At first, writer-director Richardson seems an odd choice here until one sees the jokey approach in action, redolent of his much earlier TOM JONES (1963); incidentally, despite being an American film, he brought along top exponents of the "British New Wave" such as cinematographer David Watkin and production/costume designer Jocelyn Herbert. Based on a celebrated satirical novel by John Irving (author of THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP [1982] which I guess I should get to now), it garnered mixed reactions but I found it quite engaging apart from the occasional heavy-handedness; that said, having read the source material for myself, I have to say that the film falls short of extracting its full potential. There is no real plot to speak of, but a plethora of oddball characters not just the central family (among them Beau Bridges, Jodie Foster and Rob Lowe
not to mention their compulsively farting dog[!]) but also Wallace Shawn as a cycle-riding Dr. Freud with a bear companion, Nastassja Kinski as the latter's 'replacement' after it is killed(!) and Amanda Plummer as a gawky teen dubbed "Miss Carriage". The film touches on some potentially controversial subjects such as incest (Lowe is obsessed with Foster), homosexuality (of both sexes) and rape (Foster falls foul of Lowe's football buddies, led by a young Matthew Modine who actually plays two roles!). The acting is uniformly good, with Foster and Kinski (despite a limited role) coming off best. Reportedly, the rock band Queen was supposed to contribute to the soundtrack - with the song 'Keep Passing The Open Windows' (a much-repeated phrase in the film) eventually finding its way onto their album "The Works" from the same year.
Review of The Hotel New Hampshire
