There are a ton of plot holes in this amusing comedy that is extremely watchable in spite of all that. It is obvious that JoBeth Williams is having a ton of fun and she shares it with the audience, having up until then played either generic mother roles ("Poltergeist") or supporting roles (a scene stealing bit in "Kramer Vs. Kramer"), and this is by far her greatest part, one that should have gotten her at least a Golden Globe nomination.
She plays your ordinary frazzled housewife who lives her fantasy life wanting to be a writer of romantic adventures in spite of catering to the whims of her husband and two sons. She quickly establishes her comic talent in a very funny slapstick scene where every little kitchen gadget or piece of food becomes a prop in a wonderful pratfall. I had to rewind to watch that scene several times over and over.
But that is not how she ends up with amnesia. By chance, she wins a trip to France as part of a book writing contest and is hit by Giancarlo Gianinni's car, waking up to think that she is her favorite fictional romantic heroine, Rebecca Ryan. Through the generosity of Gianinni (or perhaps his fear of being sued), she ends up with a fabulous wardrobe and thinks that she lives in the opulent townhouse of the handsome Tom Conti who can't convince her otherwise.
This leads Williams and Conti on a series of wild adventures where she gets to live out her fantasy, attempting to prevent an assassination and ending up on a train which is identical to her dream from the opening scene. The fabulous Coral Browne as Conti's mother plays a variation of her Vera Charles role from "Auntie Mame" and is absolutely delightful.
James Staley, a character actor from many TV shows (instantly recognizable to me as a college dean on "Golden Girls) is delightfully square as her dull husband. So if you can get past the implausabilities of the story, you will truly enjoy it, and praise the comic timing of Williams who takes the comic abilities of Myrna Loy, Katharine Hepburn and Carole Lombard and roles them all into one.
She plays your ordinary frazzled housewife who lives her fantasy life wanting to be a writer of romantic adventures in spite of catering to the whims of her husband and two sons. She quickly establishes her comic talent in a very funny slapstick scene where every little kitchen gadget or piece of food becomes a prop in a wonderful pratfall. I had to rewind to watch that scene several times over and over.
But that is not how she ends up with amnesia. By chance, she wins a trip to France as part of a book writing contest and is hit by Giancarlo Gianinni's car, waking up to think that she is her favorite fictional romantic heroine, Rebecca Ryan. Through the generosity of Gianinni (or perhaps his fear of being sued), she ends up with a fabulous wardrobe and thinks that she lives in the opulent townhouse of the handsome Tom Conti who can't convince her otherwise.
This leads Williams and Conti on a series of wild adventures where she gets to live out her fantasy, attempting to prevent an assassination and ending up on a train which is identical to her dream from the opening scene. The fabulous Coral Browne as Conti's mother plays a variation of her Vera Charles role from "Auntie Mame" and is absolutely delightful.
James Staley, a character actor from many TV shows (instantly recognizable to me as a college dean on "Golden Girls) is delightfully square as her dull husband. So if you can get past the implausabilities of the story, you will truly enjoy it, and praise the comic timing of Williams who takes the comic abilities of Myrna Loy, Katharine Hepburn and Carole Lombard and roles them all into one.