Stuart Saves His Family

Stuart Saves His Family

Theatrical Release Poster
Directed by Harold Ramis
Produced by
Written by Al Franken
Starring
Music by Marc Shaiman
Edited by
Production
company
Constellation Films
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
Release dates
  • April 12, 1995 (1995-04-12) (U.S.)
Running time
 99 minutes
Language English
Budget $6.3 million
Box office $912,082[1]

Stuart Saves His Family is a 1995 comedy film directed by Harold Ramis, and based on a series of Saturday Night Live sketches from the early to mid-1990s. The movie tracks the adventures of would-be self-help guru Stuart Smalley, a creation of comedian Al Franken, as he attempts to save both his deeply troubled family and his low-rated public-access television show. Some of the plot is inspired by Franken's book, I'm Good Enough, I'm Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me!: Daily Affirmations By Stuart Smalley.

The film was produced by Lorne Michaels. Co-stars include Laura San Giacomo, Vincent D'Onofrio, Shirley Knight, Lesley Boone and Harris Yulin. Julia Sweeney, Joe Flaherty, Robin Duke, Richard Riehle, future WWE ring announcer Justin Roberts and Kurt Fuller have cameo roles.

Plot

Stuart Smalley (Al Franken), the disciple of the 12-step program, is challenged by life's injustices. He loses his public-access cable television show, must beg his manipulative overbearing boss for his job back, rehabilitate his alcoholic father and drug abuser brother (Vincent D'Onofrio), and support his overweight mother (Shirley Knight) and sister (Lesley Boone) in their lack of ability in handling their relationships with their husbands. Stuart is supported by his 12 step sponsors as he regresses to his negative behaviors each time he faces these challenges.

Cast

Production

Al Franken created and played the character Stuart Smalley in Saturday Night Live sketches; in 1992 Franken wrote a book, in character as Stuart, titled I'm Good Enough, I'm Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me!: Daily Affirmations By Stuart Smalley.[2] After reading the book, Harold Ramis approached Franken about developing it into a movie. According to Franken, Ramis was largely responsible for making the movie happen.[3]

Reception

The film was a failure at the box office, earning only $912,082.[1] This followed the box-office failures of other SNL-adaptations. It also received many negative reviews, including those from Variety, The New York Times, and the Los Angeles Times.[4] On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film scores 30% with an average rating of 4.7/10 of 27 reviews counted.[5]

Shortly after the movie left the theaters, Saturday Night Live featured a "Daily Affirmations with Stuart Smalley" sketch that parodied the poor box office returns.[6] Stuart was depressed and bitter throughout the entire segment and lambasted the audience for choosing other movies (such as Dumb and Dumber and Bad Boys) over his.

The film was not universally panned. Siskel & Ebert each gave the film a "thumbs up" rating, with Siskel calling it "smart and hip" and Ebert saying that "it has more courage than a lot of serious films."[7] The film also received good reviews from The Washington Post, Deseret News, and the Chicago Reader.[4]

Franken mentioned his depression following the film's failure in his 2003 book, Oh, the Things I Know! A Guide to Success, or Failing That, Happiness. In a 1999 appearance on the Howard Stern show, Franken stated that he was "very proud" of the movie.

Home video

Stuart Saves His Family was released on VHS in October 1995;[8] it was released on DVD on April 17, 2001.[5] In 2007, the film was packaged with two other Lorne Michaels productions, Wayne's World and Coneheads, to be sold as a "triple feature".[9] In 2013, Warner Bros. acquired the management of Paramount's DVD library, and added Stuart Saves his Family to their Warner Archive Collection.

References

  1. 1 2 "Stuart Saves His Family". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2015-09-09.
  2. ↑ Franken, Al (1992). I'm Good Enough, I'm Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me!: Daily Affirmations by Stuart Smalley. Dell. ISBN 978-0-440-50470-2.
  3. ↑ Snider, Eric D. (April 17, 2015). "20 Years Later, the Famous S.N.L. Flop Stuart Saves His Family Deserves Its Second Chance". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2015-09-09.
  4. 1 2 "Stuart Saves His Family Reviews". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2015-09-09.
  5. 1 2 "Stuart Saves His Family". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2015-09-09.
  6. ↑ "Daily Affirmation: Stuart Saves His Family". Saturday Night Live. Season 20. Episode 19. May 6, 1995. NBC. Retrieved 2015-09-09.
  7. ↑ "Stuart Saves His Family / Kiss of Death / The Basketball Diaries (1995)". At the Movies. Season 9. Episode 27. August 22, 1995. 7:15 minutes in. Retrieved 2015-09-09.
  8. ↑ "Stuart Saves His Family". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2015-09-09.
  9. ↑ "Wayne's World / Coneheads / Stuart Saves His Family (Triple Feature): Artist Not Provided: Movies & TV: Reviews, Prices & more". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2010-11-03.
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