The In-Laws (1979)

For a picture I'd barely heard of, this was apparently pretty influential. It got a remake, it inspired Marlon Brando to work with writer Andrew Bergman, it appeared among Premiere's 50 favorite comedies, and someone on a forum I attend linked to a clip of the "serpentine" scene. That scene alone didn't make me want to watch, but there was enough popularity to give it a try.

Oddly enough, the main characters, who are not in-laws until the end, become a type you can't easily designate with one hyphenated term: fathers of the spouses. The bride's dad, Sheldon (Alan Arkin), is a New York dentist. The groom's dad, Vince (Peter Falk), does secretive work that requires frequent travel. They've barely met before Vince desperately requests Sheldon's naive help in picking up a hidden package. Soon the truth emerges: Vince works for the CIA, but what he's doing right now isn't exactly government sanctioned. Or safe even for an unwitting aid.

Specifically, Vince believes that General Garcia (Richard Libertini), dictator of the fictitious Central American isle of Tijata, has a scheme to steal engraving plates for foreign currency and print enough money to inflate it to catastrophic levels. Vince's plan, which the CIA considers too chancy, has been to arrange the armed robbery of an armored car, taking only the plates, and deliver them to Garcia himself to set a trap. Sheldon ends up with little choice but to come along, none too happy about it. Missing the wedding is the least of their worries when bullets are flying.

I have to say, Vince rather sucks at his job. He got the idea for the Bay of Pigs Invasion and still takes pride in it. The story he tells at his first dinner with the bride's family is transparent hogwash, tho only Sheldon seems to notice. He talks about sensitive secrets at full volume in public, and yes, strangers stare. In general, he's way too nonchalant about breaking laws and getting himself and others in danger. I can see why the actor of casual Lt. Columbo got the part.

Obviously, Sheldon is supposed to be more of an everyman, but I could relate to him only so much. Sometimes he's a lot more tolerant than I'd be; at other times, he's a lot less cool-headed than I picture myself being. This can involve a marked lack of common sense or instinct for self-preservation, possibly from shell shock, as when he ignores repeated admonitions to stay low during a shootout.

That's one of the trademarks of farce, I guess. Another is contrivance. For example, enemies have pathetic aim except when it suits the plot. Only bad guys ever die, and never at the hands of Vince, let alone Sheldon. The heroes survive on luck far more than skill.

This points to the perils of mixing screwball comedy with any halfway-serious genre. It's hard to appreciate the action when there's so little sense of credible risk or awesomeness. At the same time, the zaniness is somewhat tempered by the many moments played straight. But unlike many action comedies, it starts out almost humorless and focuses more on humor as it approaches the climax.

From what I read, the actors came up with a lot of details in improvisation or suggestions to the director, which helps explain why some viewers laugh a lot. Me, I suspect the film worked better back when it was new. Toward the end of the 103 minutes, I started thinking, "Is that really it?" I must be too accustomed to more modern over-the-top quality.

I might recommend TIL to people who were around in '79 and kinda miss it. Younger folks may do better to simply wait and then educate themselves on the aspects that come up in conversation, if that ever happens.