This three-fer repackaging of a trio of Steve Martin films finds him playing roughly the same character in each (a frustrated professional attempting to break free from his stifling girlfriend/wife and equally stifling job), but with wildly different levels of filmic success.

All of Me showcases Martin's knack for physical comedy as it explores the story of a hapless attorney (Martin) who, through a series of comic mishaps, finds his body inhabited by the soul of recently departed heiress Edwina Cutwater (Lily Tomlin). Though Tomlin's contribution consists mostly of voiceover and occasional in-mirror appearances (the only time Martin's character "sees" her), the interplay between the two stars is frequently priceless, if occasionally questionable (as when Martin needs Tomlin's "help", so to speak, in order to go to the bathroom). Director Carl Reiner fills the proceedings with some delicious sight gags ("Feel my heart," intones beatific co-star Victoria Tennant, as she firmly places Martin's hand on her breast) as well as just plain old-fashioned farcical jokes ("That's right, call me a dirty sex poodle," says Tennant in another scene when Martin, attempting to make love to her, is suddenly taken over by an aghast Tomlin and begins spanking her). Richard Libertini as a slightly deranged Swami and Selma Diamond as Martin's legal secretary help fill out an expert supporting cast that keeps the laughs coming steadily. The first scene after Tomlin's spirit invades Martin's body, when both are vying for control, is among the most hilarious pieces of physical comedy ever filmed.

Overall Grade: 3.5

Many forget that Martin started his long career as a writer (for the Smothers Brothers, among others), and it is Martin's own screenplay that anchors the bittersweet L.A. Story. This time Martin is hapless "wacky" weatherman Harris Telemacher, being hounded by his harridan girlfriend (Marilu Henner) while seeking refuge in the arms of both free spirit clothing salesgirl SanDeE (yes, that's the way she spells it), played by a winsome Sarah Jessica Parker, and English journalist Sarah (Victoria Tennant, again), all while being given advice by a flashing freeway information sign (it makes sense in the context of the film, though just barely). As might be expected of a Martin written screenplay, the gags come fast and furiously (there's no dearth of easy targets in L.A.), some landing more successfully than others (the "first day of spring, open season with guns on the L.A. freeway" scene seems in rather poor taste now after the many sniper sprees the nation has experienced since the film's release). L.A. Story's best moments come in the understated repartee between both Martin and Tennant and Martin and Parker rather than from either the forced, screwball-esque ambience that pervades the bulk of the movie or the quasi-literary Shakespeare references that Martin interjects from time to time.

Overall Grade: 3

Novocaine borrows the narration scheme of L.A. Story, and features Martin as yet another hapless, frustrated professional, but misses the mark (just barely at times) due to its lack of sustained tone. Does this film want to be a murder mystery, a black comedy, or a character study? Each of those three elements comes to the fore at various times, but none is explored thoroughly enough to give the film a unified feel. That said, the basic premise of Martin as a dentist being wooed away from his perfect fiancé (Laura Dern in an exceptional performance) by a drug-addled bohemian (Helena Bonham Carter, perhaps studying up for her current role as Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd) is a strong one, and, once again, the supporting cast is uniformly excellent (especially Scott Caan as Bonham's scary brother). Unfortunately, the black comic elements (Dern's "perfection" has a dark side) often conflict with the more graphic scenes of various murders and other mayhem taking place, and it makes for several uneasy juxtapositions. Director David Atkins tries to spice things up with various gimmicks like cutaways to x-rays of people's mouths (there's a hopelessly forced repeated metaphor about rotting teeth that supposedly gives the proceedings a through-line), but his more naturalistic handling of the straight-ahead thriller scenes is in fact more satisfying than the "tarted up" segues.

Overall Grade: 2.5

The DVD

Video:
Unfortunately the best looking transfer is Novocaine, which is the worst film of the lot. Its enhanced 1.85:1 transfer is sharp, well detailed, with excellent color and contrast. Moving down the quality scale we come next to L.A. Story, with an enhanced 1.78:1 image which nonetheless shows quite a bit of damage, with manifold specks of dirt and scratches scattered throughout its running time. The real travesty however is the continued pan and scan treatment for All of Me, which, while certainly not a bellwether widescreen extravaganza, still deserves better treatment than this. Add to this disgrace a badly damaged print, with faded color and softness, and it's enough to make a reviewer want to inhabit the soul of whoever keeps going back to the well with the same transfer of this comedy gem instead of taking a little time to upgrade its release to something worthy of today's equipment.

Sound:
All three stereo soundtracks are excellent, with good separation and fidelity.

Extras:
All of Me sports none. L.A. Story features a short, standard issue featurette, the original trailer, and, almost as funny as the film itself, a vintage promo for the "new cutting edge technology of DVD," along with 1998's coming DVD attractions. Novocaine fares best in the extras category, with an informative featurette where director Atkins reveals his own family history with dentistry and how it influenced his decision to make the film, another equally interesting featurette with several actual dentists discussing things like paleontology and forensic dentistry, deleted scenes, and excerpts from the soundtrack.

Final Thoughts:
As with most budget repackagings, this is a mixed bag, worth it for the manic All of Me and the somewhat less successful but still highly enjoyable L.A. Story. The odd man out in this trio is definitely Novocaine, which still manages to provide a laugh or two mixed in with some gruesome goings-on that may entertain crime film buffs. This is certainly worth a rental to see if it belongs in your permanent collection.

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"G-d made stars galore" & "Hey, what kind of a crappy fortune is this?" ZMK, modern prophet