{"id":52363,"date":"2020-10-17T13:40:27","date_gmt":"2020-10-17T20:40:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=52363"},"modified":"2022-02-15T23:52:42","modified_gmt":"2022-02-16T06:52:42","slug":"being-there-1979","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=52363","title":{"rendered":"Being There (1979)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;As long as the roots are not severed, all is well. And all will be well in the garden.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Poster-204x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"204\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-52364\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Poster-204x300.jpg 204w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Poster-87x128.jpg 87w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Poster-184x270.jpg 184w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Poster.jpg 381w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 204px) 100vw, 204px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nWhen a mentally challenged gardener (Peter Sellers) is forced to leave his lifelong home after his guardian&#8217;s passing, he is accidentally hit by a car owned by a wealthy woman (Shirley MacLaine) who takes him to her mansion to receive medical help and meet her dying husband (Melvyn Douglas). &#8220;Chance&#8221; (Sellers) &#8212; referred to by the couple as &#8220;Chauncey Gardener&#8221; &#8212; quickly impresses MacLaine and Douglas with his forthright simplicity, and an opportune meeting with the president (Jack Warden) gives him instant fame. What will Chance&#8217;s future hold in store for him and the nation?\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Hal Ashby Films<\/li>\n<li>Intellectually Disabled<\/li>\n<li>Melvyn Douglas Films<\/li>\n<li>Millionaires<\/li>\n<li>Mistaken or Hidden Identities<\/li>\n<li>Peter Sellers Films<\/li>\n<li>Richard Basehart Films<\/li>\n<li>Shirley MacLaine Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nHal Ashby&#8217;s adaptation of <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Being_There_(novel)\">Jerzy Kosinski&#8217;s novel<\/a> became Peter Sellers&#8217; swan song &#8212; his next-to-last film before dying from a heart attack at the age of 54. Thankfully, it&#8217;s a fitting and honorable role for Sellers, allowing him to portray a much wiser, less hectic character than usual &#8212; someone able to pass his unique gifts along simply by being himself. There&#8217;s a surprising amount of humor gleaned from the central premise of Chance being an interpretive slate for whatever people choose to make of his utterings; only his former colleague (Ruth Attaway) knows how &#8220;feeble-minded&#8221; he really is, and just one other person &#8212; Douglas&#8217;s doctor (Richard Dysart) &#8212; suspects anything. Caleb Deschanel&#8217;s cinematography perfectly captures the grandeur of the Rands&#8217; existence in a truly palatial mansion, large enough to house a hospital unit within it. Chance&#8217;s <em>chance<\/em> meeting with MacLaine can easily be seen as a divine &#8212; perhaps even Biblical &#8212; opportunity to allow Americans to connect in an out-of-the-box way; we may need our own &#8220;Chauncey Gardener&#8221; right around now to help heal our nation&#8230; <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Peter Sellers as Chance<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Sellers.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Sellers.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"853\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-52366\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Sellers.png 853w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Sellers-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Sellers-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Sellers-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Sellers-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 853px) 100vw, 853px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Shirley MacLaine as Eve Rand<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-MacLaine.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-MacLaine.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"853\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-52368\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-MacLaine.png 853w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-MacLaine-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-MacLaine-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-MacLaine-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-MacLaine-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 853px) 100vw, 853px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Melvyn Douglas as Ben Rand<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Douglas.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Douglas.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"853\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-52370\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Douglas.png 853w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Douglas-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Douglas-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Douglas-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Douglas-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 853px) 100vw, 853px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Caleb Deschanel&#8217;s cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Cinematography.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"853\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-52367\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Cinematography.png 853w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Cinematography-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Cinematography-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Cinematography-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Being-There-Cinematography-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 853px) 100vw, 853px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, for Sellers&#8217; performance and as an all-around good show. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Noteworthy Performance(s)<\/li>\n<li>Oscar Winner or Nominee<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> (<span style=\"color:red;font-weight:bold;\">Listed in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-static\/1001Movies.htm\"><em>1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die<\/em><\/a><\/span>) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0078841\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1979\/12\/20\/archives\/film-ashbykosinksi-being-therewatching-tv.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.filmsite.org\/bein.html\">FilmSite Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thespinningimage.co.uk\/cultfilms\/displaycultfilm.asp?reviewid=1832&#038;aff=13\">Spinning Image Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s2825ther.html\">DVD Savant Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/3994\/being-there#articles-reviews?articleId=87379\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.moriareviews.com\/fantasy\/being-there-1979.htm\">Moria Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;As long as the roots are not severed, all is well. And all will be well in the garden.&#8221; Synopsis: When a mentally challenged gardener (Peter Sellers) is forced to leave his lifelong home after his guardian&#8217;s passing, he is accidentally hit by a car owned by a wealthy woman (Shirley MacLaine) who takes him to her mansion to receive medical help and meet her dying husband (Melvyn Douglas). &#8220;Chance&#8221; (Sellers) &#8212; referred to by the couple as &#8220;Chauncey Gardener&#8221;&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=52363\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52363","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52363","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=52363"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52363\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":81301,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52363\/revisions\/81301"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=52363"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=52363"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=52363"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}