Прощай, девочка (Proshchay, devochka)

1977 film directed by Herbert Ross
the 1977 film

The Goodbye Girl is a 1977 American romantic comedy drama film directed by Herbert Ross, written by Neil Simon and starring Richard Dreyfuss, Marsha Mason, Quinn Cummings and Paul Benedict. The film, produced by Ray Stark, centers on an odd trio of characters: a struggling actor who has sublet a Manhattan apartment from a friend, the current occupant (his friend's ex girlfriend, who has just been abandoned), and her precocious young daughter. Richard Dreyfuss won the 1977 Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as Elliot Garfield. At the time, he became the youngest man (at age 30) to win an Oscar for Best Actor. Both Mason and Cummings were nominated for Oscars. The film became the first romantic comedy to earn $100 million in box office grosses.

Dancer and divorcee Paula McFadden (Marsha Mason) and her ten year old daughter Lucy (Quinn Cummings) live in a Manhattan apartment with her married boyfriend, Tony DeForrest. Coming home from shopping, Paula finds Tony gone as he had deserted her to travel to Italy for a film role. Prior to his departure (and unbeknownst to Paula), Tony sublet the apartment to Elliot Garfield (Richard Dreyfuss), a neurotic but sweet aspiring actor from Chicago, who shows up in the middle of the night expecting to move in. Paula, who is demanding, cynical, and neurotic, makes it clear that she does not like Elliot but reluctantly lets him move in. Paula is struggling to get back into shape so she can resume her career as a dancer. Meanwhile, Elliot has landed the title role in an off off Broadway production of Richard III, but the director, Mark (Paul Benedict), wants him to play Richard III of England as an exaggerated homosexual stereotype. Reluctantly, Elliot agrees to the non traditional portrayal, despite knowing that it may mean the end of his acting career. Theater critics savage the show, paying special attention to trashing Elliot's performance. The play quickly closes, much to his relief. Despite their frequent clashes and Paula's lack of gratitude for Elliot's help, the two fall in love and sleep together. Lucy grows cautious and sees the affair as a repeat of what happened with Tony. Elliot convinces Paula that he will not be a repeat; later he picks up Lucy from school and takes her on a carriage ride, during which she admits she likes him. In response, Elliot explains how much he cares for Lucy and Paula and that he would not do anything to hurt them. Elliot lands a job at an improvisational theatre and is seen by a well known film director. He is offered a film role, but the job is in Seattle and he will be gone for four weeks. Paula is scared that Elliot is leaving her, never to return, like all the other men in her life. Later, he calls Paula from the phone booth across the street and invites her to go with him while he is filming. Paula declines but is encouraged by the invitation. Before hanging up, Elliot asks Paula to restring his prized guitar, and she realizes that this proves he really does love her and will return.

The film began as a screenplay called Bogart Slept Here (essentially the story of what happened to Dustin Hoffman after he became a star) that was to star Robert De Niro and Mason for Warner Bros. It would have been the film De Niro made immediately after Taxi Driver. Mike Nichols was hired to direct. With the 1996 acquisition of Turner Entertainment Company, which owned the pre May 1986 MGM film library by Time Warner, Warner Bros. now owns the rights and distribution of the film.

The title song, "Goodbye Girl", was written and performed by David Gates in 1977, and was a top 20 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1977/78, peaking at #15.

Roger Ebert gave the film a mostly favorable review, awarding three stars out of four. He was unimpressed with Mason's performance and the character as written, calling it "hardly ever sympathetic." However, he praised Dreyfuss and cited his Richard III scenes as "the funniest in a movie since Mel Brooks staged Springtime for Hitler." Vincent Canby of The New York Times found the film to be "exhausting without being much fun" and "relentlessly wisecracked." Arthur D. Murphy of Variety called the film "another feather in Herbert Ross' directorial cap," with Dreyfuss giving "his best screen performance to date." Gary Arnold of The Washington Post wrote that the film "evolves into the most satisfying comedy Simon has written directly for the movies. One tolerates the plot mechanics for the sake of the genuinely amusing aspects of his script, the bright remarks and the distinctive or appealing character traits that provide good performers with live ammunition." Pauline Kael of The New Yorker was negative, commenting, "It's not Neil Simon's one liners that get you down in The Goodbye Girl, it's his two liners. The snappiness of the exchanges is so forced it's almost macabre." David Ansen of Newsweek wrote, "It's pure formula, and Simon plays it straight, all cards on the table, with the conservative professionalism of a gambler used to winning. As directed by the ubiquitous Herbert Ross, The Goodbye Girl is a modest, bittersweet comedy that will delight Simon fans and leave his critics staunchly unconverted."

There were three failed attempts to turn The Goodbye Girl into a half hour, television sitcom, according to Lee Goldberg's book Unsold Television Pilots. The first pilot, aired on NBC in May 1982 and titled Goodbye Doesn't Mean Forever, starred Karen Valentine and Michael Lembeck, and was directed by James Burrows from a script by Allan Katz. The second, unaired pilot was produced a year later starring JoBeth Williams and was directed by Charlotte Brown from a script by Brown and Pat Nardo. The third pilot, which never aired, again starred Valentine and was directed by Jay Sandrich. The Goodbye Girl was developed into a 1993 Broadway musical of the same name starring Martin Short and Bernadette Peters. A 2004 remake with Jeff Daniels and Patricia Heaton keeps the screenplay from the original version.

The VHS format has been released several times over the years. MGM/UA Home Video released the 1993 and 1996 versions, while Warner Home Video released the 2000 version in addition to releasing the DVD version. A manufacture on demand Blu ray format was released through Warner Archive Collection on November 8, 2016. The film is available also via streaming through various services.

Footage from the film appears in the episode "Kin" on The Last of Us.