Garry Shandling Movies
Comedian Garry Shandling is best known for his top-rated, award-winning parody of television talk shows The Larry Sanders Show, which aired on the HBO cable network from 1993 to 1998. He started out as a comedy writer for other sitcoms and as a standup comedian. He landed his first television show, the It's Garry Shandling's Show, on Fox in 1985. The show was heavily autobiographical, to the point of replicating his apartment on a soundstage. Shandling, however, made his biggest impression with Larry Sanders, a show about the trials, tribulations, and double-dealing that goes on behind the scenes of a latenight talk show. Much of the show's material was drawn from experiences Shandling endured or witnessed on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, where he was a popular guest star.In addition to performing live and on television, Shandling has also played character roles in feature films, beginning with The Night We Never Met in 1993 and continuing with such varied projects as Hurly Burly and Dr. Doolittle, both in 1998. The actor tried his hand at starring with the 2000 extra-terrestrial comedy What Planet Are You From, a box-office dud Shandling also produced and wrote.
As the decade wore on, Shandling's significant screen roles were limited to the 2001 Warren Beatty picture Town & Country, before emerging in 2006 by lending his voice to the animated adventure Over the Hedge and appearing in a supporting part in Trust the Man. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
The world of stand-up comedy is explored from the perspectives of two very different talents -- one wet behind the years, another already a legend -- in this documentary from TV-commercial director Christian Charles. Comedian follows Jerry Seinfeld and Orny Adams as they navigate their way through the cutthroat world of New York's comedy clubs, each working toward the ultimate goal of an appearance on Late Night with David Letterman. For Seinfeld, hitting the clubs is a way of proving himself after his years of sitcom success; for the up-and-coming Adams, nightly stand-up routines are an avenue to bigger and better things, preferably comedy festivals, talk show appearances, and sitcom roles. The two occasionally cross paths at such Manhattan comic haunts as The Gotham Comedy Club and Caroline's, where they debate ups and downs of the trade. Comedian also reveals many candid, behind-the-scenes discussions between Seinfeld and such comic legends as Chris Rock, Robert Klein, Dave Chappelle, and Jay Leno, as well as rare glimpses of the star's personal life. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jerry Seinfeld, Greg Geraldo, (more)
- 2008
- Add Comic Relief: The Greatest... and the Latest to QueueAdd Comic Relief: The Greatest... and the Latest to top of Queue
Comic Relief: The Greatest... and the Latest features a number of performances by some of the most talented comics of their day performing for a charity that collects money for the homeless. Among the performers who appear on this release are Sarah Silverman, Lewis Black, Jon Stewart, and David Cross. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, (more)
Betty Thomas directed this adaptation of the classic children's stories by Hugh Lofting (1886-1947), updating the original concepts into the present day. When noted surgeon Dr. John Dolittle (Eddie Murphy) swerves his car to avoid hitting a dog, he hits his head on the windshield, triggering his long-dormant gift for holding conversations with animals. Friends, associates and his wife Lisa (Kristen Wilson), all express concern, but Dr. Dolittle is happy as he takes on new animal clients. Soon Dolittle's clinic becomes a haven for talking rats, birds, and other assorted members of the animal kingdom, and Dolittle's new four-legged and furry friends, in turn, teach him a few things about being human. The effects seamlessly combine Jim Henson Creature Shop animatronics, computer graphics, and real animals, but some viewers might yearn for a return of the Great Pink Sea Snail and Lofting's other imaginative creatures. The 1967 20th Century Fox musical Dr. Dolittle starred Rex Harrison in a strange storyline that began with Dolittle escaping from a lunatic asylum and leaving the Victorian village Puddleby-by-the-Marsh, England, to search the South Seas for the Great Pink Sea Snail. Along the way, he gathered diverse Dolittle denizens and animal anomalies, including the Giant Moon Moth and the famed, two-headed Pushmi-Pullyu. The earlier film spawned the Oscar-winning popular song success, "Talk To The Animals," along with numerous now-forgotten toys, books, and collectibles. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Murphy, Ossie Davis, (more)
- 1985
Michael Nesmith (famed as the talented one from '60s pop-band The Monkees) directed this melange of music and comedy clips starring Whoopi Goldberg, Garry Shandling, Rosanne Cash, Jay Leno and Jimmy Buffett. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- 1984
Less formally known as Garry Shandling Alone in Vegas, this 60-minute video is 100% Shandling, which is either good or bad news depending upon who's watching. Shandling's "average guy stuck in the farce called life" persona works quite well within the framework of the tape. Casual fans, however, might prefer the Johnny Carson-baiting Shandling of the much-later cable series It's Garry Shandling's Show and The Larry Sanders Show. Like those two projects, Alone in Las Vegas began as a Showtime cable special--Shandling's first, in fact. This 1984 effort was directed by William Dear, who also helmed Mike Nesmith's Elephant Parts, which begat the series Television Parts--which in turn begat the It's Garry Shandling's Show comedy sketch that put Shandling on the map. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
David Rabe's popular play of Hollywood immorality and decadence is brought to the big screen by director Anthony Drazan and an all-star cast that includes Sean Penn, Robin Wright-Penn, Kevin Spacey, Meg Ryan, Chazz Palminteri, Garry Shandling, and Anna Paquin. The film is set in the Hollywood Hills and tells the story of Eddie (Penn) a drinking-smoking-snorting-womanizing casting director and his philandering partner-roommate Mickey (Spacey). Along with their buddies Artie and Phil, they sit around and pontificate about the meaning of life -- that is, the meaning of their lives, of which there is very little. Eddie is in love with Darlene (real-life wife Wright Penn), but she is also seeing the married Mickey. When Artie brings Eddie and Mickey a "care package" in the shape of a pretty, disillusioned hitchhiker named Donna (Paquin), they take turns throwing her around until, yet again, their own empty pathetic lives preoccupy their paranoid minds. As people and relationships deteriorate everywhere, the guys try to pick Phil by giving him the gift of a washed-up exotic dancer, Bonnie (Ryan). Of course she ends up just more abused than ever as she and the rest of the gang hit rock bottom. ~ Arthur Borman, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Penn, Kevin Spacey, (more)
The 1939 Irene Dunne-Charles Boyer romance Love Affair, remade with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr in 1957 as An Affair to Remember, became a vehicle for real-life couple Warren Beatty and Annette Bening in this 1994 rendition. The well-worn story remains the same, as a man and a woman, both engaged to other people, fall madly in love while traveling, indulge in a brief but intense affair, then agree to part and sort out their feelings. They are to meet again at the top of the Empire State Building if their feelings persist, but a series of unfortunate circumstances threatens to keep the lovers apart. Despite polished visuals and a time-tested narrative, this variation suffers in comparison to its two predecessors, not to mention the previous year's Sleepless in Seattle, which had drawn on An Affair to Remember for several of its most memorable sequences. It does features Katherine Hepburn's first film appearance in 13 years. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, (more)
A holiday comedy with dark overtones, Mixed Nuts presents a supposedly humorous look at the behind-the-scenes events at a crisis hotline on Christmas Eve. Philip (Steve Martin) runs Lifesavers, a Venice, California organization dedicated to helping the depressed and troubled. Unfortunately, Philip is a bit down himself, having learned that Lifesavers is on the verge of eviction. His staff isn't feeling particularly helpful either, with Mrs. Munchnik (Madeline Kahn) giving gruff, often insulting advice, and Catherine (Rita Wilson) obsessing over her own unspoken love for Philip. As the holiday approaches, various weirdoes of all shapes and sizes -- from to a pregnant clothing store owner (Juliette Lewis) to a disenchanted Santa Claus (Anthony LaPaglia) -- begin dropping in, throwing the already strained office into utter chaos. Director Nora Ephron followed her smash success Sleepless in Seattle with this remake of the cult 1982 French comedy Le Père Noël est une Ordure, co-authoring the script with her sister Delia Ephron. However, Mixed Nuts met with little box office or critical approval, with most viewers finding the film's manic farce disappointingly forced and abrasive. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Martin, Madeline Kahn, (more)
- 1990
An all-star cast is included on this children's adventure that follows a search for Mother Goose by her son (Dan Gilroy) and Little Bo Peep (Shelley Duvall). ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
A group of feisty forest critters awaken following the winter freeze to discover that not only has a new neighborhood cropped up during the cold months, but living in close proximity to humans may have its benefits in this computer-animated comedy-adventure for all ages featuring the voices of Bruce Willis, Garry Shandling, Steve Carell, Wanda Sykes, Avril Lavigne, Eugene Levy, and William Shatner. Despite Verne the Turtle's (Garry Shandling) initial hesitance to breach the formidable foliage that has appeared on his doorstep since last fall, the arrival of fearless raccoon RJ (Willis) and revelation that their new human neighbors throw out enough food in one day to feed a whole forest lead the gang to consider taking the plunge and exploring the snack-filled suburbs. As Verne and RJ learn to work together in taking on their strange new surroundings, Stella the Skunk (Sykes), Hammy the Squirrel (Carrel), Heather the Opossum (Lavigne), and Heather's father, Ozzie (Shatner), join in on the fun by scavenging for Girl Scout cookies and attempting to scuttle past the pesky new suburbanites undetected. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Willis, Garry Shandling, (more)
- 1987
This 1987 episode of Saturday Night Live is hosted by Garry Shandling and features musical guest Los Lobos. ~ Skyler Miller, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Garry Shandling, Los Lobos, (more)
Documentarist Christopher Monger's Special Thanks to Roy London profiles famed acting coach London (1943-93), a man with resounding professional success (including a litany of former pupils who graduated to A-list Hollywood triumph) but a rocky and notoriously complicated personal life. In this program, Monger examines London through the eyes of many of the said pupils, including Jeff Goldblum, Hank Azaria, Garry Shandling, Geena Davis and Patrick Swayze. The title, of course, refers to the "special thanks" mention to fall in the end credits of many a feature film. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- 1985
An hour-long TV special, The Garry Shandling Show 25th Anniversary Special is a parody of late-night talk show anniversary specials, featuring a fictional variety show, hosted by Shandling, that bears a rather striking resemblance to the Johnny Carson era of The Tonight Show. Assisted by a pudgy, bespectacled sidekick, Shandling looks back on the highlights of his late-night show's run, from the classic comedy sketches to the greatest embarrassments and bloopers, including a close call clearly modeled after the infamous Ed Ames tomahawk incident. Over the course of the evening, not everything goes as planned, and a few tensions begin to bubble underneath the surface. The flashback segments are designed to closely resemble the look of television of the appropriate era, from the quality of the video image to the wardrobes and hairstyles. Given its realistic re-creation of late-night talk shows and its occasionally wicked sense of humor, this special can be easily viewed as an early forerunner to Shandling's later, award-winning HBO series, The Larry Sanders Show, which combines the talk show parody with a look at the personality conflicts and chaos behind the cameras. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- 1998
Given total control by the network when he returns to serve as guest host, Larry's (Garry Shandling) nemesis Jon Stewart finds his power slipping when the suits inform him that his show won't air due to a controversial Nazi skit. Meanwhile, despite Larry's best efforts to solidify his relationship with his brother Stan (Wayne Federman), he finds himself repeatedly distracted by his obsession with seeing Stewart fail. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 1998
When Jon Stewart guest hosts and draws even bigger ratings that The Larry Sanders Show's eponymous host, Larry's paranoia starts to kick in. When the increasingly sex-obsessed host targets Winona Ryder for conquest, he is devastated upon finding Ryder and Stewart making out in the dressing room. The appearance of two network suits compounds Larry's anxiety, and his fears may be justified when it's revealed that there may be some big changes on the show. Meanwhile, Hank (Jeffrey Tambor) has difficulties changing his license plates to his trademark "Hey Now" when oddball doppelganger fan Paul (George Wyner) already has the customized plates. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 1998
When Larry (Garry Shandling) announces that he won't be renewing his contract, the staff begins chomping at the bits to find new jobs. It appears as if Beverly (Penny Johnson), Hank (Jeffrey Tambor), and Artie (Rip Torn) all have prospects for the future, though unfortunately the same thing can't be said for our increasingly troubled host. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 1995
Left in the lurch after the prop master unexpectedly quits the show, Artie (Rip Torn) is pressured by Hank (Jeffrey Tambor) to hire the sidekick's new squeeze. When Beverly (Penny Johnson) catches wind of the newly open position, she is prompted by her cousin Clyde (Paul Mooney) to demand that the job go to an African-American -- specifically Clyde himself. Disheartened by Larry's refusal to consider her proposal and feeling like a token minority among the staff, Beverly threatens to take a position as Laurence Fishburne's assistant. Troubled over the fact that he's losing a valuable employee, Larry attempts to keep Beverly with the show by hiring Clyde. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 1994
When Larry (Garry Shandling) makes a resolution to only endorse causes he truly believes in, his newfound philosophy is put to the test when it might result in the loss of an important guest. Though Larry is convinced that having Rob Reiner as an upcoming guest will add a touch of class to the show, Reiner's recommendation of Larry to host a benefit tests Larry's resolve. Despite Artie's (Rip Torn) warning that Reiner will cancel his appearance if Larry declines, the host sticks to his guns, and Reiner subsequently cancels with claims of a sprained ankle. Pulling rank on Hank (Jeffrey Tambor), who had picked up the hosting gig after Larry turned it down, Larry takes the job, hoping to catch Reiner in a lie. Guest stars include Richard Belzer, Rob Reiner, and Pauly Shore. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 1998
Desperate for an A-list guest as his final show draws ever closer, Larry (Garry Shandling) determines that he must overcome his discomfort with affectionate old friend David Duchovny in order to secure an appearance from the X-Files star. Meanwhile, Artie (Rip Torn) struggles to keep the emotional staff afloat in hopes of producing a memorable swan song for The Larry Sanders Show. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 1994
Everything seems to be falling apart on The Larry Sanders Show as Danny DeVito cancels an upcoming appearance and the L.A. earthquake prompts Larry (Garry Shandling) to consider relocating the show and shooting on a new stage. As Larry hammers out the details, he can't help but be distracted by the subpar gifts his show gives away. In a last ditch effort to get DeVito back on the show, Paula (Janeane Garofalo) harasses the actor in hopes that he'll reconsider his cancellation. Special guests include Carol Siskind, Paul Wilson, Edward Ring, Danny DeVito, and Jimmie Walker. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Larry's (Garry Shandling) insecurities shine through in the fourth episode of HBO's The Larry Sanders Show. When comedian Dana Carvey's guest appearance turns out to be a rollicking success, Larry's nervousness over the solidity of his host status leads him to become a bit paranoid. In addition to Carvey, this episode also features a special guest appearance by Anne-Marie Johnson. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Facing increasing stress, Larry (Garry Shandling) finally loses it altogether when Hank (Jeffrey Tambor) falls asleep during the live show. The final episode of the first season, this installment of HBO's popular late-night talk show parody The Larry Sanders Show features special guest stars Ray Combs, Earl Holliman, Bob Saget, and T-Bone Burnett. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
