photo: Joan MarcusA.R. Gurney's new comedy demands more than a fair share of suspension of your disbelief: the institutionalized title character's transformation from delusional shut-in to giddy romantic is about as believable as the attending psychiatrist's matter of fact first-scene confession that he's been diverting her money to fund community outreach programs. Incredible business such as this makes it seem as if Crazy Mary might be meant to be more farcical than it is played here. While the two female leads do quite well by the material under the circumstances (Sigourney Weaver is particularly good at wound tight WASP) the most convincing (in fact, revelatory) performance comes from Michael Esper, who makes entirely credible his character's transformation from sullen to lovestruck.
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