Too Much Sun Reviews

TOO MUCH SUN is too much everything for its own good. Although kicking off with a wickedly zany spoof of the spoiled rich, in which precious poodles are whisked off to a canine Club Med, the film's inventiveness quickly spirals downward. On his deathbed, billionaire O.M. Rivers (Howard Duff) is tricked into altering his will by a grasping Catholic priest (Jim Haynie). The dying man is persuaded to add a stipulation to his bequests: one of Rivers's two offspring must produce an heir within a year of his death or his millions will go to the church. The catch is that Rivers's son Sonny (Eric Idle) is gay and his daughter Bitsy (Andrea Martin) is a lesbian. Next, real-estate agent wannabees--Frank Della Rocca, Jr. (Ralph Macchio) and Reed Richmond (Robert Downey, Jr.)--enter the fray. These two hustlers hope to cut themselves in on the action, as does super vixen Gracia (Jennifer Rubin), who is hired to prod Sonny's libido in a heterosexual direction. Will Gracia succeed when Bitsy's lover, Susan Connor (Laura Ernst), has already tried to "straighten" Sonny out? Will Sonny's boyfriend, George Bianco (Leo Rossi), grow weary at Sonny's failed attempts to convert? Robert Downey, Sr.'s satirical gifts have not been lying dormant since he was heralded for PUTNEY SWOPE way back in 1969; they've disintegrated completely. Written and directed in the broadest terms imaginable, TOO MUCH SUN lacks shading, well-judged performances and sharp pacing. The satire here is adolescent, and the jokes and sight gags exude staleness.