Trailer

Punchline (1988)

R   |    |  Comedy, Drama, Romance

Punchline (1988) Poster

A medical school dropout and a housewife/mom try to make it as stand-up comedians. They become friends and help each other out at an NYC comedy club.

5.9/10
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52 Metascore

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  • Tom Hanks and Sally Field in Punchline (1988)
  • Tom Hanks in Punchline (1988)
  • Katie Rich in Punchline (1988)
  • Sally Field and Katie Rich in Punchline (1988)
  • Sally Field and Katie Rich in Punchline (1988)
  • Sally Field and Katie Rich in Punchline (1988)

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Awards

1 win.

Reviews & Commentary

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User Reviews
9 November 2019 | SnoopyStyle
6
| Tom is no stand-up
Lilah Krytsick (Sally Field) is a middle age New Jersey housewife struggling to do stand-up comedy. Her marriage to husband John (John Goodman) is under stress. Med student Steven Gold (Tom Hanks) is late for his oral exam and gets expelled for cheating on his written exam. He's been spending all his nights doing stand-up. Madeline Urie (Kim Greist) is a talent agent. Romeo is the club owner.

Tom Hanks is no stand-up comic. He's playing one but he's not actually one. It's the difference between getting real laughs and getting extras to laugh on cue. There's a reason why crashing and burning in front of his father is his best set in the movie. On the other hand, Sally Field is great and fits well especially as a bad comic in the beginning. Her life is much funnier than her 'good' jokes. It's also very bittersweet. Luckily, this is her movie more than his. Real comics inevitably complain about the lockers which is beside the point. It's like complaining about the big apartment in Friends. I do like the aborted romance and the conflicted family life. Instead of Hanks, this movie needs a real comic who could sell the stand-up and then hope that the acting will follow. It's a tall order.

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Director of photography Reynaldo Villalobos said of shooting in Los Angeles, California: "One spectacular shot that just could not have been duplicated on a sound stage was Tom Hanks' dance number under the Riverside Highway overpass. The light, the rain and the depth added to the drama of the scene". Villalobos had first worked with David Seltzer on Lucas (1986), and they found that they were very compatible. Seltzer said of Villalobos: "Rey is an artist and someone who could direct in his own right. We would both be looking at a shot and discover that we had come up with the same idea at the same time. It was almost like telepathy".

Quotes

Steven: We are all Gods animated cartoons.

Goofs

When Steven and Lilah are riding the #7 subway, the Manhattan terminus of the line is shown as Lexington Ave. The actual terminus should be 42nd St./ Times Square.

Soundtracks

Saber Dance
(uncredited)
(from ballet "Gayaneh")
Music by Aram Khachaturyan

Storyline

Plot Summary

Genres

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Details

Release Date:

7 October 1988

Language

English

Country of Origin

USA

Filming Locations

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$160,742 2 October 1988

Gross USA:

$21,042,667

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$21,042,667

User Polls

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