Content/criticism
In Chicago is the journalist Ernie Souchak (John Belushi) a big star. His daily column in the Sun-Times is eagerly awaited by millions of readers, not least because he exposes the dubious dealings of City Councilman Yablonowitz (Val Avery) is repeatedly exposed and denounced. But that’s exactly why he’s now getting into trouble, and even attempts to murder him are being made. In order not to lose his best man, editor-in-chief Howard (Allen Garfield) Souchak to Wyoming, where he wrote a story in the Rocky Mountains about the lonely bald eagle researcher Dr. Nell Porter (Blair Brown) should write. At first she is not at all happy that her withdrawn life is being disturbed, especially since the single Souchak immediately starts to pick on her hopelessly. Little by little, the two dissimilar people learn to better understand each other’s life situations and to get involved in fundamentally different perspectives on life.
City slicker in the Rockies
For Amblin Production and its executive producers Steven Spielberg (ET – The Extra-Terrestrial) and Bernie Brillstein (Ghostbusters – The ghost hunters) represents the Michael-Apted-Film Two like cat and mouse At first glance, it is an unusual outlier. The production seems far too small for the blockbuster guarantees, and the story is far too ordinary and unspectacular. And yet it also fits Continental Divide (as the film is called much more accurately in the original) into the oeuvre of the hit suppliers, especially at the beginning of the 1980s. Both Spielberg and Brillstein were also in a few months earlier Frank Oz‘Stroke of genius Blues Brothers involved, which finally made the celebrated television comedian John Belushi a star on the big screen. Two like cat and mouse was completely tailored to the Chicago native Belushi. Tragically, this sixth film by the star comedian was also his penultimate (it followed in the same year The crazy neighbors his last film appearance), because on March 5, 1982 he died in Hollywood at the age of 33 from acute cocaine and heroin poisoning.
He drew the original script for the film Lawrence Kasdan responsible, who is currently working on the scripts Star Wars – Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and Raiders of the Lost Ark had risen to become one of the most sought after in his profession. Director Michael Apted (1941-2021) had also recently started working on television The Secret of Agatha Christie and Nashville Lady also made a name for himself in the cinema. He should come later Gorillas in the fog, James Bond 007 – The world is not enough and The Chronicles of Narnia – The Voyage of the Dawn Treader become an accomplished hit guaranteeer.
For the role of Belushi’s antagonist and love interest, Blair Brown was hired, who is currently in Ken Russells The trip to hell on the side of William Hurt played the lead role and continues to work successfully in film and television to this day, most recently in a recurring role in the women’s prison series Orange is the New Black. Although at first glance the Belushi-Brown pairing seems unusual for the lead roles in a romantic comedy, screenwriter Kasdan and director Apted quickly manage to dispel these doubts and make the film work in its own way.
Pitfalls of the Wilderness
In particular, the fact that the audience quickly develops sympathy for Ernie Souchak may be responsible for this. Because it quickly becomes clear that his heart is in the right place and he wants to denounce the injustices in his hometown of Chicago. His warm treatment of an informant and his relentlessness towards the corrupt politician leave no doubt that Souchak is someone to love. When he reluctantly embarks on his trip into the wilderness of Wyoming, where he quickly runs out of the cigarettes he needs to survive and is overwhelmed by the laws of the wilderness, he will probably serve as a figure of identification for most viewers and will already have grown close to their hearts.
From today’s perspective, the first attempts to get closer to Nell Porter are already quite invasive, but even that can’t really be blamed on Souchak, especially since he finally recognizes where the limits lie here. The German title of the film and the general direction of the script quickly make it clear that the two bickering and completely opposite main characters are destined to be happy together in the end. The typical ingredients of a romantic comedy, but for which John Belushi wasn’t necessarily the most obvious casting idea. The round, crumpled-faced man therefore mostly emphasizes the comical moments in the story that he himself still manages to draw from the attacks by black bears and mountain lions.
After Ernie has gained a new perspective on life in the wilderness and learned to rethink his previous attitudes, the last third of the film takes place again in the big city of Chicago. Nell Porter finally appears here again so that the contrast between the two can be illuminated again from a different perspective. All of this isn’t particularly original, but it’s mostly entertaining thanks to the well-cast main characters. There are also some great landscape and animal shots from the Rocky Mountains, which still contribute to the success of the film today. The first DVD release from One Gate offers a very good picture (in widescreen format 1.78:1). There is nothing wrong with the sound (German and English in Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo). However, no bonus material is included.
Credits
OT: „Continental Divide“
Land: USA
Year: 1981
Director: Michael Apted
Script: Lawrence Kasdan
Music: Michael Small
Camera: John Bailey
Occupation: John Belushi, Blair Brown, Allen Garfield, Carlin Glynn, Tony Ganios, Val Avery, Bruce Jarchow
Buy/Stream
Amazon (DVD “Two Like Cat and Mouse”)
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