The Flamingo Kid (1984)
Directed by Garry Marshall, The Flamingo Kid (1984) is an American romantic comedy film. In the summer of 1963, Jeffrey Willis joins friends for gin rummy at El Flamingo Club, a private beach resort. It’s there that he meets Carla Sampson, the girl of his dreams. Despite being upset about the club’s strict guest policy after the game, Jeffrey quickly lands a job as a car valet and eventually becomes a cabana steward. His father disapproves of him working at the exclusive club due to their middle class background in Brooklyn. However, his mentor and hero at the resort is Phil Brody – a salesman of exotic sports and luxury cars and reigning gin rummy champion.
Jeffrey, a skilled player of gin rummy himself, and his friends admire Brody’s seemingly ‘psychic’ talent at the card table. Brody takes a liking to Jeffrey and shows him his car business, sparking hope in Jeffrey that he may have found his true calling in selling cars. This entices Jeffrey further into the pursuit of easy money, as evidenced by Phil’s showy display of success compared to Mr. Willis’ manual labor or Phil’s brother who spent years studying to become a lawyer with little financial return. During dinner, Jeffrey confidently expresses that college is not necessary for him as he plans to become a car salesman instead. Together with his co-workers at El Flamingo, Jeffrey ventures to Yonkers Raceway, risking their cash on a horse tip but ultimately coming up short when the trotter breaks stride.
Date of download: 2015-11-11T17:22:34+00:00
Cast:  Matt DillonJeffrey Willis  Hector ElizondoArthur Willis  Richard CrennaPhil Brody  Jessica WalterPhyllis Brody |
Directed by Garry Marshall, The Flamingo Kid (1984) is an American romantic comedy film. In the summer of 1963, Jeffrey Willis joins friends for gin rummy at El Flamingo Club, a private beach resort. It’s there that he meets Carla Sampson, the girl of his dreams. Despite being upset about the club’s strict guest policy after the game, Jeffrey quickly lands a job as a car valet and eventually becomes a cabana steward. His father disapproves of him working at the exclusive club due to their middle class background in Brooklyn. However, his mentor and hero at the resort is Phil Brody – a salesman of exotic sports and luxury cars and reigning gin rummy champion.
Jeffrey, a skilled player of gin rummy himself, and his friends admire Brody’s seemingly ‘psychic’ talent at the card table. Brody takes a liking to Jeffrey and shows him his car business, sparking hope in Jeffrey that he may have found his true calling in selling cars. This entices Jeffrey further into the pursuit of easy money, as evidenced by Phil’s showy display of success compared to Mr. Willis’ manual labor or Phil’s brother who spent years studying to become a lawyer with little financial return. During dinner, Jeffrey confidently expresses that college is not necessary for him as he plans to become a car salesman instead. Together with his co-workers at El Flamingo, Jeffrey ventures to Yonkers Raceway, risking their cash on a horse tip but ultimately coming up short when the trotter breaks stride.
