Oscar

Stallone starring in a comedy? Absolutely. Furthermore, it's a terrific comedy. Oscar is a fast-moving, highly stylized, very entertaining farce that is played as a combination of comic opera (complete with numerous soundtrack references to The Barber of Seville) and Depression-era zany comedy. [26 Apr 1991, p.3F]

Stallone makes good-hearted fun of his street-wise Italian-American persona and also of himself as big shot. I'm not used to having much good to say about the guy, but Stallone has evidenced a nascient sense of humor before, and here he allows it to blossom.

Mr. Stallone displays an unexpected gameness, even a flair, for the kind of broadly durable comedy that is the television sitcom's specialty. It works a lot better than might have been expected. Mr. Stallone may not be a comic genius, but he's definitely a sport.

As dreary as Oscar is for the majority of its 110 minutes, the movie sings whenever Shearer and Ferrero are on screen. [26 Apr 1991, p.E1]

In spite of its harmlessness and enjoyable supporting cast, Oscar is irrefutable evidence of the cynicism and insularity of Hollywood power brokers and hack filmmakers.

Oscar is a marathon of running gags, but few cross the finish line. [26 Apr 1991, p.4D]

Oscar, the new Stallone vehicle, is dreadful for an hour or so, then merely bad. By the time it's bearable, the picture is almost over. And by the time it's over, no regrets. [26 Apr 1991, p.G5]