A divorced couple (Alan Alda and Jane Fonda) reunited briefly to determine who will have custody of their teenage daughter. A pair of doctors (Richard Pryor and Bill Cosby) who travel from Chicago with their wives (Gloria Gifford and Sheila Frazier) to spend a vacation together. A middle-aged everyman (Walter Matthau) flying in for his nephew’s bar mitzvah and discovers a strange woman (Denise Galick) in his bed. An acclaimed stage actress (Dame Maggie Smith) on her way to the Academy Awards, accompanied by her deeply closeted husband (Sir Michael Caine), who holds his own unique opinions on her chances at winning the award. These characters are all the focus of California Suite, Herbert Ross’ deliriously funny adaptation of Neil Simon’s stage play. Like many of the great ensemble comedies of the 1970s, California Suite has aged extremely well – a delightfully irreverent piece of storytelling that combines the sensibilities of classic sitcoms with more broadly-appealing cinematic conventions, creating a predictable but thoroughly entertaining look at society through a comic lens, which has always been one of Simon’s most distinctive characteristics as a writer, and what made him a pivotal voice in mid-century American culture, even if his name hasn’t become as widely synonymous with quality as it should. Ross, who had already directed a few marvellous comedies such as The Sunshine Boys and The Goodbye Girl (both of which were written by Simon as well), was well-equipped to handle the material as part of his long-running professional relationship with the writer, and while it may be a slightly more ambitious piece in terms of the overlapping storylines and the size of the cast, there’s not much doubt that California Suite, for all its minor flaws, is just as enthralling as anything else put together by either the director or the writer.

While it seems misguided to consider California Suite an essential work in the traditional sense, since there really isn’t much in this film that we haven’t seen before or after its production, its well-meaning approach to humour, impeccable performances and exceptionally strong writing all go into making this a charming, consistently enjoyable affair that functions as both a wonderful surprise for those first venturing into it and as a film that invites multiple viewings, with its easygoing style and unforgettable upbeat tone making it a film that benefits from a revisit, which is essentially what signalled my recent rewatch. It has stood the test of time, lacking the dated humour that normally tends to plague these kinds of comedies (and just further proof towards the timeless nature of Simon’s work), and may not be particularly serious, with the exception of a few dramatic moments, but manages to balance both outrageous humour with more quiet moments of intimacy, which are often very touching and help bind the film together. It avoids sentimentality, to the point where it can occasionally be somewhat callous, but considering how the writer was someone whose work always reflected a keen balance of both good-natured tenderness and more irreverent humour, it does make sense. Simon’s script is often the driving force behind the film, with Ross’ responsibility as helmer simply being to shepherd these various narrative threads into a few memorable vignettes that intertwine and complement each other in quite unexpectedly moving ways. When one is working from such a strong script, with crackling dialogue and witty observations, it is quite difficult to fail, and with Ross’ assured understanding of Simon’s tone and intentions with the material, he is able to produce an enthralling piece of cinema that may often be too slight but is nonetheless as captivating as any other broad comedy from this particular era.

Like we’d naturally expect from this material, the star of California Suite is always going to be Simon, whose work is what keeps us engaged. However, the cast of the film is also quite exceptional, with a diverse ensemble being put together and tasked with bringing these various stories to life. Many of the actors are doing some terrific work, and while the film itself may be slightly broader than we’re used to, some of these actors are giving amongst their strongest performances. Alan Alda and Jane Fonda take on the parts of the divorced couple who are forced to interact one afternoon and find themselves becoming vulnerable with each other for the first time in nearly a decade. Both actors are essentially playing roles very similar to what we’ve seen before – Alda is a genial everyman who can toss out a kind smile just as fast as a witty retort, while Fonda is a fiercely independent woman who is not going to buckle to conventions in any way – and they work together so spectacularly well, their verbal sparring concealing a deep sense of yearning in both characters that becomes extremely compelling as the film progresses. The inverse is present in the segment starring Walter Matthau and Elaine May, as a doting couple who arrive at the hotel on different days, with Matthau’s character finding himself spending the evening with a young woman, who subsequently becomes too drunk to function, which occurs concurrently with the arrival of May, whose discovery of her husband’s brief infidelity incites rage in her that forces their marriage to be reconsidered. Matthau and May were a formidable pair in A New Leaf, but are playing very different characters here – May reminds us why she’s a comic treasure, while Matthau is just so endearing as the desperate husband. They have fantastic chemistry, and bring out the hilarity in a strange situation that feels pulled directly from the pages of the most hackneyed sitcom, but comes across as entirely authentic and wonderfully entertaining.

However, California Suite is mostly known for the performance given by Maggie Smith, whose segment is also the most compelling of the film – as an actress who is fading into obscurity, and only receives her acclaim for a slight comedy, Smith is doing some incredible work. Her storyline with Michael Caine serves to be a bitingly funny indictment on the entertainment industry, with the film reflecting on its own existence and bringing up some blisteringly bleak commentary, with Smith’s exuberant, hilarious performance also carrying a lot of depth that makes this amongst her finest work, and proof that she could be both a fantastic leading actress, as well as a scene-stealing supporting presence. This is essentially where the film is at its peak, because not only is it being quite satirical of the industry as a whole, it’s commenting on deeper issues as well – Caine and Smith are such fantastic dramatic performers, but as evident by California Suite, they’re capable of some very funny work too (which is not surprising, as both have flourished in lighter fare over the years), but which here carries some heft in terms of the emotions. Unlike the storyline focused on Alda and Fonda, where the tone is far more melancholy and we predict it’ll end in a more sentimental way, Smith and Caine are playing characters that seem to be on the verge of complete eruption – and they do come dangerously close to it – but just as you think they’re about to fall apart, they go the other direction, giving such poignant performances as people who were married before they loved each other. Considering their segment does deal with issues such as sexual identity in a frank and earnest way, using frank and honest terminology rather than allusion or innuendo, it is somewhat ahead of its time (and takes on a slightly deeper meaning when we consider homosexuality was only decriminalized in their native United Kingdom less than a decade before). It’s far from meaningless trifle, and it may be very funny, but this aspect of the story is never played for laughs in a way that feels mocking and instead has a kind of tenderness that is quite surprising for the tone of the rest of the film.

California Suite is a masterful work of comedy. I’ll reiterate that it isn’t entirely essential in the history of the genre, and nearly everyone involved did produce better work at some point in their career, but this is less of a criticism of the film, and more a way of commenting on how easygoing it actually is. It takes some interesting turns, but for the most part, it is a solid work of outrageous entertainment that keeps the viewer engaged. It works better upon a rewatch since it allows you to focus on the small intricacies of the characters and the manner in which each individual performer humanizes them beyond simply being mere archetypes – this works the best for the segments with Fonda/Alda and Smith/Caine, where the good-natured humour blends with more tender drama to create a very special set of truly compelling performances. Ross was a solid director whose creativity was more focused on making something entertaining as opposed to something entirely original, which is where the film works the most – it doesn’t purport to be anything more than it is, and functions mostly as an upbeat distraction of a film, a diversion from more serious matters that certainly doesn’t go anywhere we haven’t seen before, but rather finds its heart in where it has already been. California Suite is a wonderfully charming comedy, one that manages to be engaging and funny without losing its spark of genius, compensating for the fact that it hits some common beats with a general endearing quality that is difficult to capture, and which makes this film all the more worthwhile, whether for first-time viewers or those who have already been enchanted by it and simply want to revisit it.