A wail begins as a moan. The sensual anguish of Philip Roth's Portnoy's Complaint can be traced back to a fictive lament written when he was 26. The film version of Goodbye, Columbus is wise enough to preserve his undeniable assets: the sexual candor, the sour salt of Jewish skepticism, the ear that has overheard everything and forgiven nothing. The movie goes astray occasionally, not because it is too faithful to Roth's text, but because it imitates other films, notably The Graduate. A pity. Goodbye, Columbus is stronger on dialogue and longer...
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