What's Up, Doc?
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Movie Reviews of What's Up, Doc?
Movie Review: "I can't breathe, is it possible to break a lung?"
Summary: 5 Stars
The first screwball comedy to be a box office blockbuster since the early forties, WHAT'S UP, DOC? fills it's 94 minute runtime with so many terrific one-liners, double innuendoes, and visual puns that the average viewer will probably have to watch the film a couple of times before he or she catches all of the jokes! Apparently the film inspired repeat viewing even during it's initial release - Doc was the third-highest grossing film of 1972 (right behind THE GODFATHER and THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE). In all honesty, I think this film has a higher laugh-per-second ratio than few films before or since.
This film was the perfect (and surprising) way for director Peter Bogdanovich to follow-up his cinematic landmark THE LAST PICTURE SHOW, and he keeps the film's momentum running right at the perfect speed. He also knows how to cast a film flawlessly. Buck Henry's marvelous screenplay contains many scenes with overlapping dialogue and double reverses, and the entire cast never misses a beat. Barbra Streisand literally radiates with magnetism throughout the entire film! Anyone who still wonders why she was the highest grossing actress of the seventies definitely needs to see this film; Streisand's performance in DOC is what being a movie star is all about. Many critics complained that Ryan O'Neal was miscast when the film was originally released, and those critics obviously missed out on the joke. The fact that O'Neal was considered a heartthrob at the time was all part of the fun in seeing him cast as complete goof; and I don't think anyone can deny the fact that he throws himself into the role completely.
As most viewers already know, Madeline Kahn has her finest screen role in Doc, and steals nearly every scene she's in (and she wisely knows just how far to push the characterization without going over the edge). The rest DOC'S supporting cast also could not be improved upon, Kenneth Mars, Austin Pendlrton, and Liam Dunn give just three of the standout performances in this perfect supporting ensemble. As with most comedies, DOC was snubbed at the Academy Awards (Bogdanovich, Streisand, and Kahn all deserved nominations in the respective categories in my opinion), but time has been good to DOC and remains far more popular than many of the films that did get Oscar noms in 1972. Unarguably, one of the best comedies of all time.
About the DVD: The picture quality is very good - a tad soft at times, but very natural and true to the film's original look. The sound is mono, but it's well-rendered. It's great to have the trailer and vintage featurette preserved on disc, and while Streisand's brief commentary isn't very illuminating, Bogdanovich's full-length track is very informative and entertaining.
Movie Review: Remains delightfully fresh after over thirty years
Summary: 5 Stars
WHAT'S UP, DOC? has to stand as one of the finest remakes of a great original ever made. By and large, remakes of classics are profoundly stupid. Although the remakes virtually never match the originals (and admittedly this one is no exception), most are merely pale imitations. Although this one does not come close to supplanting BRINGING UP BABY, it nonetheless manages to bring enough originality to make it utterly delightful. Ever since I first saw it, it has remained my favorite Barbra Streisand film, and is delightfully kooky in a way completely different from the way that Hepburn is kooky in the original. Ryan O'Neill is indeed a pale imitation of Cary Grant, but then, who wouldn't be? But Madeleine Kahn, on the other hand, is a remarkable addition to the storyline. This was, for all practical purposes, her film debut, and she makes the most of it. This was director Peter Bogdanovich's second hit film in a row, following his marvelous THE LAST PICTURE SHOW. The next year he would make PAPER MOON, and for all intents and purposes he seemed to be the next great American director. But then for whatever reason his gifts seemed to desert him, and while he has occasionally reemerged with a decent film, he has never managed to reascend to the level of these three films. He has, however, managed to write a great deal of film criticism, along with one of the greatest collections of interviews with directors ever published. But in this film his direction was fine, and if the comedy towards the end sometimes seems less screwball than Keystone cops, I find it easy to forgive him.
I repeat that this is my favorite Barbra Streisand film. I know people are divided on her looks, but when I look at her in this one, I think she is remarkably beautiful, and her personality is so infectious that she manages to dominate the screen every second she is onscreen. She was so superb in this film that I wonder why she didn't try to undertake similar parts in the future. She did the follow up to FUNNY GIRL, but she never really tried anything this goofy again. It's a tremendous loss, because she obviously excelled at it.
I'm surprised at how well this film has aged in thirty years. Sometimes you go back and see a film two or three decades after you first saw it, and it can be shocking how aged it appears. I had that experience with both TOOTSIE and ROXANNE, and both now seem hopelessly outdated. But this one, despite the early seventies clothes and decor, remains truly fresh.
Movie Review: Guys, it's okay to watch this movie.
Summary: 5 Stars
I'll get the negatives out of the way first. This is being marketed as part of "The Streisand Collection", which may scare off more than a few prospective viewers. All the guys I've tried to get to watch this have demurred, probably due to the packaging (the pink trim doesn't help at all) and the spotlight on Babs. Maybe if I got my son's slipcover for "Saw" or "S.W.A.T." and swapped the disc, they might watch it.
Which is really too bad and very much their loss. This is a great comedy, with clever writing and a perfect cast. I saw this when it was in theaters back in '72 and made haste adding it to my DVD collection. No fear shelving it next to Clint Eastwood, Coppola, or "Tombstone". I defy anyone not to laugh during the judge's rant in the courtroom.
I guess I won't get through this review with saying something about Streisand. I never really cared much for her music or movies and she always seemed very much the diva. But I really can't see anyone else being Judy Maxwell. She looks pretty Hot, has really spot-on timing with the comedy, plus her and O'Neal have a nice chemistry. Yeah, they had to let her sing. There's a duet over the credits with her and O'Neal (he talks the lyrics instead of singing - probably a good thing), and she does a smattering of "As Time Goes By". But that's all. So this isn't a musical.
Lots of great character actors all over the place here. Great setups and over the top scenes. I guess there's a set of concrete steps in 'Frisco that are still damaged from the car chase.
I'd be committing a mortal sin here if I didn't say something here about Madeline Kahn. She steals every scene she is in. An amazing film debut to a career that ended way too soon.
Sure, this isn't "Stripes" or "Hot Tub Time Machine", but it's still funny as hell. So guys, crack open a brew and watch this. You'll thank me later.
One more thing, kids can see it too. There's enough going on to keep them interested and no content to make a parent uncomfortable. I think this was one of the last G-rated films that wasn't targeted right at kids. Must be because there's no flatulence or crotch jokes. There is a line about a broken coccyx, though...
Movie Review: It's the Tops
Summary: 5 Stars
I saw this movie when it first came out in the theater. I laughed hysterically then, and on viewing it now I still laugh. There are priceless comic bits throughout the movie - "Use your charm", Madeline Kahn's whimpers reading the sex book in bed, the taxi driver answering "Yes, Eunice", Vocal Reverberation under Spinal Pressure, etc., etc., etc.
Loosely taking Bringing up Baby as a pattern, this film inserts 4 suitcases for 2 leopards, tosses in the screwball female with the nerdy professor and comes up a winner. But while Bringing up Baby had a great comedic cast, the ensemble here actually does it one better. Madeline Kahn is a scene stealer right from the start. You do not realize how hilarious her performance is until you go back and watch the film a second or even a third or fourth time - to see where the original script would have placed the focus of the action, and then how she manages in her understated way to garner the attention.
The other cast members are priceless as well - Austin Pendleton (the stuttering attorney in My Cousin Vinny) is great as Frederick Larrabee, donor of the Larrabee prize. His reaction throughout the banquet scene to Streisand is fantastic - "She's a gem" - making Ryan O'Neal/Howard Bannister's renunciation of Madeline Kahn/Eunice Burns inevitable. Kenneth Mars is the other conniving aspirant to the Larrabee grant, John Hillerman is the hotel manager who has just had a room destroyed, and a bit of Buck Henry and Randy Quaid at the banquet. There are so many great minor performances that it is impossible to document them without presenting an endless list....
The chase scene is the final third of the movie and it is one of the biggest, most over-the-top chase scenes envisioned. Bogdonavich took all the wacky chase scenes from the silent films and compressed them into this one. You have the just-missing-the plate glass window scene, the just-missing the newly poured cement scene, and the addition of a chinese dragon, a VW, strange costumes, the SF harbor ferry, and a bicycle.
See this movie - you'll laugh, then laugh again, and again and again...
Movie Review: Finally, one of the best comedies on DVD
Summary: 5 Stars
"How much is it without bufferin?"I like everything about this movie and the DVD version that has finally just come out. As for the movie, it's funny, witty, entertaining, and even though it's made in the image of a classic screball comedy (Bogdanovich says he even got Howard Hawkes' blessing before starting this picture, which is inspired by Hawkes' "Bringing up Baby"), it seems current.
I won't summarize the bizarre and zany plot too much here (how could I?), except to say that it is about a henpecked musicologist (Ryan O'Neal) who attends a conference in San Francisco with his overbearing and plain fiance (Madeline Kahn). While at the conference he meets and has his life turned upside down by a mischevious young woman (Streisand). In the middle of this are are four identical bags, which of course, get mixed up. And don't forget about the jewel thieves and the cinema's best car chase since The French Connection. Suffice to say, this is a zany movie with humor that functions on many levels and rewards the observant viewer. See it again to catch all the subtle sight gags and jokes that pay off earlier setups. I could go on and on about the inspired script and the wonderful performances by the entire cast, who all seem absolutely perfect in their parts. It is worth the price of admission just to watch the scene where Madeline Kahn's character is dropped off at a seedy location on a pier and meets up with some local thugs. Bogdanovich was at his height when he put this one together. After this--and the wonderful Paper Moon--it was all downhill. . .
As for the DVD, it is a great transfer with a sharp picture and good sound. The print they made if from looks to have been in good shape. For those of us with widescreen TVs, the picture is true anamorphic widescreen, which means it naturally fills up your widescreen without you having to use a "zoom" view. The DVD extras are also very nice, including a complete commentary by Bogdanovich and a selected commentary by Streisand, as well as a mini 'making of' documentary and a trailer or two.
Highly recommended. ****