Screen-adaptation of the Broadway hit grinds itself into the ground with a firm belief that kooky equals lovable, and vice-versa. It's tough to love anything here, particularly Jason Robards' performance as a life-loving eccentric (here we go) who is investigated by authorities to see if he's a proper guardian for his live-in nephew (played by Barry Gordon as a wizened little wiseass). A grueling piece of work. Martin Balsam won a Supporting Oscar playing Robards' brother; perhaps the Academy was just giving a fine actor his due. Had to be, because this brand of arms-flailing theatrics and sub-Neil Simon/jokey dialogue shows off no one to their best advantage. Helped a bit by the decent black-and-white cinematography, and by Barbara Harris' innate grace. *1/2 from ****
Review of A Thousand Clowns
