. The script arranges a variety of setpieces around the thinnest thread of a plot and, as a result, it lives and dies by the quality of these setpieces. Sadly, the results are hit-and-miss: the titles sequence, involving Lewis doing battle with an over-waxed floor, is quite funny but extended gags involving a cheap commuter airline and a swami demanding surgery without anesthesia drag on interminably and offer few laughs in the bargain. Lewis schticks it up as the star, bringing plenty of energy to the goofiest of comedic premises, but his work as director is surprisingly flat: there's none of the visual inventiveness or formal daring that defined earlier classics like The Errand Boy or The Nutty Professor. Thus, Cracking Up is best left to the diehard Lewis fans -- and even they are likely to find it rough going.

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