The Goodbye Girl

The Goodbye Girl (1977)
Director: Herbert Ross
Cast: Richard Dreyfuss, Marsha Mason, Quinn Cummings
Memorable Line: "And I think the only practical solution is that we share the apartment."

Neil Simon owned the romantic comedy on Broadway during the 70's and, for me, this is the best translation of his work from stage to screen.

The Plot of The Goodbye Girl

Paula McFadden (Mason) and her precocious daughter Lucy (Cummings) are left high and dry when the man in their life walks out on them and then to make matter's worse, he sub-leases their apartment to aspiring young actor, Elliot (Dreyfuss). When Elliot arrives to take possession of the apartment, all parties involved get a surprise because none of them know about the sub-lease apartment arrangement and that's when the sparks start to fly.

After the smoke settles, they begrudgingly agree to co-habit the apartment until something else opens up. Paula has to try to find work as a dancer after being out of the work force for years and Elliot finds himself in a actor's nightmare of having to be in a production with a director who has a dramatically unconventional take on a conventional character.

As each struggles professionally and share their respective woes, they start falling for each other romantically. But Paula finds it hard to trust anyone after being burned in the past and that's where the fledgling romance starts to falter.

The Performances, Writing, and Direction of The Goodbye Girl

After years of toiling in television, Dreyfuss saw his stock rise through the ceiling in the mid-seventies with Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and finally with this movie. He oozes with a quirky charisma and is undeniably likable in the role of Elliot. Mason balances out cuteness with vulnerability and is a great foil for Dreyfuss. Rounding out the cast is Cummings who captures spunky with style and without being overly cutesy.

The script in combination with the winning performances makes this movie a real winner. The jokes work and the progression from antagonism to romance seems natural -- for a Broadway play. The direction is unobtrusive and serves the story to a tee.

Summary Judgment on The Goodbye Girl

There's a lot of chemistry going on the Goodbye Girl and while the genre has some artificiality to it, it works because this is the sort of romance we enjoy seeing. Add to the winning story, the performances of Dreyfuss and Mason, and you have a hit.