Rob Reiner was on a major cinematic roll during the span of 1984-1992. In 8 years he released THIS IS SPINAL TAP (1984), STAND BY ME (1986), THE PRINCESS BRIDE (1987), WHEN HARRY MET SALLY (1989), MISERY (1990) and A FEW GOOD MEN (1992).
Ever since then he's been stuck in a rut that will likely never end: NORTH (1994), GHOSTS OF MISSISSIPPI (1996), THE STORY OF US (1999), ALEX & EMMA (2003), RUMOR HAS IT (2005), THE BUCKET LIST (2007), THE MAGIC OF BELLE ISLE (2012), AND SO IT GOES (2015), BEING CHARLIE (2015) and LBJ (2016) the latter which wasted the opportunity of chronicling one of the most perplexing and fascinating U.S. presidents of our time in favor of a dull, uninspired movie.
What happened? I think this could be a case of Reiner not adapting to the times. Most of his movies since 1995's THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT have had a nostalgic feel to them, by-the-books narratives that belong more in the 80s and 90s than modern-day times. It seems like he hasn't really matured as a filmmaker and instead has relied on safe filmmaking and become more novice as the times changed.
I do know people in Hollywood that want him to make a comeback and he's been given shot after shot, project after project, but he's been stuck in this rut now for nearly 25 years. You can also blame the fact that he's never really been what you might call an "auteur." There really isn't a personal directorial touch to any of his films. A lot of his movies are just so different and don't have a specific noticeable style. He does comedies like "A Princess Bride" then dramas like a "A Few Good Men". Was that streak of 6 classics just a stroke of luck? Did he just find the right screenplays coming at him right after the other?
