Brought together by their children’s impending nuptials, future fathers-in-law Sheldon "Shelly" Kornpett (Alan Arkin) and Vince Ricardo (Peter Falk) are forced into an uneasy alliance when Vince’s work as a secret agent spills over into his family’s lives.
Starring Peter Falk and Alan Arkin, written by Andrew Bergman (Blazing Saddles), and directed with deadly understatement by Arthur Hiller, The In-Laws is a gloriously wild romp.
Falk and Arkin are a joy together - Arkin underplays the characters’ disbelief, allowing Falk’s (and the movie’s) antics to speak for themselves. Falk plays his veteran agent with a matter-of-fact assurance, never signposting whether Vince Ricardo is out of his mind, or playing a long con.
The actors are so locked in and the characters so well-drawn, they enrich what could have been familiar thriller plot moves. It is a testament to these characters, and their dynamic - they show up all the movies which have tried to coast on their cast alone to prop up underwritten action comedy concepts.
While Bergman’s script provides the meat, director Hiller deserves credit for his adaptation. In effect, he and Bergman are another double act, with the director playing straight man to the screenwriter’s dynamic, surreal vision.
Hiller plays the action out in wide shots, often ensuring both his leading men are visible onscreen, to capture their dynamic in as organic a fashion as possible. There are few cutaways - in scenes such as Shelly’s ducking of the gunman around the taxi, or the “Serpentine” set piece at the airstrip, he lets the comedy breath.
The introduction of a third act villain (Richard Libertini) is fine, although it feels a tad out of step with the rest of the movie (the dictator’s hand puppet bit feels like it either should have been cut, or pushed to be more extreme).
A fine caper about two people who should have never collided, The In-Laws is terrific.
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