[4]
Rob Morrow (TV’s Northern Exposure) and pre-stardom Johnny Depp lead in this cold and calculated sex comedy set at an oceanside hotel. Private Resort delivers on the requisite ‘T&A’, but forgets to give us any character worth caring about. Morrow and Depp, both at the starts of their careers, conjure no chemistry or charisma in their thankless roles. The script is scant in its narrative propulsion, taking us through one Three’s Company-style ‘comedy of errors’ vignette after another. Morrow’s romantic subplot with a resort waitress (Emily Longstreth) should have been the driving force in the screenplay, but it’s given little screen time and no sincerity. Even the wackiest of comedies need a sincere core, and without one, Private Resort is adrift. The jokes are hit and miss, with most of the good ones courtesy of the older supporting cast. Dody Goodman makes the most of her part as a wealthy middle-aged woman who becomes super-horny after accidentally over-dosing on Quaaludes. Hector Elizondo, as the film’s main antagonist, deserves respect for a highly physical performance that had to have hurt a little.
With Karyn O’Bryan, Tony Azito, and Hilary Shepard. Directed by George Bowers (Body and Soul, My Tutor).