American Playhouse: Season 1, Episode 4 - Who Am I This Time?

This movie is from an American Playhouse production in 1982. It is an early Susan Sarandon and Christopher Walken movie. I always find the acting in this very moving and real.He (Harry) is an incredibly shy, isolated young man in a small town, who blooms into whatever character he is playing in the local community theater productions. She (Helene) is a new person in town, without friends and not planning to stay long, until she is invited to audition for a part in "A Streetcar Named Desire" for the community theater.Helene is cast in the part of Stella and begins to fall for Harry playing the part of Stanley, not knowing that he is not charismatic like the character of Stanley at all. When the opening night ends and he just disappears, Helene wonders what has gone wrong. The rest of the movie is her learning how to reach him, open him up and become someone other than a character in a play.

This is a gem for which I have searched for many years, having admired it on tv in the 70s. It has a spectacular cast, and we have the advantage of seeing Christopher Walken as an amateur actor with no real private life playing scenes from Cyrano de Bergerac, The Importance of Being Earnest, and -- most importantly -- Streetcar Named Desire. Susan Sarandon is a colorless telephone company employee who falls in love with him as Stanley Kowalski, only to realize that he is someone else entirely - in fact, that he is apparently no one at all. Having taught all these plays in my classes, I would have given a lot to own this CD in years past. Walken nails Cyrano, and he nails Stanley. Why not? He's Chistopher Walken. As a sometime actor, I am also experienced in the issue of falling temporarily in love with one's costar in the heat of the production. What one learns from this seemingly simple tale is priceless. For the actor, the teacher, and for the literature student, it is a godsend.

I first saw this short film on PBS in the early-80's when Susan Sarandon and Christopher Walken were young (and so was I)! Written by Kurt Vonnegut, one of my favorite authors, it is like nothing any of these people have done before or since. Many actors become their characters, yet are shy off-stage. This story takes that idea to extremes in a touching way. Who Am I This Time takes place in a small town, and involves its community theatre, in which Christopher Walken's character is always the heartthrob leading man. Susan Sarandon travels with the telephone company, which brings her to this same small town for a few weeks. I hesitate to say much about the plot beyond this, so as not to give it away. Suffice to say, that the character development is superb, through the writing, the directing and the acting. Highly recommended if you are a fan of Walken, Sarandon, or Vonnegut, or even if you just want to see a great little film.

It is well known to the North Crawford Mask and Wig Club that Harry Nash (Christopher Walken), the reclusive local grocery clerk, comes to life on stage, but then reverts to sheer social ineptitude at play's end. Helene Shaw (Susan Sarandon), new to town, on a brief training stint at the phone company, is also painfully constricted socially. But it gets pretty hot and steamy for the 2 in the town's production of "Streetcar," when Harry fully inhabits the loud, sexual, animal spirit of Stanley, and Helene, as Stella, breaks out of her emotional and sensual confinement. The clever Helene births an ingenious plan to provide Harry with all the confidence he needs. Adapted from Kurt Vonnegut's short story, directed by Jonathan Demme, and with precious little runtime of 55 minutes, this is an artistic treat. The acting is first-rate. Recommend.

Jonathan Demme(Silence of the Lambs) directs this adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut's excellent short story- one of his more upbeat pieces of writing. Susan Sarandon is the new woman in a small town with a community theater planning its next production. Christopher Walken is the painfully shy(to invisibility) home town boy who somehow always winds up in the theater's productions. Boy and girl meet and the mystery unfolds.This is Walken after The Deer Hunter, but before he became identified with movie psychopaths and Sarandon after Rocky Horror Picture Show, but before Bull Durham. They work wonderfully together in a production that should make you curious about the rest of American Playhouse's eleven seasons.It makes me wish Demme could direct a new version with a new cast to see what might emerge from this story.

I saw this wonderful little made-for-tv movie years ago - an early one for Susana Sarandon and Christopher Walken - and have always enjoyed its lyrical moments. I saw a bad VHS several years ago - and hoped the dvd would improve the picture quallity. It improved - but not by much. Whether it's the fuzziness of pre-high def broadcast standards - or creating this dvd from 2nd generation sources, the picture is very grainy. It's watchable only because I like the movie - otherwise I'd return it.

Susan Sarandon and Christopher Walken show us they are already shining stars, back in 1982! Unbelievably great performances from both of them. I've watched this one-hour program at least five times over the years, and it gets better every time. Based on a short story by Kurt Vonnegut, and directed by a young Jonathan Demme, the story is an argument for the importance of literature! The story is about the fact that sometimes great lines of literature can speak for those who have difficulty verbalizing their feelings. It's both comic and deep. No fancy production values, no car chases, just one simple hour of inspired acting by two greats of the cinema world.

It was great. Thank you.

I have been trying to buy this DVD for many years, so I was delighted to finally obtain a copy. Although it is a Spanish import you can play it in English without subtitles. It was brand new, in its wrapper. The seller acknowledged my order straight away with a very nice email, advising me that he was despatching it that day. I received the DVD in very good time and the packaging was excellent.

I have remembered this production since 1982 and it has lingered in my memory, so I tried to find a DVD version. Luckily Amazon gave me access to this DVD. I love the story and the theme and will treasure this from now on. It is a feel good lovely movie with a beautiful ending.

Saw this film years ago and never forgot it. Excellent script, cast.

susan Sarandon can do no wrong....actress supreme