What's Up, Doc? (1972)
Director: Peter Bogdanovich
Had I seen this before: Many times, as a kid
I think many of us who were children in the 80s/90s had a set collection of VHS tapes that, along with network television, constituted the bulk of our visual entertainment. This was one of the titles in our household rotation, which means it is embedded very deeply in my brain and I have no real context for its status in the world at large. Is this a hidden gem that most of you have never even heard of? Is it a well-known touchstone of the screwball comedy genre? It was the third-highest-grossing movie of 1972, behind The Godfather and The Poseidon Adventure! Am I the only person who thought of 70s wunderkind director Peter Bogdanovich as the maker of my favorite Barbra Streisand movie until I thought of him as Melfi's shrink and then eventually the guy who did Polly Platt dirty?
If you are not familiar, this movie is basically a cross between Bringing Up Baby and It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World--an absolute cornucopia of hijinks and silly rat-a-tat dialogue. Streisand plays Judy Maxwell, a sort of manic pixie nightmare, a charming fast-talking sociopath who has her sights set on mild-mannered musicology expert Harold Bannister (Ryan O'Neal) and who, I cannot stress enough, looks absolutely incredible throughout. The eyes, the hair, the tan, the fits. As the movie's title suggests, she is a sexy girl by way of Bugs Bunny and when she leaves a trail of chaos in her wake I get it. I would have no choice but to let Judy Maxwell ruin my life. The simplicity of the screwball set-up--there are four identical plaid suitcases in one hotel containing items needed or desired by a whole host of characters--gives the movie plenty of space to indulge in zaniness and ad libs without feeling overstuffed.
The cast is stacked with recognizable Mel Brooks players. It's my beloved Madeline Kahn's screen debut and she comes in HOT as Harold's overbearing fiancée. (The only jokes that really don't hold up for me are at the expense of her character's alleged unattractiveness.) There is Kenneth Mars, doing perhaps the most accent in film history. There is Liam Dunn, selling the world's most burnt-out judge. And in this re-watch John Hillerman absolutely had me on the floor as a deadpan hotel manager. There's even that guy Austin Pendleton and a baby-faced Randy Quaid about. Ryan O'Neal is probably the weak link in the comedy department--in a couple of scenes you can see the effort to keep up with the nonsense back-and-forth dialogue--but his main job is to be a handsome, beleaguered face, and in that he succeeds.
The centerpiece of the whole thing is an absolutely rollicking chase sequence through the streets of San Francisco, a barrage of near-misses and non-misses that crescendos right into the bay. Apparently this was the first American film to credit its stunt people, and wow do they deserve it. I know it's very old man yells at clouds to complain about the prevalence of CGI at this point, but watching a bunch of very real, very tactile things get smashed up in service of comedy really scratches an itch in a way that a lot of modern movies can't.
Line I repeated quietly to myself: "Don't you dare strike that brave, unbalanced woman!"
Is it under two hours: An easy breezy 94 minutes, baby
In conclusion: It's hard to assess something that is so ingrained in my memory--for me personally it holds up incredibly well for a 50-year-old comedy (especially one that is actually a throwback to much older comedies), but a first-timer might bump harder against some of its flaws. And maybe live-action cartoon just isn't to your taste! However, I will say this: your 12-year-old may vary, but mine laughed harder at this movie than I can remember her laughing in years. She was either grinning in anticipation of the next big disaster or was shaking and crying with laughter, objecting breathlessly "It's so dumb." If that's not an endorsement, I don't know what is.
Roast Beef Sandwich, Coffee Hot Fudge Sundae, and a large bottle of diet soda
"Hi, Room Service, this is Room 1717. I would like a double-thick roast beef sandwich medium rare on rye bread with mustard on the top, mayonnaise on the bottom, and a coffee hot fudge sundae with a large bottle of diet anything. You got that? Yeah, Room 1717. Oh, and Room Service, would you put it in the hall outside the door. I mean, don't bring it in or knock on the door because I'm just putting my little one to sleep. Thank you."
A coffee hot fudge sundae. Her mind! Judy Maxwell knows if you're going to steal some room service you may as well live it up.
I appreciate when the dialogue in the movie itself provides instructions for assembling the meal, saves me having to link to a recipe. Not much to say about this combination except that my children were pleasantly surprised to be told that we were having sandwiches and ice cream for dinner.
Up next: Join me back in Y2K, all you need is a light jacket
