Down and Out in Beverly Hills: Critic Reviews

As a comedy of manners it has a dependably keen aim, with its most wicked barbs leavened by Mr. Mazursky's obvious fondness for his characters.

Let me just say that Down and Out in Beverly Hills made me laugh longer and louder than any film I've seen in a long time.

Paul Mazursky hasn't only remade Jean Renoir's sublime 1931 Boudu Saved From Drowning: he's yuppified it, inverting virtually every meaning until the film becomes a celebration of the crassest kind of materialism.

Although it is more of a comedy of manners than a well-developed story, there are enough yocks and bright moments to make it a thoroughly enjoyable outing.

A single moment of magical realism shows the Babe-that-might-have-been, very charitably speaking, had the makers of this doggie adventure-comedy chosen a more daring and creative route...

The cast is entirely up to the comic hysteria Mazursky requires of them, though Mike the dog steals whatever scene he is in.

A funny and poignant if also broad reworking of Renoir's classic, Boudu Saved from Drowning, Paul Mazursky's satire also works as a critique of L.A. nouveau riche and their crass lifestyle, reflected, among other things, in the garrish color palette.

This update of Renoir's Boudu Saved from Drowning starts life as a satire on the tribal rites of the new and filthy rich, but goes badly wrong somewhere down the line.

funny with bite

Three great turns in one side-splitting movie

Filled with hilarious incidents and clever one-liners.

Silly but fun, and a big box-office earner.

One of Mazursky's few completely successful films.

An uneven satire with some wit, but sometimes too strident.

Richard Dreyfuss in top form.

A sparkling social commentary that doesn't skimp on the laughs.