Schmidt Steps Back

George Guidall has so many stunningly good performances to his credit that it seems foolhardy to distinguish one above the rest, but his embodiment of the difficult, all-too-human Albert Schmidt is remarkable. Schmidt has been told so often that he's an anti-Semite that he sort of accepts that it's true--or that maybe it used to be true. He's a snob. He makes terrible mistakes when confused or hurt; he's randy for a septuagenarian to a degree that recalls Updike's Rabbit Angstrom. Yet in Begley's sensitive writing and Guidall's astute and empathetic portrayal, what comes through is Schmidt's humanity, how hard he tries, and how often he succeeds at being gallant, generous, and loving. This is an outstanding production of a luminous novel. B.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine