Artists and Models
Painter Rick Todd is having difficulty with his career, so he starts taking inspiration from the dreams of his friend and roommate, Eugene, a comic book fan who narrates an adventure story while he sleeps. Unbeknown to Eugene, Abigail Parker, the artist for his favorite comic book, lives in the same building with her roommate, Bessie, the model for Abigail's drawings.
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- Cast:
- Dean Martin , Jerry Lewis , Shirley MacLaine , Dorothy Malone , Eddie Mayehoff , Eva Gabor , Anita Ekberg
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Reviews
Must See Movie...
Watch something else. There are very few redeeming qualities to this film.
This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.
It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...
The color photography is very attractive and the movie has a great support cast, but the picture has been running half an hour before Shirley MacLaine and Dorothy Malone come on. Malone has the lion's share of the action, although MacLaine has a dance number plus half of one of Dean Martin's more attractive songs. Martin also has a children's dance. Eddie Mayehoff storms around hammily but unfunnily. About three quarters of the way through, a plot suddenly starts to develop and Eva Gabor enters. Anita Ekberg has only one very, very small insignificant scene. Kath Freeman delivers some of the films very limited genuine humor. Still in its very limited, juvenile way, the movie is a passable time-waster, although MacLaine and Ekberg fans are going to be disappointed. MacLaine's fans will be especially outraged as her dance number at the artists' ball has been left on the cutting-room floor. Director Tashlin actually had a background in comic art and I would have thought he would have brightened up the very heavy-handed satire on EC comics. As it is, the film falls very neatly into two halves. It would seem the writers ran out of ideas and desperately introduced the spy plot. Production values, especially the sets and costumes are lavish. Dean Martin was not happy that Jerry Lewis collared the lion's share of the climax. But despite all the cuts, including a scene in the dressing room corridor with a lot of distorted reflections in mirrors (we already had a scene with funny faces reflected in the water cooler), the movie still needs trimming.
Artists and Models (1955)** (out of 4) Rick (Dean Martin) and Eugene (Jerry Lewis) are best friends and artists who just happen to be without any short of job due to Eugene and his obsession with comic books. This obsession leads to nightly nightmares where Eugene acts out the stories of his dreams. Soon Rick realizes that he could turn this into a job but the men get involved with a couple ladies (Shirley MacLaine, Dorothy Malone) and some spies.ARTISTS AND MODELS isn't an awful film but it's certainly not a very good one either. The movie has a few good moments early on but for the most part I thought the screenplay was rather lackluster and the film certainly didn't have enough laughs or good moments to carry its 109 minute running time. It's really too bad that the film isn't better because we do have a terrific cast on display here.The biggest problem is certainly the screenplay, which just doesn't have too many funny moments in it. What funny moments there are are also rather forced and this includes one sequence with a brat kid who ends up pouring some water down Jerry's pants. There's a semi-funny sequence that kicks off the picture but everything that follow is rather bland. This includes a rather long sequence where Lewis has to keep walking up and down some stairs to deliver a message to Dean who is taking a bath.There are some creative musical numbers including the good "When You Pretend." I also thought the cast was in fine form with Martin getting a couple good lines and there's no question that Lewis is hyper as he always is. The two men still have some nice chemistry here even though their real relationship was on the rocks. Both MacLaine and Malone are good as the love interests and we also have nice support from Eva Gabor, Anita Ekberg and Jack Elam.ARTISTS AND MODELS might appeal to die-hard Martin and Lewis fans but overall I found the film to really drag at spots.
When artist Dean Martin needs inspiration for a violent new comic book, he takes it from the dreams of his best pal (Jerry Lewis). Unfortunately they also contain the secret code for a new space station. This is the first Martin and Lewis film I've seen, and it was OK. Lewis isn't particularly funny, but you acclimatise to his relentless mugging after a few minutes, and he had a few good moments – particularly his encounter with the Bat Lady and the fat lady. I watched it because of Tashlin, a former animator who specialised in big, bright comedies satirising anything he felt like, including the marvellous Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? But here his direction is overbearing to the point of being annoying, with sound effects at every juncture. The film's best moments belong to Shirley MacLaine as Lewis's girlfriend (it's always amusing to see where stars ranked in the Hollywood Order of Attractiveness). This was her second film and she's so full of energy she's practically bouncing into your living room. Particularly good is her reprisal of the number Innamorata, where she leaps around a staircase, trying to kiss Lewis. In fact, the musical interludes are mostly surprisingly good; rather better than the comedy (the tone is set by the opening scene, which promises a man being flung through a billboard and then contents itself with dropping some paint on people's heads). Martin's Lucky Song, filmed in a similar way to I Got Rhythm from An American in Paris, is a joy, and the title tune is cleverly staged around an artist's palette filled with various women. Did I mention that the film is quite sexist? All in all, I'm not in a rush to check out more Martin and Lewis movies, but if there's one on TV, I might give it a go.
Rick and Eugene (Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis) are roommates and artists. Business is not good. However, Eugene's crazy dreams (influenced by his constantly reading comic books) which keep Rick asleep turn out to be a GOOD thing, as he talks them out in his sleep--and Rick then writes down what Eugene says and puts them in a comic book! The kids love 'em and this comic book world also brings them into contact with two cuties--Abigale (Dorothy Malone) for Rick and Bessie (Shirley MacLaine) is smitten with Eugene. On a cute twist, when Eugene first sees Bessie, she is dressed up as a model for Abigale to draw--and she is dressed as 'Bat Lady'. Eugen is smitten....but not so smitten with her when she's in her normal guise--and he doesn't know they are the same person! Later, it turns out that the material Eugene unknowingly gives Rick happens to miraculously have fragments of US Government secrets. And, spies are interested in find out more! Rick quickly picks up on this and alerts the government--who then ask Rick to go along with the spies and to let himself get vamped (by Eva Gabor) so he can learn more about her organization--but his girlfriend (Malone) is not amused. Tune in if you want to find out what happens next.Overall, while this is not a great film (understanding I am NOT a Martin & Lewis fan), it does have some clever moments and is pleasant. I especially liked the weird inside jokes--such as one making fun of Jimmy Stewart and "The Rear Window" and liked seeing Eugene sign his name on the easel near the end. But, the film also is pretty low-brow and only pleasant. But the plot is very original and I have to give the film some credit for this.