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Rating: - Rodney meets Wally
Crude. Crass. Lowbrow. These words describe both the film & its title character. A real life fan of shows like "Jerry Springer", "Meet Wally Sparks" was obviously subject matter Rodney Dangerfield was anxious to base a comedy on. Just by watching the outrageously insane montage of the opening credits, you know immediately that this is not a "sophisticated" comedy...what would you expect from mining humor from the crazy world of "tabloid" talk shows, in which anything can--and usually does--happen? Rodney is, of course, obnoxious T.V. personality Wally Sparks, who is pressured by network top brass (Burt Reynolds) to "clean up his act or else". In desperation, he tries to arrange an interview with a distinguished Southern Governor (David Ogden Stiers, who was doing his share of silly comedies around that time with "Doc Hollywood" & "Jungle 2 Jungle"), who despises Sparks. Through plot twists--and Sparks' own deception--Sparks becomes an almost permanent houseguest, systematically wrecking the mansion & pushing the flustered Governor to his limits. Then Sparks stumbles upon a scandal which could destroy the Governor's career & personal life. Amidst all the loud craziness is a genteel message: Which is more important--your career or your children?
The film is chock full of cameos from all kinds of celebrities. Debbie Mazar is wily & typically bewitching as Sparks' assistant, who becomes his devil's advocate. Cindy Williams has some amusing moments as the Governor's somewhat dippy wife. Reynolds, unfortunately, doesn't have enough screen time to make an impact. Some of the comedy is heavyhanded & obvious: Sparks accidentally emasculating a male statue; Sparks "loosening up" Williams & her bridge-playing partners with Long Island Iced-teas; and Reynolds' bumbling network assistant trying--and failing--to expose Sparks' shenanigans, most of his attempts looking like a poor man's Inspector Clouseau. Most of the time, the film tries to get laughs from having a room full of people run around & scream. What you can rely on is Rodney himself. He tosses out some pretty good--and racy R-rated--one-liners like the pro he is. He seems to be having much fun during the surrounding chaos. Certainly, MWS is not Rodney's best, but not his worst either. If you want crude belly laughs in the tradition of "Caddyshack" or "Easy Money", then this one's for you.

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