Comfort and Joy (1984)
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100% of critics liked it
(10 reviews) -
81% of users liked it
(528 ratings)
Writer/director Bill Forsyth's follow-up to his best film, Local Hero, is another comic exploration of a man undergoing a personal crisis. In Local Hero, the American played by Peter Riegert finds himself enchanted by the people and ambience of a Scottish village he has been dispatched to… More Writer/director Bill Forsyth's follow-up to his best film, Local Hero, is another comic exploration of a man undergoing a personal crisis. In Local Hero, the American played by Peter Riegert finds himself enchanted by the people and ambience of a Scottish village he has been dispatched to purchase for an oil company. In Comfort and Joy, Alan (Bill Paterson) is a Glasgow radio disc jockey whose air name is the chirpy Dickey Bird. After Maddy, his girlfriend (Eleanor David), walks out on him at Christmas, he's spurred to re-evaluate his life. Looking for more meaningful work than spinning pop tunes and offering inane chatter to his geriatric listeners, Alan decides to make a radio documentary. He chances upon a local rivalry between two ice cream companies, who are sabotaging each other's trucks in an effort to monopolize the market. Attracted to Charlotte (C.P. Grogan), the daughter of one of the company owners, Alan finds himself playing peacemaker rather than documentarian. That this cold war takes place in the dead of a bitter Scottish winter is only one of Forsyth's many sly touches. ~ Tom Wiener, Rovi
- Directed By
- Bill Forsyth, Maggie Greenwald
- Written By
- Bill Forsyth
- Genres
- Drama, Romance, Comedy
PG,
- In Theaters
- Jan 1, 1984 Wide
Critic Reviews
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Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
A quirky comedy.
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Adam Lippe, Examiner.com
Like most Forsyth films, Comfort and Joy is warm and gentle without being cloying or maudlin. And it somehow avoids off-putting levels of cynicism. Like its main character, Alan, it's just the right amount of not important.
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Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice
A perfect film for New Year's celebrations with its messages about personal renewal and starting afresh.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
No Featured Audience Ratings Found…
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Cast
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Bill Paterson
as Alan
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Eleanor David
as Maddy
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Clare Grogan
as Charlotte
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Alex Norton
as Trevor
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Patrick Malahide
as Colin
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Rikki Fulton
as Hilary
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Roberto Bernardi
as Mr. McCool
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Peter Rossi
as Paulo
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Katy Black
as Sarah
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Robin Black
as Lily
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Robert Buchanan
as Trevor's Workman
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Gilly Gilchrist
as Rufus
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Caroline Guthrie
as Gloria
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Johnny Irving
as Bob Hope Look-Alike
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Ona McCracken
as Nancy
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Billy McElhaney
as Renato
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David O'Hara
as Engineer
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George Rossi
as Bruno
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Douglas Sannachan
as Trevor's Workman
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Elizabeth Sinclair
as Fiona
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Alan Stuart
as Fight Arranger
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Teri Lally
as Shop Assistant
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Arnold Brown
as Psychiatrist
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Alistair Campbell
as Keith
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Ron Donachie
as George
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Ray Jeffries
as Removal Man
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Iain McColl
as Archie
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Alan Tall
as Trevor's Workman
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Billy Greenlees
as Trevor's Workman
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Charles Kearney
as All-Night Deejay
- Bill Patterson
- Dixie Carter
- Nancy McKeon
- Paul Dooley
- Steven Eckholdt
