The Prisoner of Second Avenue

Comedy-drama about a middle-aged couple who are forced to cope when the husband unexpectedly loses his job and has a nervous breakdown., A suddenly unemployed executive and his wife must adapt to their new life., A New York-based advertising man has his life turned upside-down when he loses his job. Forced to subsist on the income of his wife, he trys to cope with his unemployed status in a myriad of comedic ways., A lesser but still entertaining Neil Simon work, +The Prisoner of Second Avenue was adapted to film in 1974. Jack Lemmon takes over the role played on Broadway by Peter Falk: Mel is a New York-based advertising man who goes through hell when he loses his job. The gods seem to conspire against him as he tries to cope with his unemployed status; he is particularly depressed over the fact that he must now subsist on the income of his wife (Anne Bancroft). There are laughs in The Prisoner of Second Avenue, but it’s the laughter of desperation and despair; it might not be advisable to watch this film after a bad day at the office. Watch for Sylvester Stallone as the “human punch line” of an old urban legend about a pickpocket.