Two terrible lounge singers get booked to play a gig in a Moroccan hotel but somehow become pawns in an international power play between the CIA, the Emir of Ishtar, and the rebels trying to overthrow his regime. Two terrible lounge singers get booked to play a gig in a Moroccan hotel but somehow become pawns in an international power play between the CIA, the Emir of Ishtar, and the rebels trying to overthrow his regime. People who downgrade this movie probably never really saw it. It wasn't horrible, it was just goofy. Dustin Hoffman is really good in this movie, and probably more believable than Warren Beatty. The scene with Dustin Hoffman acting as a translator is an all-time classic! Perhaps the theme is too much like "Spies Like Us", but it's still one of my absolute favorites. I'm surprised this movie doesn't have a cult following. My friend Kyle and I used to rent this movie all of the time, and it was convenient that nobody else wanted it–it was always available for rental! The songs that these guys came up with in the movie are just priceless. Watch it–if you can find it–you'll like it. Surprisingly, this turned out not to be entirely disagreeable for such a notorious critical and box-office flop! While watching the stars - cast against type, with Warren Beatty as the shy, sensitive one and Dustin Hoffman as the cynical womanizer - making fools of themselves is decidedly an embarrassment, it does provide some undeniably amusing moments.<br/><br/>The best segment is arguably the opening 20 minutes detailing the duo's pathetic attempts at hitting the big time in show business. The deliberately awful songs (courtesy of the ubiquitous Paul Williams) are quite funny. Conversely, the political satire involving intrigue in the Middle East is less appealing - though the antics of a blind camel and a bunch of ravenous vultures steal this part of the show.<br/><br/>Charles Grodin (as a CIA agent) adds some class to the proceedings and Isabelle Adjani - "The Lovely Lady Of The Left" - is the most attractive Arab freedom fighter you'll ever see (her "meeting cute" scenes with Hoffman and Beatty respectively are early highlights). Still, the best joke is possibly the very last one: after the untalented singer/songwriter duo have conned the CIA into funding their "live" album, its sleeve cover is seen finally gracing a record store window…but then the camera pulls back to reveal that it's being sold at a "Special Low Price"! Hoffman and Beatty are so tone-deaf they don't even know how to play the songs for deadpan humor. They seem old, white, and without shtick. [14 May 1987, p.26(E)]
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