The Prisoner of Second Avenue

PG

Released Mar 14, 1975

1h 45m

Comedy

Drama

List

44%

9 Reviews

Tomatometer

67%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Neurotic middle-aged New Yorker Mel Edison (Jack Lemmon) is fired from his advertising job, forcing his loving wife, Edna (Anne Bancroft), to become the couple's sole breadwinner. Feeling emasculated, he begins to fall into a depression. A summer heat wave, unthoughtful neighbors and a robbery only worsen matters. When Mel finally suffers a nervous breakdown, he relies on those closest to him, including Edna and his brother Harry (Gene Saks), to restore his sanity.

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George L

Jack Lemmon and Anne Bancroft are fun to watch. This is a very enjoyable movie

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

04/14/24

Full Review

Audience Member

For roles like this Lemmon deserves Oscar!!! Bravo!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/17/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Wow, just wow. The story of This film is transcendent of generations. Mel and Edna can easily be me and my wife. The hardships of the 70'2 are still the same hardships of today. It is 2018 and this film's plot and characters are still just as relevant as when this movie premiered. As a matter of fact, even the news update snippets sound like snippets of today's society. Neil Simon was and will always be known as a great playwright and his stories (just like Shakespeare's) can be used by any generation. The acting was amazing (loved the chemistry of Jack and Anne), great supporting actors portraying great supporting characters. Melvin Frank's vision for the film was a key to the success of this flm. Recomend this to anyone in their forties no matter what year we are living in.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

Full Review

Audience Member

'a lessor neil simon' I don't think so and this has the best balance of humour & pathos no ez feat

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/21/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Trite and boring. Another waste of time from Doc Neil Simon. I will never understand his appeal. Jack Lemmon and Anne Bancroft could be more irritating. Avoid It.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/19/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A Hearty Approval of a Wonderful Film--Brilliant piece of writing!!

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

Full Review

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Melvin Frank

Director

Jack Lemmon

Mel Edison

Anne Bancroft

Edna Edison

Gene Saks

Harry Edison

Elizabeth Wilson

Pauline

Florence Stanley

Pearl

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Pauline Kael

New Yorker

There are no layers of meaning in The Prisoner of Second Avenue; it's a big-screen sitcom.

Oct 6, 2023

Full Review

Steve Warren

The Barb (Atlanta)

Neither fish nor fowl.

May 5, 2023

Full Review

Jacoba Atlas

Los Angeles Free Press

It has one admirable asset in Anne Bancroft, who is quite simply wonderful.

Dec 5, 2019

Full Review

Preston Barta

Denton Record-Chronicle

If running up and down the emotional spectrum sounds ideal, allow 'The Prisoner of Second Avenue' to lock you behind its bars for 100 minutes and free you a changed person.

Rated: 3.5/5

Jun 10, 2019

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

There's relatable, universal material in this property, but it often gets buried beneath a template that teeters uneasily between awkward pathos and obvious one-liners.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jun 1, 2019

Full Review

Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

At its best, it's a second rate Death of a Salesman.

Rated: C+

Jan 30, 2009

Full Review

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Synopsis

Neurotic middle-aged New Yorker Mel Edison (Jack Lemmon) is fired from his advertising job, forcing his loving wife, Edna (Anne Bancroft), to become the couple's sole breadwinner. Feeling emasculated, he begins to fall into a depression. A summer heat wave, unthoughtful neighbors and a robbery only worsen matters. When Mel finally suffers a nervous breakdown, he relies on those closest to him, including Edna and his brother Harry (Gene Saks), to restore his sanity.

Director: Melvin Frank
Production Co: Warner Bros.
Rating: PG
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 14, 1975, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2009
Runtime: 1h 45m

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