Waiting for Guffman (1996)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Christopher Guest

Writers (WGA):

Christopher Guest (written by) &
Eugene Levy (written by)

Release Date:

31 January 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

There's A Good Reason Some Talent Remains Undiscovered

Plot:

An aspiring director and the marginally-talented amateur cast of a hokey small-town Missouri musical production go overboard when they learn that someone from Broadway will be in attendance.

Plot Keywords:

Missouri | Dairy Queen | Dentist | Amateur Theater | Travel Agent

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Deborah Theaker	...	Gwen Fabin-Blunt - Councilwoman
Michael Hitchcock	...	Steve Stark - Councilman
Scott Williamson	...	Tucker Livingston - Councilman
Larry Miller	...	Glenn Welsch - Mayor
Don Lake	...	Phil Burgess - Blaine Historian
Christopher Guest	...	Corky St. Clair
Fred Willard	...	Ron Albertson
Catherine O'Hara	...	Sheila Albertson
Parker Posey	...	Libby Mae Brown
David Cross	...	UFO Expert
Eugene Levy	...	Dr. Allan Pearl
James McQueen	...	Singing Auditioner (as Jim McQueen)
Turk Pipkin	...	Ping Pong Ball Juggler
Jerry Turman	...	Raging Bull Auditioner
Bob Balaban	...	Lloyd Miller

Also Known As:

The Christopher Guest Project (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for brief strong language.

Runtime:

84 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby | SDDS | SDDS (uncredited)

Certification:

UK:15 | Australia:M | Iceland:L | South Korea:15 | USA:TV-14 (cable rating) | Canada:14A (Canadian Home Video rating) | USA:R (No. 33995)

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Company:

Castle Rock Entertainment

Trivia:

The title is a reference to the Samuel Beckett play, "Waiting For Godot".

Goofs:

Continuity: In the Chinese dinner scene, the plate of beef disappears/reappears in the first few shots

Quotes:

Ron Albertson: If there's an empty space, just fill it with a line, that's what I like to do. Even if it's from another show.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Psych: Psy vs. Psy (#2.3)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Stool Boom

A great little film that points out a quality in all of us

Some people might say this film's improvisational nature is dull and slow, it's the complete opposite. Just imagine a movie completely improvised? Not only does it take talent, it takes guts and charisma to stay with something so bold. While the ending was a little abrupt, this film was still one to enjoy. Christopher Guest seems to have playing a homosexual down to a hilt. If it wasn't for his role in Best in Show, I thought he would forever be typecast as an eccentric gay character. A fun film to watch if you're into alternate types of comedy.

But this film also says a little something about the human condition. We aren't all people who wait for each other to speak and are perfectly capable of leading a group of people. This is Guest's gift: he can accentuate the insecurities we have within ourselves and portray it perfectly on celluloid.