Tattle Tale (1992): C. Thomas Howell, Ally Sheedy, Amanda Elwes, Catherine Rich, Pavel Douglas, Susannah Kenton, Patrick Floersheim, Olivier Pierre, Rebecca Pauly, Veronique Ryke, Francois Lalande, Alain Flick, Roger Bret, Isabelle Guiard, Geoffrey Carey....Director Baz Taylor, Screenplay Charles Gale, Baz Taylor.
"Tattle Tell", released for television in 1992, is a well-done, engaging comedy based on an original screenplay by Charles Gale and Baz Taylor, the latter who directed. Because this was made for TV, it's an obscure, very little-known comedy and very underrated. Cable TV, at present, is its home. Stars C. Thomas Howell and Ally Sheedy as ex-spouses Bernard and Laura. Laura writes a "tell-all" book in which she claims Bernard abused her, refused to help financially and was a monstrous husband. Her book becomes an instant success and she becomes a women's empowerment model, attaining TV talk-show immortality. Her book, however is all lies and Bernard's acting career is ruined. His solution: well-plotted revenge. Together with his girlfriend Mimi (Amanda Elwes) and her wealthy friends the French-American De Varenne family, they form a brilliant scheme to destroy the ex and expose her as a liar. Bernard, making use of his abilities as an actor, disguises himself as an Italian billionaire and proceeds to romance his ex, who has become a social-climbing gold-digger. Little does she know that she's falling for her hated ex. Mimi and Bernard hope to get Laura to confess to her lies in the book. Before long, there is a fast-paced, gripping cat-and-mouse chase, mostly conveyed through hilarious scenes and dialog. This is nothing special or particularly good. Just solid dialog and wonderful comedy of the independent film kind. The two principal stars - C. Thomas Howell and Ally Sheedy - though not big stars, have genuine chemistry as feuding ex's. They also happen to be young and good-looking, so they can appeal to younger audiences. The more "grown-up" version of this could even be Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner in "War of the Roses" which was released only a few years earlier in the late 80's. In a sense, this is a kind of revenge fantasy film with tons of funny lines and scenes. It's also a film in which you know who to root for and doesn't take itself seriously nor ever becomes too complex. There are plot twists toward the end but it's nothing overwhelming. Ally Sheedy comes off as bitchy, self-centered and mean so that we believe Bernard is the victim of her scheme to become wealthy. She is herself an actress of a different kind, but she stepped all over her ex to get her fortune. Bernard, on the other hand, did not work, except struggled as an actor, and perhaps did not fulfill his own obligations as husband, giving Laura an excuse to act as she did. But it's very clear that this is a movie in which we root for Bernard. If you love comedy and good screenplays, this is for you. But other than that, this film may lack enough appeal for everyone. But it's only because it's such a little-known comedy made for TV.
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