Fun with Dick and Jane

Much edgier than the recent remake starring Jim Carrey and Tea Leoni, this original 1977 starring vehicle for George Segal and Jane Fonda is a scathing satire of middle-class American affluence and the absurd lengths to which some people will go to maintain their lifestyles. Segal plays a California-based aerospace engineer who suddenly loses his job and finds himself with a half-finished swimming pool he can't pay for, and a mountain of debt besides. Reluctant to give up their tony suburban home, Dick and his wife Jane (Fonda) embark on new careers as armed robbers. The screenplay by David Giler, Jerry Belson, and Mordecai Richter takes numerous potshots at our materialistic society while tacitly endorsing it—a cunning strategy that, nearly three decades later, makes the movie far more subversive than it initially seemed. Director Ted Kotcheff maintains a cynical tone throughout, eliciting deliciously offbeat performances from Segal, Fonda, erstwhile talk-show host Ed McMahon (surprisingly effective as Segal's boozy boss), Dick Gautier, and Hank Garcia. Segal's comic bona fides have long been well-established, but in seeing this again, we're reminded how deftly Fonda once played comedic roles. Presented with a solid transfer, but no extras, this is recommended. (E. Hulse)