Lost in Yonkers (1993)

Thanks for the memories!

Please don't spend money on this.

good back-story, and good acting

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

I actually was in an on stage production of this. I can say with utmost certainty that a play was better than a movie with RICHARD DREYFUSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He was the only competent actor. Otherwise, the acting s atrocious. The kid actors were okay, and better than most. Merchedes Rheul is just terrible. I don't think she should have been added to the cast in any way. This is a true disgrace towards Neil Simon. Of course, Mr. Simon delivered in the sense of storytelling. This film was just a letdown.

I really liked this film and am surprised I haven't seen it before. It's a very nostalgic film with great characters, a wonderful story and crisp, sharp dialog by the Master, Neil Simon. The acting is superior all around, the art direction, costuming, music score and cinematography are also topnotch. Story involves a middle class, New York Jewish family who endure hard times during World War II, as Eddie, the father's (Jack Laufer), business has to be shut down, the mother is deceased, and Eddie plans to sell scrap metal to get established again and to aid the War effort. In order to do so he arranges with his stern, no-nonsense mother to take in the boys, Jay (Brad Stoll) and Arty (Mike Damus). Their demanding grandmother (Irene Worth) is so hard core that the boys have to earn their keep via hard labor. Their fear of her is alleviated somewhat by their dizzy, but loving Aunt Bella (Mercedes Ruehl) and the arrival of their small time crook Uncle Louie (Richard Dreyfuss) who is being pursued by two inept gangsters. Director Martha Coolidge keeps the story moving along and with panache. It's too difficult to single out any of the cast for best performance as all are superb in their roles. This is one terrific film which I will eventually rate a 10 after another viewing. For a Neil Simon film it is very emotionally fulfilling and heart-warming, but it does have its comic moments too.

This film more than any other epitomises for me what a certain kind of upbringing I call "a cold cradle" can do to a person. Children get their first impressions of the world through the beliefs of their parents. These impressions are indelible. Normally, early childhood is spent in the protection of loving parents, but what if these parents are not the cuddling kind? What if they despise your weakness of crying, instead of saying words of comfort? What if there is no place in your family to share feelings and fears? Even when you later discover that it is OK to feel, the defences you have built around your personality in your early years are very difficult to undo and if you have overcome them they are still triggered when you have to deal with your family. In the film we see four adult siblings who have survived the misery and rebelled, each in different ways. Most people fortunately don't know how terrible it is for the father to put his two boys into his mother's care, his fears seem exaggerated, surely a stern grandmother can't be too bad. But her type of sternness is very damaging not just to overly sensitive people. We see this more clearly as the story unfolds and we learn how each member of the family has coped and yet no one has been able to topple the matriarch from her throne. But as she takes the education of yet another generation in her hands, the tensions mount to breaking point.This film is not a comedy, though it has its funny moments. It is not a complete tragedy either, and it avoids becoming bleak and depressing. I think its greatest value is in showing those who have had a warm cradle -- fortunately most -- what it's like to have had a cold one, if it helps increase a general understanding of the emotional difficulties that these people have to overcome to unlock their shielded hearts to their fellow men.

This film is a good look on life during World War II. The film starts out as a comedy involving two youngsters, then evolves into a family drama towards the end. Richard Dreyfuss' character overreacts, is annoying, serves as a major distraction, and hardly has any screen time. Ruehl deserved an Oscar for her performance.In all, a good warm film.