Modern Problems

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Modern Problems
Modern Problems DVD cover
Directed by	Ken Shapiro
Produced by	Alan Greisman Michael Shamberg
Written by	Ken Shapiro Tom Sherohman
Starring	Chevy Chase Patti D'Arbanville Dabney Coleman Mary Kay Place Nell Carter
Music by	Dominic Frontiere
Cinematography	Edmond L. Koons
Editing by	Michael Jablow
Distributed by	Twentieth Century Fox
Release date(s)	December 25, 1981
Running time	89 mins.
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	Unknown
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Modern Problems is a 1981 comedy film written and directed by Ken Shapiro and starring Chevy Chase, Patti D'Arbanville and Dabney Coleman. The film grossed $26,154,211 in the United States. A DVD release of the film was issued in 2005.

[edit] Plot

"Max Fiddler" (Chevy Chase) is an air traffic controller whose life is slowly going down the drain. His girlfriend, Darcy (Patti D'Arbanville), has just left him because of his jealousy. Now, everywhere he goes he seems to run into her with another man, driving him nuts. One night while he's driving home from a party, a truck spills nuclear waste onto his car and through his open sunroof, covering him with glowing green goo. The next day, he notices that he is has developed telekinetic powers.

He is asked to spend the weekend at the house of a paraplegic friend (Brian Doyle Murray), who has also invited some other friends, including Max's ex-wife (Mary Kay Place) as well as his ex-girlfriend, plus self-confidence author and womanizer Mark Winslow (Dabney Coleman) who has designs on Darcy. Winslow constantly demeans and derides Max, while trying to seduce Darcy (although his egomanical bragging and unabashed nudity just seems to alienate her).

Max gets his revenge by using his powers to humiliate his rival, meanwhile freaking out the other guests. Finally, he sees himself becoming a monster, and by a fortuitous stroke of lightning his powers are transferred to the voodoo-practicing maid (Nell Carter). Max's girlfriend forgives him and realizes she truly does love him, so Chevy loses his powers but gets the girl in the end.

[edit] Trivia

Chase narrowly escaped death during the filming of Modern Problems in 1980. During a sequence in which Chase's character wears 'landing lights' as he dreams that he is an airplane, the current in the lights short-circuited and arced through Chase's arm, back, and neck muscles.

Contains Dabney Coleman's only on-screen nude scene.