Unexpectedly, though, and mainly because of Michael Hardart's deft direction, the third act allows some terrific acting to shine through.
Doyle McManus, the Washington bureau chief of the L.A. Times, says of Carroll and Baquet, "They were a terrific Mutt-and-Jeff Mutt-and-Jeff Mutt-and-Jeff
Though finger-wagging weakens the dramatist's case, a terrific middle act amply demonstrates how laughter is freighted with judgment.
Rodriguez and Taylor are a terrific double act, their on-screen chemistry providing both laugh-out-loud comedy and moving melancholia.
Black and MacLaine make a terrific double act, the latter blending fearsome crotchetiness and hidden vulnerability with aplomb.
The play's terrific first act simmers with increasing tension, as the men size each other up, each unsure of how much loyalty he can count on after all these years.
It really is a terrific first act: witty, smart, exciting – and Fanning's reading of her first scene is great, perhaps the best "rehearsal" scene since Naomi Watts's audition piece in Mulholland Drive.
Pixies are a terrific closing act but an ironic one, too: rock's 30-year veterans seeing out a festival that leaves you buzzing with the thrill of the new.
The pair make a terrific double act, opening this time-honoured tale up to a new audience who have yet to earn their spurs as aficionados of the old west.
