Delirious Synopsis: Jack Gable (John Candy), a soap opera writer with little in the way of a love life — and even less job security — takes a knock on the head one day and wakes up in the very television show he has been writing. He discovers that through his typewriter he can control events in his new reality. At first, Jack believes this will help him impress Laura (Emma Samms), the actress who plays the program’s star, but soon he realizes that no matter how much power he has, he can’t control everything.
Jack Gable (John Candy), the head writer of Beyond Our Dreams, a popular soap opera, feels like he is losing his grip on the production. He’s got an unrequited crush on the show’s demanding lead actress, Laura (Emma Samms), and is fighting against introducing a new character named Janet, whom a struggling actress named Louise (Mariel Hemingway) is auditioning for.
After experiencing a head injury, Jack wakes up in Ashford Falls, the fictional town of Beyond Our Dreams, which is now very, very real. It takes Jack a bit to realize what’s going on – he’s still the head writer and can write whatever he wants to happen, including making Laura – now her character Rachel – fall in love with him.
While Delirious has a fun premise, it’s not executed as well as it could have been. John Candy is the film’s bright spot. His charming, sweet presence on screen has you rooting for him, even when he’s making all the wrong decisions.
Emma Samms and Mariel Hemingway seem to be having fun with their soap opera personas, but neither of their characters is very interesting – fictional or not. That’s the problem I have with Delirious as a romantic comedy – John Candy doesn’t have a ton of chemistry with either actress, though I did find the scenes between Jack and Louise/Janet to be rather cute.
I did enjoy how Delirious made fun of soap operas. I used to watch soaps daily when I was younger and didn’t have to, you know, work. Now, most of the soaps I watched are no longer on air, but I certainly remember how campy and dramatic they were, how every storyline seemed to get more and more bizarre or out there, and Delirious takes the silliness and goes full throttle with it.
There are some solid gags throughout the movie, including Dylan Baker’s Blake Hedison, who is slowly falling apart (literally) due to his sister Rachel’s poisoning of him, as well as Charles Rocket, who plays another one of Rachel’s brothers who seems to be in love with her. Icky, but also pretty darn funny too. As a whole, I think while Delirious may not be anywhere close to John Candy’s best work, it can still be considered guilty pleasure viewing. It’s not one I’ll revisit again, but I’m glad I watched it.
Watched: 03/16/2024
Notable Song: Beyond Our Wildest Dreams by John Melnick
