“This is Rob Reiner” – the 1980s films of an under-appreciated American director
- Flicks Film Posters
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
When Rob Reiner died late last year it was a shock, as his long-awaited sequel to the cult classic This is Spinal Tap (1984), Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, had just hit cinemas shortly before his untimely demise.
Since his death many obituaries and film critics noted how hitherto under-appreciated Reiner’s work had been. This seemed mighty strange to me as I remember going to the cinema and loving his films, particularly the ones he made between 1984 and 1992, a run of outstanding and entertaining films as good as anything by any of his contemporaries (and rarely matched in American cinema before or since).
That sequence began with the afore mentioned Spinal Tap, and was followed by The Sure Thing (1985), Stand By Me (1986), The Princess Bride (1987), When Harry Met Sally... (1989), Misery (1990), and lastly A Few Good Men (1992).
Space prevents me from diving too deep into the Reiner oeuvre so let’s cherry pick a few cinematic gems that filmgoers cherish.
Reiner occasionally made cameo appearances in his films, notably as “Marty DiBergi” in Spinal Tap, an affectionate homage to the great Martin Scorsese (who reportedly didn’t appreciate Reiner’s cheeky reference to his rock doc film The Last Waltz in 1978, about the last concert by The Band).
In Meg Ryan’s legendary ‘fake orgasm diner scene’ in When Harry Met Sally… it is Reiner’s mum who utters the immortal line “I’ll have what she’s having!” (by the way Sally ordered a turkey sandwich on white bread, in case your interested). Amongst the greatest of all rom coms, When Harry Met Sally… continues to charm and entertain new generations of fans.
In Stand By Me, a writer (Richard Dreyfuss) recounts a childhood journey with his three friends to find the body of a missing boy. One of the finest Stephen King adaptations, (Misery is pretty good too!) Reiner effortlessly conveys the poignancy and bittersweet aftertaste of teenage memories, whilst coaxing indelible performances from the four young actors, (especially the late, great River Phoenix, as Chris Chambers). Like all Reiners’ best work, the film repays repeated viewings.
Finally, it now seems “inconceivable!” that the witty cult classic The Princess Bride was under- appreciated on release. Reiner’s hilarious takedown (“Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die” ) of po-faced sword and sorcery and fairy tale epics, brilliantly scripted by William Goldman, now seems absolutely on point.
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