Search - Gleason on DVD

Obvious "labor of Love" for Brad

Phil S. | USA | 10/29/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Brad Garrett's portrayal of Jackie Gleason is so convincing that for most of this TV movie we forget it's a "TV movie", which tend to play a little superficially. My only criticism of his acting is that it lacked energy. He seemed to have paid serious attention to the Great One's mannerisms and expressions but once the cameras started to roll, he apparently forget to inject real bouyant Life into the mix.
I do not agree that Kristen Dalton's Alice is impressive. Audrey Meadows was a great actress who was also funny. Dalton's take is purely "feminist"-aggressive in the modern sense [not that there's anything wrong with that] but Meadows tempered it with the underlying, inescapable truth that she deeply loved this man. To use an over-used noun, Meadows' decidely ahead-of-her-time feminism was "nuanced" and filled with pathos. For the historians, it appears that her 1952 audition is not exactly scripted accurately here.
The movie ends with a 1980s interview, apparently based on the "60 Minutes" telecast. Garrett's Gleason says he wishes that he did another Honeymooners season. Although it's been written that Jackie did consider doing new episodes in 1959, most evidence I've read is that he was secure in closing down the spin-off (39) filmed shows: the ratings were disappointing *and* the quality was so remarkable that he knew another season could only bring disappointment.
Perhaps some mention should have been made of Gleason's *versatility*: his composing and conducting; drammatic acting, etc. If the producers wanted to focus in on the The Honeymooners first go-'round in the '50s, may I point out another omission: I feel that many fans do not know that Jackie did not win an Emmy for those "Classic 39" - it went to Phil Silvers."

The Great One

Desiree | Seattle, Washington | 02/09/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I enjoyed this movie and it captured the time period perfectly. Brad Garrett is in top form as Gleason and you truly get the essence of the man. My one complaint is that this movie really sanitized his life making the portrait incomplete. Gleason was known to be exceptionally generous and also could be unbelievably cruel, neither of which this movie conveyed in full form. But there is no gripe about the acting, which is five stars all the way around. But this film only scratches the surface of the life and complexity of the man who was known and loved as "The Great One""

Kristen Dalton Shines in this Film

Mary M. Zissimos | Swarthmore, PA United States | 07/13/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Kristen Dalton, who plays the reporter girlfriend of USA's psychic Johnny on the popular show "the Dead Zone", is excellent in this film playing Audrey Meadows, the long-suffering wife of Jackie Gleason in the Honeymooners.

It is really an incredible job of acting by Ms. Dalton, and worth the price of admission to this particular film, which originated as an HBO Films project.

The film is doubly funny because all of the classic Honeymooner skits are played out in the film over and over again.


--MMZ"

True Jackie Gleason Story

Thomas J. Pernice | Gainesville, FL USA | 03/05/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Back in the 1970's, my Uncle Johnny worked as a chauffeur in NYC. One night he was told to pick up Gleason at the 21 Club (21 W 52nd St.). Gleason entered the stretch Caddy, obviously "well lit", and barked out the name of his next watering hole. My Uncle thought for a moment and realized that the place was on the same street, about three (3) store fronts away. He backed up the limo, arriving at his destination in about 10 seconds. Without skipping a beat, Gleason unleashed in his inimitable style, "What kept you!". He "greased" him with a $20.00, opened the door and rolled out."