Plaza Suite (1970 Arthur Hiller)

Mike Nichols directed the play on Broadway in 1968, when Neil Simon was 41. I wondered about his age because this feels cynical, especially the grating but well-observed relationship between Matthau and Maureen Stapleton in episode one; then, in two, star Matthau in curious wig (making me think of Martin Freeman) eventually seduces the wonderful Barbara Harris after a thousand stingers. By the time the third act comes along, involving Lee Grant, we are becoming frustrated about how attenuated this material is (the Hitchcock half hour rule again applies) - we both wanted the daughter to be stabbed for childishly and silently occupying the bathroom rather than wanting to get married. Worth watching for Matthau and his co-stars and the odd laugh, but the reason we don't watch the film often is self-evident.