Flick Pick: Bowfinger

Bowfinger
(Universal, 1999)

After Bill Cosby and Richard Pryor, and before Robin Williams and a thousand lesser lights, there was one guy who had the comedy world by the tail all by himself: Steve Martin. When he isn't getting Grammys for banjo albums, he's also written a few screenplays, all generally funny, and of which two prove that he's not only funny, he gets Hollywood. Those two are L.A. Story (not in this list) and Bowfinger. Which also gives you Franz Oz (yes, Fozzie Bear) directing to perfection, with a split-personality bonus of Eddie Murphy excellent in both roles. If you want an inside-baseball view of the movie industry, Bowfinger will give you far more truth about the biz than fiction. If you want to see two world-class comedians deliver the comedy goods in ways most of the last 20 years of wannabe comedians only wish they could, Bowfinger has that covered too. And if you want to see a movie made for $2184 ("all pictures really cost $2184) that's worth your hour and a half, this is a great way to do it.