A Bunch of Amateurs

Plot

A washed-up Hollywood star is flown to England to play the title role in King Lear at "Stratford" believing he will be appearing onstage at the legendary RSC in Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare. Instead he finds he has signed on with the "Stratford Players" in the Suffolk village of Stratford St John. He goes to the United Kingdom with his career deteriorating and having problems with his daughter who is an aspiring actress on the fringes of the New York theatre. The local villagers are somewhat of a motley crew and are naturally delighted to have such an - albeit unsuccessful - star playing with them. Reynolds plays a typically selfish American with no time for manners, and displays an appalling lack of class, considering himself too big for this lowly setting. The transition to humble actor, happy to play with the British actors takes some time, but eventually he is reconciled with his estranged daughter and realises that he is no better, in terms of talent and intelligence, than his amateur colleagues.

Cast

Jefferson Steele - Burt Reynolds
Dorothy Nettle - Samantha Bond
Mary - Imelda Staunton
Nigel Dewberry - Derek Jacobi
Amanda Blacke - Camilla Arfwedson
Charlie Rosenberg - Charles Durning
Janine Jarvis - Lorraine Ashbourne
Verity Nettle - Gemma Lawrence
Frank Dobbins - Peter Gunn
Kevin Patel - Tony Jayawardena
Rupert Twisk - Alistair Petrie
Mike Bell - Peter Wight
Lauren Bell - Kelly Price
Kevin's Mum - Surendra Kochar

Reception

The film was universally panned by both critics and audiences alike, with criticism mostly focusing on the film's stale humour and Burt Reynolds's performance. It holds a 0% critical score on Rotten Tomatoes based on 2 reviews and a 41% audience score based on 417 reviews (as of September 2015), indicating generally negative reviews. It is not listed on Metacritic.