Waiting for Guffman

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Waiting for Guffman

R

1996

1h 23m

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

90%

Tomatometer

52 Reviews

91%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

When the town of Blaine, Mo., approaches its sesquicentennial, there's only one way to celebrate: with a musical revue called "Red, White and Blaine." Hoping the show will be his ticket back to Broadway, impresario Corky St. Clair (Christopher Guest) rounds up a cast of enthusiastic but untalented locals (Eugene Levy, Fred Willard, Catherine O'Hara) to perform his masterwork. But, when Corky reveals that theater agent Mort Guffman will attend the opening, things really kick into high gear.

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Critics Consensus

This riotously deadpan mockumentary about aspiring community theater performers never stoops to ridicule oft-ridiculous characters.

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Neil Jeffries

Empire Magazine

08/12/2008

4/5

The songs (co-written by Guest and Tapster Harry Shearer) are suitably ridiculous and the deadpan gags come thick, fast and too numerous to mention, all delivered with knuckle-gnawing subtlety by the C-list cast with A-list style.

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Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

08/12/2008

This 1997 comedy may be amusing if you feel a pressing need to feel superior to somebody, but the aim is too broad and scattershot to add up to much beyond an acknowledgment of small-town desperation.

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Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

02/27/2007

A

A madcap gem.

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Josh Larsen

LarsenOnFilm

05/29/2021

3.5/4

...affection, not derision, lead the way.

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Aaron Neuwirth

We Live Entertainment

05/20/2020

8/10

That's what Waiting for Guffman is, a big bowl of laughs, reliant on peculiar characters, with actors who are all committed to the bit.

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Ellen Dendy

Common Sense Media

01/01/2011

4/5

Fab small-town spoof; subtle humor may bore kids.

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mark g

@Mark_Alan_G. Dec 13

Mockumentary Gold! Tremendous cast and brilliant writing all under the direction of the genius that is Christopher Guest. Charming and funny as hell. Really iconic film that would lead to perhaps the even more iconic Best in Show.

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judy b

Dec 8

I don’t think this group of actors have never made any movie that wasn’t absolutely hilarious and "Waiting for Guffman" is true to form. They all have these seemingly serious parts to play, but that’s what makes it all the more hilarious.

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Cecilia S

@Cecilia2 Sep 22

One of the funniest movies ever made, 'Waiting for Guffman' spoofs everything from documentaries and talent shows to local politics and alien abductions.

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Yannis M

Jul 9

Raucous, outrageously funny, and filled with many zany scenes.

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Ava S

@avawatches Jun 8

Another laugh-out-loud mockumentary from Christopher Guest, Waiting for Guffman features a quirky, surprisingly root-worthy cast of charmingly innocent small-town dreamers.

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Julian S

@akajulianscott 11/13/2024

Guest’s sharpest comedic moments emerge in the details, with GUFFMAN offering a nuanced character study of the absurd yet familiar dynamics of small-town life and its fleeting glory.

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Christopher Guest

Director

Christopher Guest

Corky St. Clair

Eugene Levy

Dr. Allan Pearl

Fred Willard

Ron Albertson

Catherine O'Hara

Sheila Albertson

Parker Posey

Libby Mae Brown

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Synopsis

When the town of Blaine, Mo., approaches its sesquicentennial, there's only one way to celebrate: with a musical revue called "Red, White and Blaine." Hoping the show will be his ticket back to Broadway, impresario Corky St. Clair (Christopher Guest) rounds up a cast of enthusiastic but untalented locals (Eugene Levy, Fred Willard, Catherine O'Hara) to perform his masterwork. But, when Corky reveals that theater agent Mort Guffman will attend the opening, things really kick into high gear.

Director: Christopher Guest
Producer: Karen Murphy
Screenwriter: Eugene Levy
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Production Co: Castle Rock Entertainment, Sony Pictures Classics, All Night Productions, Pale Morning Dun
Rating: R (Brief Strong Language)
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 31, 1996, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 3, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $2.9M
Runtime: 1h 23m
Sound Mix: SDDS, Dolby SR, Dolby Digital, Surround, DTS, Dolby Stereo
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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