Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

Fantastic!

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

I recently saw The Ritz for the first time after hesitating for years. As a gay man who came out about 10 years after this film's release, I am well aware that the depiction of homosexuals in films from this period and before was never anything other than mocking or sinister or criminal. This movie tries hard to be funny. Jack Weston is, of course, a great comedian. Jerry Stiller as an Italian gangster tries but fails. Rita Moreno as a cabaret singer at the club is funny to some but foolish to me. While not "offensive" to gays, per se, it's very patronizing which is nearly as bad. This is because it's a product of it's time. The idea, for instance, that Moreno would work at this club and continually refer to the men as "maricon" and mean it isn't very funny to me. 2 of the 4 stars go directly to Treat Williams and his toweled body. He's stunning to look at and has his funny moments. Still, it's all "much ado about absolutely nothing" and it just goes on way too long. If it were a skit in a comedy revue lasting, say, 15 or 20 minutes then I might be on-board but at the end of the day this film lost me and it's jokes just don't stand the test of time.

I've always loved the film; I even went to the premier in NYC. I fell in love with, as many of us did, with the Rita Moreno's character of Googie Gomez. She is still in 2005 as fresh as she was almost 30 years ago. HOWEVER...when I heard that Ms. Moreno was going to be appearing in my favorite little 100 seat cabaret in San Francisco, just a few days after 09/11/2001, I jumped on Delta to San Francisco just to see her. I mean-just to see her. I arrived at 5PM and flew back at midnight. This was the first day that the planes were flying after 09/11 and people were not yet comfortable and having fun yet. In fact, during her show to only about 40 of us, she commented on "those bastards" not getting us down and she put on a fantastic show. Then after the show, she came out and spoke with everyone and was well received. However (as I said) when I mentioned to her how much I loved "her" Googie Gomez, her entire body language, tone and attitude changed to me. She immediately changed the subject and when I brought up Googie again, she really seemed "pissed off."Does anyone have any thoughts about this or have they encounter Ms. Moreno, who is still tops in my book.

It was 1976, Tehran Iran. Terry, also American, and I were bored at work and on the spur of the moment decided to skip out and check out the Tehran Film Festival. Boy, did we have no idea what we were getting in for.It just so happened that the next film on the bill was The Ritz. We knew nothing about it, but we hailed our driver, raced downtown to the theater, and made it in just in time.Before long, we were rolling on the floor. Truly, we couldn't hold on to our seats, I can't speak for Terry but the tears were just pouring down my face from laughter. And what made this worse was that, in a mostly packed theater, it seemed that most of the time the two of us near the back were the only ones laughing. Oh, every once and while the Farsi sub-titles would catch-up and the rest of the theater would let out a good laugh, I guess they were having a good time, but it was amazing to us how much was being missed, even some of the visual humor.I suppose we were both just overdo for some comic relief, but I've watched this film again through the years and it remains one of the funniest films I have ever seen. Jack Weston as the everyman-victim is perfect, as is Rita Morena as a never-quite-been, trying with varying degrees of success, to retain her dignity, her temper, and her dreams. And the rest of the cast -- who can you fault? Yes, from the dark opening deathbed scene, to all the madcap mistakes that follow, this is farce that at times sinks almost as low as the Three Stooges, but keeps sailing from floor to floor with surprise laughs at every turn.Some folks can't seem to get past the subject matter, I guess. But if you can find this movie, and you can open your mind beyond the lifestyle to just enjoy all the zaniness that happens, then hang on to your towel!

This has got to be one of the funniest films I've seen, Rita Moreno is excellent as Googie Gomez failed Broadway star and now singing in "the pits" at the Gay bathhouse "The Ritz"...Treat Williams had me in stitches with his voice and Jack Weston is superb as the man on the run and hiding "in the last place anyone would look for me"...Although this harks back to a time now gone the comedy is still as fresh as ever. Look out for the "Chubby Chaser" who constantly refuses to have anything to do with Lean muscled Treat because he's too skinny and chases Jack Weston around from start to finish! And the Andrews Sisters skit is a hoot.... If you haven't seen this film what are you waiting for..!