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Modern Romance

Play trailer Poster for Modern Romance R 1981 1h 33m Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
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83% Tomatometer 23 Reviews 71% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
A film editor (Albert Brooks) breaks up and makes up with his girlfriend (Kathryn Harrold), unsure if he is in love.
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Modern Romance

Modern Romance

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Critics Consensus

Modern Romance contains all the hallmarks of Albert Brooks' best work: darkly funny, confrontational, and chock full of pithy observations about human behavior.

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Critics Reviews

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Gary Arnold Washington Post 05/01/2018
Likely to interest only those who wish Brooks well and don't mind making extravagant allowances. Go to Full Review
Derek Adams Time Out 06/24/2006
Extremely funny, ultra-hip and alarmingly insightful. Go to Full Review
Fernando F. Croce Slant Magazine 05/03/2006
3.5/4
Nearly as much as Jerry Lewis, Albert Brooks's comic persona is defined by its unlikability. Go to Full Review
Mitchell Beaupre Paste Magazine 03/25/2024
10/10
Billed as a comedy, Brooks deceptively hides in Modern Romance a scathing indictment of toxic masculinity akin to Agnès Varda’s Le Bonheur and Michelangelo Antonioni’s La Notte. Go to Full Review
David Nusair Reel Film Reviews 11/14/2020
3/4
...an uneven yet mostly rewarding comedy that stands as one of Brooks' better directorial efforts, ultimately. Go to Full Review
David Kaplan Kaplan vs. Kaplan 03/01/2008
3/5
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Audience Reviews

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Bucky R Mar 5 A comedy about emotional abuse probably seemed funnier in 1981. See more Mason M 09/07/2024 A definitely very dark comedy from Albert Brooks, Modern Romance shows Brooks's incredible acting, writing, and directing. He may have better films but the ending may be the hardest that I've laughed during a movie. See more john r 07/23/2024 This movie will make you want to punch Albert Brooks in the face. See more 03/14/2024 The great Albert Brooks in a never ending string of delightful romantic comedies. Here he plays film editor Robert Cole. He breaks up with his girlfriend Mary but continuously reconciles with her. There's a limit to how much of his disruptive antics she can take. Can Robert actually figure out what he wants? Being that he's jealous and self-centered they can't seem to be on the same page. This is the kind of modern romance that's all kinds of complicated. I love Albert Brooks but a majority of this was a slog to get through. The couples' romance is barely focused on until the very end. It's not fun watching Robert just moseying around attempting to get things back on track or watch his job. This should've been more engaging. See more Alec B 11/10/2023 This is probably one of the few examinations of a toxic relationship that doesn't involve physical violence of any kind. The film is uncomfortable from start to finish as what at first seems to be a neurotic neediness in the central character slowly becomes an obsessive narcissism. I respect the hell out of Brooks for casting himself as such a unlikable person. See more jon c 03/28/2021 The great Albert Brooks in a never ending string of delightful romantic comedies. Here he plays film editor Robert Cole. He breaks up with his girlfriend Mary but continuously reconciles with her. There's a limit to how much of his disruptive antics she can take. Can Robert actually figure out what he wants? Being that he's jealous and self-centered they can't seem to be on the same page. This is the kind of modern romance that's all kinds of complicated. I love Albert Brooks but a majority of this was a slog to get through. The couples' romance is barely focused on until the very end. It's not fun watching Robert just moseying around attempting to get things back on track or watch his job. This should've been more engaging. See more Read all reviews
Modern Romance

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Movie Info

Synopsis A film editor (Albert Brooks) breaks up and makes up with his girlfriend (Kathryn Harrold), unsure if he is in love.
Director
Albert Brooks
Producer
Andrew Scheinman, Martin Shafer
Screenwriter
Albert Brooks, Monica McGowan Johnson
Distributor
Columbia Pictures
Production Co
Columbia Pictures Corporation
Rating
R
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 13, 1981, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 1, 2013
Runtime
1h 33m
Sound Mix
Stereo
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