Going Overboard

Going Overboard follows Schecky Moskowitz, an aspiring stand-up comic who takes a low-level job on a cruise ship in the hope of breaking into shipboard entertainment. The ship's comedy slot already belongs to Dickie Diamond, so Schecky bides his time until an opening at the microphone finally comes his way. His moment in the spotlight coincides with the arrival of terrorists sent by General Manuel Noriega to kill the reigning Miss Australia, putting the passenger lineup of a beauty pageant and a would-be funnyman in the same dangerous path.

The film was released in 1989 and runs 97 minutes. Valerie Breiman directed and wrote the screenplay, and it stands as the first of the four features she has directed, ahead of Bikini Squad, Love & Sex and Overnight. Randolf Turrow produced for Theater Technologies and L.A. Dreams Productions. Adam Sandler plays Schecky, with Scott LaRose as Dickie Diamond, Tom Hodges, Lisa Collins, Adam Rifkin and Peter Berg among a credited cast of 24. Audience response has been extremely negative: on IMDb it holds 1.8 out of 10 from roughly 15,000 votes, and on TMDB 2.4 out of 10 from 164 votes, among the lowest ratings recorded for a wide-release American comedy of its era.