After a run of stinkers like Bringing Down the House and the Pink Panther remake, it’s easy to forget how funny Steve Martin was when he was in his prime. If you need a reminder, check out one of two screenings of The Jerk at BAM tonight. Released in 1979, the classic Carl Reiner-directed comedy chronicling the adventures of a hapless idiot named Navin R. Johnson is still thoroughly enjoyable and eminently quotable. This was Martin’s big movie break after years on the stand-up circuit, and has been called “such a soaring hymn to stupidity…that only the sanest souls could resist the temptation to join in with the chorus.” Tickets are $12 and are available here.
