REVIEW: What About Bob? (Released in 1991) [30th Anniversary]

DIRECTOR: Frank Oz

PRODUCER: Laura Ziskin

WRITERS: Tom Schulman (screenplay) & Alvin Sargent& Laura Ziskin (story)

PERFORMERS: Bill Murray Richard Dreyfuss Julie Hagerty Charlie Korsmo Kathryn Erbe

Tom Aldridge Susan Willis

I first saw this film when I was very little. Back then, actors like Bill Murray really knew how to make you laugh. There was something about him that just made you laugh. This film is living proof of that. From Caddyshack to Ghostbusters this guy hit every mark on his comedic timing. Here in this particularly laugh out loud comedy (which also has a 30th anniversary this year) he does it again! With the addition of Oscar winner Richard Dreyfuss you get that usual 'what you see is what you get' type of feeling. This is the anniversary review of one of the most funniest comedies of all time... the film is called What About Bob?

Playing a good natured man but completely paralyzed by a series of fears, Murray plays Bob Wiley who's just looking for help with his daily struggles and someone to guide him. He finds that in the form of a successful psychiatrist, played with comedic magnificence by Dreyfuss, who seems to be on top of his game. But when he takes a month long break from his work with his family, Bob becomes more and more dependent on him for help and pretty soon... things get so much more than therapeutic. Murray and Dreyfuss, first of all, are the reason this film works. They're total opposites of one another, representing different qualities we either long to have or have yet to achieve. When Murray shows up at Dreyfuss' summer home the comedy just takes off from there and it's one laugh riot after another. How would you feel if something like that happened to you? What would you do to get rid of that person who shows up unannounced at your home? These guys just make you laugh like you've never laughed before. Whether it was thirty years ago or now, something about this film makes you laugh till you can't breathe. Clearly, Murray and Dreyfuss being in this film have something to do with it.

I never once found anything unlikable about Dreyfuss' character, except his tendency to keep things in order and his over confidence in himself than in others. That's what I think separates him from Murray because Murray is just a guy who treats others with the same dignity he would want himself. Now what made me laugh at this was the constant attempts Dreyfuss would make to be rid of his patient while on vacation. At a time when there were TV shows like Family Matters, you saw and knew what it was like to have a certain individual as annoying as Steve Urkel in your life, but there was something about him that made that person likeable and impossible to resist. In this case, Bob who represents innocence and humanity while Dreyfuss represents shallowness and order. You could say in a sense these guys were both children in their own way: one who's longing for better times and another who's just caught up in himself. Even his own family comes to like him which in turn causes problems for him and make him out to be the one who's in the wrong. There's no antagonist or protagonist in this, just two men with different personality traits on different levels.

Without giving away too much, I had never laughed so hard at a comedy as I did with this one. There were moments when I couldn't stop laughing and when I almost ran out of breath from that laughing I had. Other films like Home Alone were able to have that same effect on me but this for me was the first. Every time Bob would show up at the summer home, I would laugh at it unexpectedly. Whenever Dreyfuss lost his cool I'd laugh because it was just over the top comedy. I went from seeing it on TV to the theatrical version and just went from there. Since then, the film's effect has not lost it's touch on me. No matter how many times I watch this, I laugh as hard as I did the first time around. That said it's very clear that this gem never gets old, just better with age and that's what I find so likeable about film... timeless and for everyone to enjoy. This is a film to enjoy as well but if you're longing to be a successful shrink... take a look at this before you jump into that boat. The performances are top notch, the script is ridiculously funny and I can honestly say I am glad to have grown up on this film because it makes my day when it comes to comedies. A sequel was once mentioned in the YouTube comments section of a video about this and I was one of the few who mentioned 'it will never happen' and the way I see it... obviously it never... ever... will! If you haven't seen this yet, check it out and as on a lighter note: Happy 30th Anniversary to What About Bob?

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