With plenty of smart laughs and rapid fire dialogue courtesy of comedian Albert Brooks, 1985's LOST IN AMERICA captures the yuppie Reagan era in all its big-haired capitalist glory.
Brooks is advertising exec David, sure that a big promotion is looming and excited to buy a bigger house and a Mercedes.
When it doesn't work out as planned (hilariously so, with Brooks exploding at his bosses in pent up rage and hostility with dozens of one-liners like "Shut up Brad! Your song stunk, I hate your suit and I could hurt you!" ) David and his wife Linda (Julie Hagerty of "Airplane") invest their nest egg in an RV and drop out.
They figure they can live the rest of their lives off the profit from their California home. It's a good plan on paper.
But their first stop is Las Vegas, and it seems that Linda has a bit of a problem with the tables.
Gary Marshall is hilarious as a pit boss at the Desert Inn, dealing with David losing his mind.
Brooks crafts a terrific screenplay, taking unexpected paths as the couple's plan to disconnect from the rat race goes every which way but right.
Filmed almost completely on the road from coast to coast, its great location photography is a big asset, as is Brooks and Hagerty's deadpan chemistry.
Brooks has always had a gift for going off on rants. Several of his here are priceless, especially his tirade at Linda post-Vegas and his pitch to Marshall on why he should give them back all the money they lost. Priceless.
Brooks has a rare gift for being relatable while saying what everyone else is thinking. Like Larry David in "Curb Your Enthusiasm" Brooks lands an amazing amount of his desert-dry punch lines.
Ranked by the AFI in the top 50 comedies of all time, LOST IN AMERICA deserves that ranking and gets an A.
"I've seen the future! And it's a bald-headed man from New York!"
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