“Down and Out in Beverly Hills” Turns 25

NBC LA
“Down and Out” Turns 25
Paul Mazursky and Nick Nolte will appear at the Aero screening.
By Alysia Gray Painter| Thursday, Aug 11, 2011 | Updated 9:15 AM PDT

Down and Out in Beverly Hills

“Down and Out in Beverly Hills” gets a 25th anniversary screening at the Aero on Sunday, Aug. 14.

Sometimes we have a general uneasiness about how people think of our city’s portrayal in film, especially comedies.

Look at the charges levelled: We’re shallow as a city. We’re self-obsessed. We’re some unintriguing combination of the two, and we’re overly fond of overly expensive shiny objects. Yes, “Annie Hall” had LA right in a lot of ways, but we’ve also turned out some prickly, skittish, and important comedies that had a few rather deep things to say about the town they were made in.

“The Big Lebowski” is on that list. As is “Greenberg.” “The Player” is way, way up there (okay, some would argue the comedy of that film, but it has its moments). “Barton Fink” definitely makes the roster (we tried to not go Coens twice, but failed). And so is Paul Mazursky’s “Down and Out in Beverly Hills.”

The 1986 film, which spotlighted a down-on-his-luck Nick Nolte and a very much up-on-their-luck Richard Dreyfuss and Bette Midler, had plenty to say about have-have-not-ism ’round these parts. And remember the dog? We remember the dog. We love that dog.

Now the movie is 25 — really? really — and Nick Nolte and Mr. Mazursky will be stopping by the Aero on Sunday, Aug. 14 for a screening. The director will also sign a book at Every Picture Tells a Story before the film.