Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #25501 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-01-18
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Colour, DVD-Video, Full Screen, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English, French
• Subtitled in: English, French
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .20 pounds
• Running time: 111 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
The Goodbye Girl is a bittersweet comedy about relationships and taking chances. Though it deals with the human condition, what most quickly comes to mind are those wickedly comedic scenes featuring Richard Dreyfuss in an Oscar-winning role. He plays a struggling actor with a sharp tongue who has sublet an apartment from single mom Marcia Mason, a divorcie with horrific taste in men, who are always running out on her. She is left high and dry once more, stuck sharing her apartment with Dreyfuss when he hasn't the heart to enforce his lease and toss out mother and daughter.

Neil Simon's play shines under the direction of Herbert Ross as these two mismatched people find their contempt changing into mutual admiration. Quinn Cummings is more interesting than most precocious child stars; she seems brighter and her manner is prickly instead of cloying. Watch this film just for the scene in which Dreyfuss plays Richard III in an off-off-Broadway play. He lisps, he limps, he screams. It is the worst cinema you will ever see--and thoroughly hilarious. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Customer Reviews

Love means never having to say goodbye
With the current remake of Neil Simon's 'The Goodbye Girl' showing on television at the moment, it reminded me of this original film production, one of the better films from the 1970s, and one of the better films to derive from a Broadway play to keep much of the same character as the play. This film won numerous awards: Best Actor Oscar/Best Actor Golden Globe/Best Actor BAFTA for Richard Dreyfus; Best Picture Golden Globe; Best Actress Golden Globe/Best Actress Oscar Nomination for Marsha Mason; Best Supporting Actress Oscar Nomination for Quinn Cummings; Best Writing Oscar Nomination for Neil Simon, and the list goes on...

Neil Simon's play is dialogue driven rather than action-driven; this sometimes means the kiss of death for film, but in this production, it works beautifully. Richard Dreyfuss and Marsha Mason (married to Neil Simon at the time) make a lively, comfortably uncomfortable duo as the new-to-New-York actor Elliot Garfield and the down-on-her-luck 'Goodbye Girl' Paula McFadden. Garfield shows up the night McFadden was dumped by her actor-boyfriend (not the first time this has happened, we soon discover); Garfield has been given the lease to the apartment that McFadden occupies with her daughter Lucy (admirably played by Quinn Cummings) -- much of the 'action' of the film takes place within the confines of this apartment (the primary set for the stage play) -- the relationship as Garfield and McFadden negotiate an unsettled truce which eventually becomes a friendship and then finally a love affair, with Lucy providing colour commentary all along the way.

Garfield is booked to play Richard III in the worst of all possible interpretations of the play; it closes in short order with atrocious reviews. McFadden tries to resurrect her dancing career, realising that she has passed the realistic age for most Broadway productions (certainly at that time). When Garfield gets the offer of a lifetime, he too plans to leave town, setting McFadden up for failure with a relationship once again, but at least she still has the apartment, right?

The dialogue is comedic and realistic at the same time -- the rapid-fire banter is classic Simon stage or screen; the impossible situations that cause characters to be constantly on the verge of a nervous breakdown until small miracles creep in to keep life sane are also far more true to life than most people feel comfortable admitting. Herbert Ross is to be commended with his direction here, in that he made the film a great film while retaining the crucial aspects of the great play.

Everyone should see this film, a romantic comedy/drama with a serious edge and ironic undertow.

A wonderfully romantic movie that is a joy to experience!
Richard Dreyfeuss is one of those actors that you either love or hate. I happen to think he is a very good actor and have enjoyed him in most of his films. This movie is easily one of his best works and my favourite! It’s no wonder that he got an Academy Award for this film! Marsha Mason is just great and they compliment each other perfectly. The Goodbye Girl is a wonderfully warm, funny and beautifully romantic movie that is rich and warm and a joy to experience! I would highly recommend this film to anyone who wants to watch a movie about two people who are searching for true love and have found each other.

Bring out the box of tissues.
One for a great night in with your other half...at least, it is if you are a couple of softies like us. A lovely storyline...but don't forget the tissues!