My Fellow Americans 1996

Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune: The movie suggests we get the government we deserve, but do we really deserve this movie? Read more

Jack Mathews, Los Angeles Times: A gang-written comedy that doesn't have a political bone in its body, or much evidence of a funny one, either. Read more

Jay Boyar, Orlando Sentinel: As political satire, My Fellow Americans makes a poor candidate. Read more

Desmond Ryan, Philadelphia Inquirer: Using talent of this order on a script this weak, along with merely decorative appearances by the likes of Lauren Bacall and Wilford Brimley, amounts to the Hollywood equivalent of government waste. Read more

John Hartl, Seattle Times: It takes a special actor's grace to survive a script as lame as My Fellow Americans, and James Garner has it. Without appearing to break a sweat, Garner makes each grotesquely desperate attempt at humor look smooth and assured. Read more

Susan Stark, Detroit News: The performers are first rate. Unfortunately, and all too often in movies these days, the script regularly lets them down. Read more

Stephen Holden, New York Times: Mr. Lemmon and Mr. Garner are such pros that they carry the movie smoothly over its dull patches. Read more

Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: I'd cheerfully vote the writers, director and producers of My Fellow Americans out of office. Read more

Stephen Thompson, AV Club: Garner and Jack Lemmon have enough charisma, and there are enough solid laughs, to mostly overcome My Fellow Americans' embarrassing moments and improbable ending. Read more

Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader: An appalling piece of junk. Read more

Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: Enthusiastic as one might be that Jack Lemmon has found a new lease on movie life with his Grumpy Old Men series, the funny-crankpots genre wears mighty thin on this road trip. Read more

Dave Kehr, New York Daily News: Yes, it's Grumpy Old Presidents, in which most of the comedy comes from the supposed shock of hearing two senior citizens cursing at each other in terms Beavis and Butt-head would find inelegant. Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: There are times when I laughed, but, as a whole, this particular buddy film really isn't worth the price of admission. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: This is not a great comedy and will be soon forgotten, but it has nice moments. Read more

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: A pleasing but mediocre film, with a great cast, a great story and a misguided script. Read more

Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune: Not every joke works; some clunkers don't even come close. But just when you start to give up on it, the film comes back with a whopper that produces roars of laughter. Read more

Todd McCarthy, Variety: Shameless laughs flow off the prefab assembly line with sufficient regularity to please audiences with a taste for comfortable tradition spiced with a bit of contempo naughtiness. Read more

Kevin McManus, Washington Post: Segal loses his light-comedy touch after the first hour and makes an unfunny mess of the final, 'crackpot' chase sequence. Read more