Buddy Buddy (1981) - Video Rental Chicken Fat

"You're making it very difficult for me to like you."

Director

Billy Wilder

Cast

Jack Lemmon - Victor Clooney

Walter Matthau - Trabucco

Paula Prentiss - Celia Clooney

Klaus Kinski - Dr. Hugo Zuckerbrot

If the movie The Private Eyes (1980), which I reviewed last month, is an obscure Don Knotts and Tim Conway movie, then the 1981 Billy Wilder film Buddy Buddy is the lost Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau film.
Again, back in the mid-video rental days of my life, I took an interest in exploring films made before I was born. One of those movies I loved, and still love, is the 1968 Neil Simon classic The Odd Couple. 

It not only introduced me to the real-life comedy style of Neil Simon and the movies based on his plays such as Barefoot in the Park, The Out-of-Towners and The Prisoner of Second Avenue, it introduced me to the collective comedic genius of Lemmon and Matthau.
Sometime back in the 1990s, I found a video cassette copy of Buddy Buddy on the rental shelf of California Video, the movie rental store I've mentioned on this blog before.
The only selling point for me was Lemmon and Matthau. So, I rented it. Not only did it broadened my experience in their comedy, it was also the first time I heard Matthau say "fuck" in a movie. 

After all this time, that's the only thing I remember most from this flick.
The day I rented Buddy Buddy was the first and last time I watched it.
After that, I never saw the movie again. I never found any copies of it on any movie shelf. I never saw it in any store where DVDs are sold. My local public library couldn't even find a copy through Interlibrary Loan because no library in my state has one. 
I searched the not-too-dark crevasses of the internets* for a copy. I inquired among folks in a Facebook page dedicated to "dead formats" to see if anyone was selling it. I checked Amazon and could only find a copy in Spanish. On eBay, VHS copies sell for nearly $50.

Finally, I found a DVD for sale at classicmoviesetc.com - a fantastic site for those looking for hard to find, or perhaps, out-of-print movies. (They're not a sponsor). 

Now, $13 later, I have Buddy Buddy in my hands for the first time since I rented it over 30 years ago.
This movie is a remake of the 1973 French film L'emmerdeur (A Pain in the Ass) which is based on the 1971 play Le Contrat by Francis Veber. 
Matthau plays a hitman named Trabucco who is carrying out a job eliminating witnesses against the mafia.
He's taken them all out. The last on his hitlist is Rudy "Disco" Gambola who's about to testify before a grand jury against other members of the mob.
To complete this last hit, Trabucco drives to Riverside, Calif., and checks into the Ramona Hotel across the street from the courthouse. His plan is to shoot Gambola from a room on that side of the Hotel, and sneak out. 
Meanwhile, Victor Clooney (Jack Lemmon), a television network censor, is suicidal as his wife Celia (Paula Prentiss) wants to divorce him for another man. 
Clooney checks into the same hotel, and ends up with a room right next to Trabucco's. The two of them happened to meet earlier at a gas station. Trabucco stopped to use the men's room, and while waiting, Clooney was occupying it, puking his guts out thanks to nerves. 
Their hotel rooms are connected. As Trabucco sets up a sniper rifle to shoot Gambola, he hears a commotion from Clooney's room. 

Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau in Buddy Buddy.

He checks to see what happened and finds that Clooney had tried to hang himself on one of the shower pipes. This made the pipe break causing water to flood the bathroom. 
Trabucco tries to calm him down so as to avoid any unwanted attention from hotel staff. 

Clooney then climbs out of the window onto the ledge, threatening to jump. 
Scared that police might show up to the hotel, Trabucco talks him into coming back inside. 
He agrees to drive Clooney to see his wife who's a researcher at the "Institute of Sexual Fulfillment" clinic, gathering content for a 60 Minuies segment. The clinic is run by an expert of sexual behavior, Dr. Hugo Zuckerbrot (Klaus Kinski). Zuckerbrot is also the guy Celia is leaving Clooney for. 
On the way there, Trabucco tries to shoot Clooney, who needed to stop to puke again. But the attempt is interrupted when a cop car pulls up escorting another vehicle with a female passenger who's in labor. They ask Trabucco for help, and he reluctantly agrees to take the woman and her husband to the nearest clinic. 

That nearest clinic is the Institute of Sexual Fulfillment. Why not kill two birds with one stone? 

Trabucco drops Clooney off, and heads back to the hotel. 

Clooney is unsuccessful at trying to win Celia back. He tells her how suicidal he is. When Celia tells Zuckerbrot what state her husband is in, he worries what this'll mean for the reputation of the Institute. 

Clooney manages to find a way back to the hotel. 

Celia and Zuckerbrot drop in unexpectedly to give Clooney a heavy sedative so he won't take his own life. However, Zuckerbrot goes in alone, mistakes Trabucco for Clooney, and gives him the shot.

All this time, Clooney is unaware Trabucco is a mafia hitman. But he finally catches on. And once he figures it out, Trabucco can't just let him go. 

This comedy has a Neil Simon "what else can go wrong" comedy style similar to Simon films like The Out-of-Towners, The Odd Couple, and The Prisoner of Second Avenue. 

But it's a Billy Wilder movie. And it's the last film for Wilder, who came out of retirement to make this one last movie. Sadly, it was a "poof" to end his directing career.

While Buddy Buddy is not their best film together, and despite film critic Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times calling it "appalling," "very bad," and "a comedy without laughs," I think time and nostalgia has worked in its favor just a bit. 

Matthau can be an intimidating presence on screen, and he is in this movie. But his faux Italian Bronx mafia style accent doesn't work. His normal Matthau voice would work so much better, especially when considering he was born in the Lower East Side of New York. A fake accent is completely superfluous and distracting.

Lemmon plays his usual, energetic comedic self who's excitable and unaware of what the audience is in on. 
It's fun to see Lemmon and Matthau work off each other as it always is. The overall scenario is original for them.

However, the character of Clooney definitely falls a little too much into the shadow of Lemmon's character Felix Ungar in The Odd Couple. Minus Felix's obsessive cleanliness, everything else seems similar - his nervousness, his repugnance to the sexual deviations at the clinic (I'm sure Felix would feel the same about that), and especially Clooney facing a divorce and wanting to kill himself over it. 
Despite the somewhat seemingly lackadaisical comedy and not-so-interesting flow of events, I still found myself laughing at Matthau and Lemmon, and entertained by their performances.  

Jack Lemmon and Klaus Kinski.

Buddy Buddy performed poorly at the time of its release, even being called the worst movie of 1981 by Chicago Tribune film critic Gene Siskel. Though Ebert hated it, too, he picked Heaven's Gate as the worst film of that year.
Watching the late legends brings a little more appreciation to the movie that critics panned back in 1981. 

Otherwise, all the movie has going for it is Lemmon and Matthau. Everything else is completely forgettable and stale. Nothing else is funny except for those two.

The camera work and lighting is certainly not impressive either, which is unfortunate considering this is a Billy Wilder film. His previous films are usually much more lively in their stories, camera work, and imaginative lighting. It's no surprise as Wilder and screenwriter I.A.L. Diamond  wrote the script in three months. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times back in 1981, Wilder called it a record for them.

"We just sat on it," Wilder said. "Just think. It could have been made and lost $7 million already."

They waited out an actors strike going on at the time. Once that was over, they waited for Lemmon and Matthau's respective schedules to allow both of  them time to appear in the picture. 

Despite its then poor performance, I find it odd how difficult the movie is to come by considering Billy Wilder was in the director's chair, and Lemmon and Matthau in the starring roles.  

Putting both comedians in this scenario, and watching them in their respective roles, feels forced. At the same time, in most of their comedies, Lemmon's character is at the mercy of Matthau's character. Obviously that plays into this story. It doesn't feel as genuine as their other pictures, especially with the uncomfortable inclusion of an Institute of Sexual Fulfillment. It throws the movie into ridiculous level that doesn't fit the rest of the comedy. 

Wilder launched these two as a team when he directed the 1966 romantic comedy Fortune Cookie. He also directed them in the 1974 comedy The Front Page, which is probably my second favorite Lemmon and Matthau comedy after The Odd Couple. Matthau does have a colorful vocabulary in The Front Page, but I saw that years after watching him in Buddy Buddy.
Wilder has worked with Lemmon without Matthau, too, quite a few times such as in Some Like it Hot (1959), The Apartment (1961), Irma la Douce (1963), and Avanti! (1972). 
After Buddy Buddy's box office failure, Lemmon and Matthau, the longest running comedy team spanning four decades, wouldn't team up again until 12-years later in the successful 1993 film Grumpy Old Men. After that they made a few more films together as a duo - Grumpier Old Men (1995), Out to Sea (1997), and The Odd Couple II (1998).

The latter was their last film appearance together. Also, those films much easier to find. 
So, why Buddy Buddy is so obscure is a question I have yet to find an answer to. 

I'd recommend the movie to any fan of Lemmon and Matthau, but good luck finding it. I won't be lending my copy out anytime soon.

I have to add that actor Michael Ensign plays a hotel manager in this movie. He played a hotel manager again three-years later in Ghostbusters. Being a Ghostbusters nerd, I couldn't let this review go without mentioning this fact somewhere in here. 

The Father (2021)

"Can I ask you a question?"

Director

Florian Zeller

Cast

Anthony Hopkins - Anthony

Olivia Colman - Anne

Rufus Sewell - Paul

Imogen Poots - Laura

Olivia Williams - Catherine

Mark Gatiss - The Man

Ayesha Dharker - Dr. Sarai

Roman Zeller - The Boy

My purpose for having this blog, as I'm sure I've mentioned before, is to watch and review films that are more obscurer than others. I never intended to write about new releases that have gained a lot of attention. Normally, I save those for the newspaper I freelance for. 

After watching the recent film The Father starring Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman, I wanted to applaud, and then turn on my blog right away. So, that's what I did. I just didn't get to the movie in time to send it on the paper.

This drama, based on the 2012 play Le Pére by Florian Zeller, is Zeller's directorial debut. He co-wrote the film with fellow playwright, Christopher Hampton. It was released in March of this year.

In this movie, Anthony Hopkins, who never fails to impress, plays Anthony. He's an elderly father of two daughters, lives in a London apartment, and is suffering from dementia. It causes him to grow more and more confused about the people in his life, and the various events going on around him. Even small details of his life, such as where he put his watch, become a great source of uncertainty and stress.

His daughter Anne (Olivia Colman) often visits him. She hires a nurse to come and take care of him when she can't, but the nurse quits due to Anthony's stubbornness and insults. He's also accused the nurse of stealing his watch. 

Anne tells her father she's moving to Paris to live with a man she met, and he needs a nurse to watch him while she's away. 

Anthony doesn't recall Anne having a man in her life after she divorced her ex-husband, James.

But she tells him if he refuses to have a nurse stay with him, she'll be forced to go with her second plan.

The following day, Anthony sees a stranger in his apartment sitting in the living room reading a newspaper. 

The man says his name is Paul, and Anthony demands to know why he's in his apartment. 

Paul says he's Anne's husband and lives in the apartment with her. 

Again, Anthony is confused.

Finally, Anne returns home but she looks different. Anthony doesn't recognize her. 

She scheduled an interview for another nurse named Laura to come visit.

When she arrives, Anthony is cordial and says she reminds him of his daughter, Lucy. 

He also claims he hasn't spoken with Lucy for quite a while. and inquires where she is. 

Later, Anne takes him to see a doctor about his memory. He tells the doctor about Anne saying she's moving to Paris with a man she met, but Anne says she never said she was moving to Paris.

The doctor asks him a series of questions about his memory problems, but Anthony claims he doesn't have any problems with his memory. 

Back in the apartment, Anthony talks to Laura about Lucy, telling her how proud he is that she's a painter. 

Olivia Colman and Anthony Hopkins in The Father.

Laura says she's sorry to hear of Lucy's accident. Anthony asks "what accident?"

The film slowly reveals Anthony has been living in Anne and Paul's flat for years, though Paul is a different person from when we saw him the first time. 

Paul's patience is growing thin as Anthony continues to live with them. His presence forced them to cancel a holiday in Italy they had planned. 

He asks Anthony how long he intends to stay in their apartment, which he thinks is his old apartment, before slapping him in the face. 

Later that night, he wakes up and roams the apartment. But he finds himself in a hospital corridor as Lucy calls his name. 

He walks into a room and sees Lucy on a hospital bed with her face covered in blood.

When Anthony wakes up, he finds himself in a different bedroom. 

It's movies like The Father that make me such a lover of films. And I placed this one on my mental top shelf of favorite respectable movies.

Hopkins is one of the most natural actors in the field. So many of his characters, especially his role in this film, are so genuine. 

Watching him in interviews, or in the videos of himself he posts on Facebook, he strikes me as a man who loves to entertain. He seems like he'd sit down and strike up a conversation with anybody. Hopkins is clearly a man who loves life. Just look at his Facebook page. 

In a recent interview with Late Show host Stephen Colbert, he said, "I think what appeals to me now at this time in my life is that we come screaming into this world from darkness. We go through life and think what is it all about? Is there any purpose? What is the meaning of it?"

While watching Hopkins in The Father, it struck me that the range of different characters he has performed in his career, from a mentally unstable magician in Magic, to a determined and compassionate doctor in The Elephant Man, to a cannibalistic and severely demented serial killer in Silence of the Lambs certainly demonstrates this appeal. 

The Father is such a genuine film. The way it was shot puts the audience in the world of Anthony while watching him react to the confusion around him. Rarely do we see the outside world except for short instances when he looks out his living room window to the street below. Small details slowly change around him. It's subtle but apparent. 

Other films about mental deterioration, such as the 2014 movie Still Alice about a Columbia University Linguistics professor who becomes diagnosed with familial Alzheimer's disease, depict these sorts of conditions very well and accurately. 

What sets The Father apart is that the audience isn't just sitting and watching the main character struggle. We don't see Anthony's deteriorating world through his eyes as his dementia continues to take his mind, nor do we just sit and watch him mentally fall apart. Rather, we experience as he experiences his growing confusion and frustration.

Initially, at the end of the movie, I was left with a few questions about a few scenes. Some things didn't make sense. It dawned on me that in this meant to be the case, I'm supposed to be confused just as Anthony is. As he tries to make sense of what's happening around him and can't because of his dementia, the audience is also meant to be as confused about various instances. Why is Anthony experiencing moments over again but with different people? Where did the chairs suddenly come from? Where exactly is he?

Surely we've met someone suffering from dementia, and watched how those people acted as this terrible condition eats at their mind. The movie certainly gave me as true an experience of what having dementia must be like as a movie can. I think this is one of the best films of 2021.

The Private Eyes (1980) - Video Rental Chicken Fat

"Listen up dummies. The help is all gone, the house is bare. Now you know, a shadow is there. There's one left to die, then my job'll be done. I like killing people, it's a lotta kicks!"

Director 

Lang Elliott

Cast

Don Knotts - Inspector Winshop

Tim Conway - Dr. Tart

Trisha Noble - Phyllis Morley

Bernard Fox - Justin

Fred Stuthman - Lord Morley

Mary Nell Santacroce - Lady Morley

Grace Zabriskie - Nanny

The Private Eyes was my introduction to Tim Conway and Don Knotts as a comic duo even before I watched them together in more popular movies such as Disney's The Apple Dumpling Gang and The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again. 

I can't recall the exact circumstances my dear mom rented this film for me sometime during my elementary school days - probably as something to watch while home sick from school. I obviously liked it so much I recall requesting this movie rental on several occasions back in the day. 

Thanks to Knotts and Conway, and also Laurel and Hardy, my interest in older comedy started to broaden towards acts like the Marx Brothers and even Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau movies

The movie begins with Lord Morley (Fred Stuthman - Escape from Alcatraz) and Lady Morley (Mary Nell Santacroce) getting into their car outside their English mansion for an evening out.

Lady Morley consistently critiques her husband's uncouth manners. As they're about to leave, Lord Morley declares he forgot his "smokes." 

Before running back into the house to grab his cigars, Lady Morley chastises his use of the word "smokes."

While inside, a hooded figure hiding in the back seat strangles Lady Morley. 

When Lord Morley returns, he accidentally drops his cigars on the floor. 

After picking them up, he asks his wife if she's getting in a quick nap. 

That's when Lord Morley notices the black hooded figure in the rear view mirror before he receives a blow to the head and is knocked unconscious.

The mysterious killer then jumps out, puts the car in drive, and it plunges into a lake near the road. 

Two American detectives working for Scotland Yard, Prof. Winship (Don Knotts) and Dr. Tart (Tim Conway) are assigned to investigate the Morley murders. They dress like Holmes and Watson, but they act like they're Holmes' and Watson's dopey cousins.

The suspense is thick right away as they have a letter signed by Lord Morley requesting they investigate the murders. 

If you don't know who these two are, you need to get out more!

As Winship and Tart question all of the staff at Morley Manor - the Morley's adopted daughter Phyllis (Trisha Noble), Justin the maniacal butler (Bernard Fox), Nanny (Grace Zabriskie), Mr. Uwatsum the chef (John Fujioka), Hilda the busty upstairs maid (Suzy Mandel), Jock the hunchback stable boy (Irwin Keyes), and Tibet, a gypsy who just happens to live there (Stan Ross) - they end up dead one by one. 

Now, Winship and Tart have to figure this mystery out before they're next to go.

If the hooded figure didn't show up in the opening scene, the movie would be much more obvious. The twist is anything but predictable.

It's a little surprising that The Private Eyes is as obscure a movie as it is considering the comedians in the main leads.

Much of the comedy is slapstick and silly, but it manages to be entertaining nevertheless. 

I found myself laughing most at Tim Conway's performance. That's not to say Knotts doesn't get any laughs. Conway can keep a straight face in the dumbest of circumstances. Even watching it as an adult, I still had a few laughs. Knotts is the straight man of the two, though still hilarious in his reactions towards his partner.

The clues left by the killer after each of the staff are found dead are a running joke in the film. They begin as poetic rhymes but end in some odd ball conclusion. They're corny but still manage to be funny.

The Private Eyes is definitely worth watching for any Don Knotts or Tim Conway fan, or both, or a fan of classic comedy... if you can find a copy.

It's a harmless movie, even for a comedic murder mystery. The "mystery" part is certainly on the same level as a Scooby Doo cartoon, complete with the classic unmasking at the end.

The animated intro credits must surely take inspiration from the credits seen at the start of The Pink Panther (1963) and its sequels. In my opinion, the opening soundtrack is just as catchy as The Pink Panther's. It stuck with me all these years. 

This movie deserves more attention because of its cast, the characters, its charm, and atmosphere. 

It took me a long while to find The Private Eyes on DVD. Thankfully, I found a rather pricey copy at a Vintage Stock in Topeka, Kansas. I think I paid $15 which, in my book is a little steep for a not-so-on-demand film. However, it was worth it.

Howard the Duck (1986) - Comic to Movie #12

"No duck is an island. And if fate sent me here to save Earth, then Howard the Duck is ready to fight!"

Director

William Huyck

Cast

Lea Thompson - Beverly Switzler

Tim Robbins - Phil Blumburtt

Jeffrey Jones - Dr. Walter Jenning

Ed Gale - Howard T. Duck

Chip Zien - Voice of Howard

When I came up with the idea to check out a bunch of underrated, or lesser known comic book-based films starting with 1945's Dick Tracy, Detective, I had absolutely no desire nor intention to review the infamous Marvel movie Howard the Duck. 

Despite its place on the list of worst movies ever made, it's far from being an obscure picture, especially since it was produced by George Lucas. 

It's worth mentioning that before Howard the Duck, Marvel Comic's last theatrical release was the Captain America serial from 1944. 

Anyways, like so many other bad movies, Howard the Duck certainly has a cult following.  

I recently introduced my wife to this mess as she had never seen it before. 

"Why would he do that to her?" some might be thinking.

She, like many other Marvel movie fans who hadn't seen Howard was willing enough to watch it just to say they watched it. Her reaction had more "what the's" than laughs. I did make the disclaimer that once you see it, you can't take it back, and you can't wash it off. It'll be a part of you for ever.

I haven't seen this movie in nearly 30 years. And now that I've watched it again with adult eyes, I decided to go ahead and share my thoughts. Why not? I did so with Supergirl (1984).

 

In the Comics...

"Howard the Duck" number one, publish
by Marvel Comics, January 1976.

Created by comic writer Steve Gerber and artist Val Mayerik, Howard is an anthropomorphic duck who smokes cigars and has a cynical attitude. 

He made his debut in Marvel Comic's horror series Adventure into Fear number 19, published in 1974.  

In this issue, Korrek the Barbarian (a knight warrior and prince of the extradimensional world, Katharta) finds himself in a swamp on Earth after being transported there through a jar of peanut butter. (Who says Marvel lacks creativity?)

While confused by his surroundings, and wallowing in his plight, Korrek meets a talking duck who was also somehow transported to Earth from another dimension.

The duck later appears in Marvel's Man-Thing volume one, issue one, published in 1974. Here, readers finally learn his name. Howard!  

In January 1976, Marvel published Howard's own comic, Howard the Duck number one. It's the first appearance of Beverly Switzler - Howard's companion from Earth.

Howard the Duck number one also features Spider-Man as J. Jonah Jameson sends Peter Parker on a news assignment to Cleveland, where Howard finds himself after being taken from his home world, to cover reports of a talking duck and snap some pictures of it. If only the movie included Spider-Man as well. What could have been!

In the Marvel Universe, Howard, whose real name is Howard Duckson, is from "Duckworld." It's a planet similar to Earth except that intelligent life evolved from water fowl. 

He's the son of Ronald and Henrietta, a working class Catholic couple from the city of "New Stork." (Catholic ducks? What will Marvel think up next?)

This makes me wonder what religion other famous ducks subscribe to. Maybe Donald Duck is Catholic as well. He swears like one. The same goes for his wealthy Uncle Scrooge McDuck. 

Daffy is surely a Protestant of some kind. Episcopalian is my guess. They're like Junior Varsity Catholics. Like Donald, Daffy can fly into a fit of anger at times, but he's careful not to curse and swear.

Darkwing Duck is probably agnostic at best. And Launchpad McQuack from DuckTales is probably a Scientologist. He's friendly and enthusiastic on the outside. But inside, who knows what's going on in there?

Oh, and Count Duckula - remember him? Yeah! His presence screams snake handler! The Aflac duck probably watches T.V. evangelists on his days off.

Anyways, Howard also has two siblings - Theresa and Orville. 

There's so much more in the comics about Howard's arrival on Earth, his taking Beverly back to Duckworld, his battle with Garko, the Man-Frog, and the creation of Alexis the Duck. 

Howard's tales are pretty much social satire. 

Gerber describes Howard's stories as "existentialist" with the main joke behind it all being that there is no joke. 

Mediascene Magazine number 25 features an article about Howard the Duck in which Gerber says, "Life's most serious moments and most incredibly dumb moments are often distinguishable only by a momentary point of view."

The movie's screenwriter, Gloria Katz, says in F.O.O.M (Flashbacks of Ol' Marvel) number 13, "It's a film about a duck from outer space...It's not supposed to be an existential experience...We're supposed to have fun with this concept, but for some reason reviewers weren't able to get over that problem." And that's my mindset as I sit to watch Howard the Duck again for the first time in nearly 30 years.

In the Movie...

Lea Thompson as Beverly Switzler in Howard the Duck.

The movie starts with Howard settling in at his apartment at the end of a day after starting a new job. 

He unwinds the same way anyone else would.

He checks his answering machine, grabs a beer out of the fridge, turns on the television only to find nothing good on, and then checks out the centerfold in the new issue of PlayDuck magazine.

Suddenly, the room starts to shake. Howard panics as he can't get up out of his easy-chair.

Suddenly, he and his chair are pulled backwards by an invisible force so strong it hurls him through apartment walls and down the hallway until he's flying (not on his own accord because though he's a duck, he can't fly) out of his apartment, over "Marshington D.C." and into outer space. 

Howard crash lands on Earth in a dark alleyway somewhere in Cleveland, Ohio.

Just as soon as he lands, and tries to get a grasp on what he just went through, several punk rockers and a female biker gang all encounter Howard and beat him up to some extent or another. He finally hides in an empty metal barrel. Then he hears two guys try to jump a girl. 

Howard attacks these thungs with "Quack Fu." This movie is full of duck puns. There's no such thing as a good or clever duck pun. This movie is no exception.

The guys run off, and the girl, Beverly Switzler (Lea Thompson), thanks Howard despite being not-too-dumbfounded at the reality that a talking duck came to her rescue. 

It begins to rain, and Howard is clearly lost.

She invites Howard over to her apartment as he has nowhere to go. After getting to know each other, Howard crashes at her place. 

As Beverly covers him with a blanket, Howard's wallet falls on the floor. 

She rummages through its contents and finds a "Bloomingducks" and "MallardCard" credit cards.

According to Howard's driver's license, he lives at 3636 Lakeside Drive, Marshington D.C. in the United States of Anatidae. Did I mention there's no such thing as a clever duck pun? 

He's three feet, one inch tall. His "date of hatch" is Sept. 6, 1958. And he wears corrective lenses.

The next day, Beverly takes him to visit her scientist friend, Phil Blumburtt (Tim Robbins), who works at a Natural History Museum. She hopes he can come up with a way to return Howard to his own planet.

It turns out Blumburtt is just a janitor at the museum. How Beverly didn't know this beforehand and is... oh, who cares? Needless to say, this infuriates Howard and Beverly.

They storm off, and then get into an argument outside. Howard says he doesn't need her anymore. So, the distressed Beverly leaves him at the museum. So long, ducky! 

Now alone, Howard tries to adapt to living on Earth and visits an employment agency. He lands a job as a janitor at a sex spa. (This movie is rated PG, by the way.) He quits after being mistreated by his boss. 

He goes back to see Beverly, who sings in the rock band "Cherry Bomb" at a dive night club near where Howard first landed and apologizes for rejecting her help. 

They go back to her apartment after she's done for the night, and then they start flirting. 

Just as they're about to violate a law of nature while in bed together, they're interrupted when Blumburtt walks in with two colleagues, one being Dr. Walter Jenning (Jeffrey Jones).  

Jenning tells them the laboratory he works at created a spectroscope that was inadvertently pointed at Howard's planet. It sent out some beams that ultimately dragged him through space to Earth.

Jenning thinks they can send him back to his planet by reversing the process. 

When they all arrive at the laboratory, the spectroscope has had a serious malfunction. Little do the researchers know that something else was brought to Earth this time. 

It doesn't take too long before Howard, Beverly, and Phil figure that out as Dr, Jenning is slowly taken over by a "Dark Overlord of the Universe." 

Soon, Jenning is completely under the Dark Overlord's control, and kidnaps Beverly to use as a vessel for other Overlords Jennings plans to send down to take over the Earth. 

Soon, Howard is stuck with the decision to return to Duckworld, or save the Earth by destroying the spectroscope, and his chances to go back home. 

Thoughts... 

Howard takes on a Dark Overlord in Howard the Duck.

Growing up, my family had a copy of Howard the Duck recorded off of television. 

So, the version I was familiar with was censored for language and content. I didn't know the movie had a scene where a female duck, sitting in a bubble bath, is exposing her *ahem* duck breasts. On television, she was covered with soapsuds. 

But the near sex scene with Beverly and Howard was included, sadly. Thank God they're interrupted by Blumburtt. 

I liked the movie back then the same way I liked any other fantasy puppet show. 

My eight-year old self was amused by the live-action movie with a cynical duck as the main character. 

Novel ideas, unordinary characters, and silliness that pops out at you (a la Pee Wee's Big Adventure) over storyline is what did it for me back then as far as entertainment goes. Howard fit into my childish narrow scope of what passed for a good movie. Everything else was secondary. A lot of the movie's jokes, lame as they are, went over my small head. 

Now, my thoughts have certainly changed. 

I'm sure there's little to nothing I can say about Howard the Duck that hasn't been said before. But here we go.

The problems with the movie don't necessarily have to do with premise. Science fiction is science fiction. I'll buy the premise that an alien duck is sucked to Earth against his will, and now has to adapt.

There's potential for an entertaining story with this scenario. If Marvel were to remake Howard the Duck, given the success of their recent films Guardians of the Galaxy and Ant-Man, along with the success of the sequels to both of those films, it too could also be a hit. After all, Guardians of the Galaxy features an anthropomorphic racoon named Rocket, and a wise yet laconic walking tree named Groot. 

Both of these characters caught on rather well with audiences unfamiliar with the comics they stem from. And I think everyone knows by now about Howard's cameos in Guardians of the Galaxy vols 1 and 2. 

And Ant-Man is a story of a superhero who shrinks to the size of an ant. He sounds more like a punchline than a superhero. But those movies were certainly successful.

Howard the Duck is a victim of bad writing all around. The constant duck puns and in-jokes are cheaper than dirty humor. Maybe one or two puns would work well enough, but I counted 18 of them, a bulk of which are in the opening scene of the film. 

Even the film's theme song that Beverly performs at the end of the movie, which overall is a catchy song, is full of them such as this line, "Hickory dickory duck. He ain't about to get plucked. Too groovy for gravy, too precious for pâté; he's a funky little feather bearing waterfowl, quack right in their face. Little ducks in the human race, come into my tub of love." 

I can't believe someone wrote this, rehearsed it, and were happy with the end result. It's uncomfortable just writing them out. If "hickory dickory duck" doesn't make you cringe, I don't know what will. 

In the movie, nothing is given any time to develop. Things happen, and characters either react in a manner way over the top, or they don't react much at all. Beverly, for instance, doesn't seem as surprised as she should when Howard saves her, and then asks what planet he's on.

"Earth, I think." is her reply.

The moment Howard lands in Cleveland, and starts encountering people, none of them act in a way people would actually act. They're all violent. I guess since they're either punks or members of a female biker gang, that's what was expected of them in 1986. Nothing but violence.

He endures physical attack after physical attack, until finally seeing Beverly who's also being physically attacked.

The sexual "chemistry" (for lack of a better word) between Howard and Beverly is anything but touching and heart-warming. It's downright weird and uncomfortable. It even fails under the premise that love doesn't focus on physical appearances. This isn't a Beauty and the Beast scenario. It's one thing for Beverly to feel sympathy. But they jump right into a kittenish attraction to the point where in one scene Beverly declares Howard is her boyfriend.

Howard is a duck. She's a human. They've only known each other for two or three days. There's nothing for the audience to relate to as far as romance goes. Their strange borderline romantic relationship is completely forced, unsubstantial, totally unnecessary, and weird as hell. 

This is even addressed during a scene when Howard, Beverly, and a possessed Dr. Jenning walk into a "Cajun Sushi" diner after nearly crashing their car through the place. 

The scene leads to restaurant staff and patrons trying to kill Howard. He and Beverly beg Jenning to save him.

Beverly says "He's my favorite duck!" 

Jenning, again under the control of the Dark Overlord, replies "You hardly know him."  

All humans are unrealistically monstrous throughout the film. Aside from those wanting to kill Howard, a police investigator desperately wants him in custody. Other police officers clumsily chase him, shooting at him haphazardly, and crashing into property along the way.

Why? We're supposed to believe an alien duck is drop kicked (figuratively speaking) into our reality. But that reality is portrayed poorly and stupidly. Instead the established reality is anything but realistic. It's lazy and far-fetched to the point of complete ridiculousness.

It seems to me the comedy could easily establish itself by having Howard interact with our world without having to portray our world as being full of humans who all act like brutish, bloodthirsty maniacs. Even the employment agent Howard goes to see is rude, demeaning, and insulting.

It's a scenario that could play out naturally with good writing of course. Instead, the comedy comes across as bland, or dry at times, with a ton of duck puns thrown on.

Strange, too, that Howard the "duck" can't fly nor swim. But he addresses his inability to fly when he says "We've got a saying on my planet. If God intended us to fly, he wouldn't have taken away our wings." That managed to make me laugh.

Also, to give credit where it's due, Howard's look isn't bad at all. He has a likeable appearance that's not forgettable. The dialogue matches the mouth movements, and his appearance is believable. The performances of Ed Gale as Howard, along with Chip Zien as the voice of Howard, are well done. 

Howard the Duck could certainly use a reboot. I think the plot has potential for good writers to come up with something hilarious, entertaining, and definitely a lot more polished. Marvel Studios has proved it can do as much with characters bordering on outlandish. His cameos in Guardians of the Galaxy seemed to garner excitement and anticipation. He also had a blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance in Avengers:Endgame.

In the meantime, thanks to nostalgia, Howard the Duck sits among other Hollywood oddities like a museum piece, appreciated by some for what it is and where it came from.  

And what did my wife think of it? "Hokey" she says. 

The Mad Magazine TV Special (1974) - Comic to Movie #11

"The preceded collection of trash cannot in any way, shape, or form be interpreted as constructive programming."

Directors 
Gordon Bellamy, Chris K. Ishii, and Jimmy T. Murakami

Voice Cast

Allen Swift  

Pat Bright

Gene Klaven

Hetty Galen

Herb Duncan

I'm surprised that in the nearly 70 years Mad Magazine has been published, none of the "usual gang of idiots" over there has caught that the words "Mad Magazine" and "special" sound funny when used in the same sentence considering Mad is "The Number One Ecch Magazine."

This includes the number of Mad Magazine special issues which publishers started printing in 1970. These "specials" were reprints of past editions with some new material thrown in. (New material to somehow justify their alleged "cheap" cover prices for recycled gags, but that's just my thoughts on it. "Special," my @$$! But I digress. And I also digest. I just degassed, too, but only a little. Hey! I'll also devest, but nobody wants to see that.) 

Anyways, The Mad Magazine TV Special was an early attempt to bring the "What? Me Worry!" magazine to television as the ABC network commissioned an animated pilot based off the magazine's usual running material. 

The pilot was later branded as a "TV Special." After all this, the program never made it to air. It was deemed too crude and adult by ABC. Of course, that just isn't true. 

Mad writer Dick DeBartolo said no one wanted to sponsor the show since it made fun of products advertised elsewhere on TV, such as automobiles. 

Thanks to the power of the internet, the Mad Magazine TV Special is available on YouTube. 

Mad Magazine has since had television success after the non-airing of this TV Special, namely with the sketch comedy series MadTV that ran on the Fox Network from 1995 to 2009. There was also a TV series on Cartoon Network simply titled Mad, which I didn't know about. It ran from 2010 to 2013. 

I'll add that this review is my second pertaining to Mad. The publishers produced a movie in 1980 called Up the Academy which I wrote about earlier in my "Comic to Movie" reviews. I numbered it at zero.

The special opens with a spoof of American auto manufacturers in a satirical news segment, animated in Jack Davis style artwork. The news feature follows a Walter Cronkite-looking host "Howard K. Bluntly" interviewing Lee Iacocca-esque auto executive, "Mr. Lemon." 

Lemon isn't shy about his cars being neither durable nor dependable because, as he tells Bluntly, "What difference does that make? Even if we made good fast dependable cars, you'd never know when there's no room for them to move anywhere" - a jab at congested traffic issues of the time. 

Some Don Martin animated shorts are tossed in the show, along with an Al Jaffee "Mad X-Ray-vings" segment showing what consumers don't see behind the scenes among general commerce. It's a strip taken straight for the magazine. The special also includes Mad's Academy Awards for Parents, a Spy vs. Spy cartoon, and a movie spoof of The Godfather called "The Oddfather" as seen in Mad issue #155 from December 1972. 

The dialogue in this movie spoof perfectly reflects the humor of Larry Siegal who wrote the jokes in the magazine, and the caricature style of artist Mort Drucker. 
Still, in the long run, I think this "special" could have been a little more notable, or perhaps fondly remembered (if it aired, of course) had it presented a film satire not already published in its magazine two years before. Something original would have been fun, especially for fans. 
I'm biased, though. Being a lover and still a reader of Mad Magazine, especially their movie and television satires, I had fun watching this TV special. 

All of its humor and animation, packed in 25-minutes, matches the magazine's.
The program ends with an animated demolition ball crashing into a billboard of the magazine's mascot, Alfred E. Neuman, as an announcer declares "the preceded collection of trash cannot in any way, shape, or form be interpreted as constructive programming."  Too bad that didn't become a popular TV catchphrase like "same Bat time, same Bat channel" or "There is nothing wrong with your television! Don't attempt to adjust the picture."  

A spoof of the movie The Godfather called "The Oddfather"
from The Mad Magazine TV Special

I have the impression that a show such as this, based on this one episode, had potential to be successful with a little retooling and content audiences could catch only on the show, complimenting the fun of reading the magazine.
This special was made at the apex of Mad Magazine's popularity. It's a treat to Mad readers for sure. Despite the network's claims of the special being too adult and crude, I didn't see anything that came across as such.
Now, it's purely a nostalgic trip, especially for any Mad fans still out there... all six or seven of them including myself. 

Mad's influential humor has inserted itself in so many facets of today's comedy platforms to some degree or another. 

This special is the magazine in TV form, still keeping the tone and atmosphere of printed Mad. You could pause the show at any moment, and it would look like something straight from the pages of the magazine. 

Watching it gives me a sense that had ABC aired it, the show very likely could have been something remembered, talked about, and maybe even emulated to this day, especially with segments using cynical humor to poke fun at products such as the car industry. If the magazine was foundational, the show possibly could have been, too. 

As Mad ended its newsstand distribution in 2018, being available only through comic stores that choose to carry it or through subscriptions, the magazine has taken quite a turn.  

Current issues are mostly republished content with some new content, but not much. 

Mad published issue #550 as their "landmark final issue" in April 2018. The following June issue was published as Mad #1, and the following issues were numbered consecutively from there with issue #19 being the current issue out. 

It stands to reason that Mad is fizzling out as a publication. Even the writers and artists that held the magazine up for decades have recently left Mad. 

Long time contributor Mort Drucker, whose caricatures and comics graced the pages for five decades, passed away in 2020. 

Artist Al Jaffee, who created Mad's famous "Fold-in" retired in 2020 at the ripe old age of 99. Mad cartoonist Jack Davis passed away in 2016. And Sergio Aragones, the "world's fastest cartoonist" who drew the recurring segment "A Mad Look At..." retired also in 2020. He started in 1963.

The magazine depended so much on this "usual gang of idiots." Evidently, they don't go on forever. Mad is already shifting greatly towards its truly final magazine - whenever that'll be. I fearfully suspect sooner than later. 

That's not to say fresh blood and talent couldn't make the magazine great, creative, funny, and appealing to new generations. I mean the magazine needs to continue looking at new platforms to publish itself on and adapt to current trends. Maybe it could even cancel "cancel culture," but there I go *degassing again. 

Perhaps a series similar to this unaired "special" could be beneficial for Mad if anyone out there deems it worth saving.

A satirical website similar to cracked.com may keep Mad's heart beating for a while. 

We live in a time when nostalgia has a huge hand in current pop culture. Whatever the future holds for Mad Magazine, I hope to see it continue lingering around for a while. As issue #218 states on the cover, "you could do worse...and you always have!"

A King in New York (1957)

"One of life's minor annoyances is a revolution."

Director

Charlie Chaplin

Cast

Charlie Chaplin - King Shahdov

Dawn Addams - Ann Kay

Oliver Johnston - Ambassador Jaume

Michael Chaplin - Rupert Macabee


Former New York Times film critic Eugene Archer said in his review of Charlie Chaplin's 1957 film A King in New York, "The works of genius are frequently difficult to understand, and the films of Charles Chaplin, operating simultaneously on several levels of meaning, present a critical problem of particular complexity."

For me, this film is a mess of cynicism, satire, frustration, let down and commentary on the social garishness and political obsessions of the U.S. during the 1950s from a jilted comedian.

I wanted to review a Charlie Chaplin film on this blog for sometime, but I couldn't narrow my options down to one. 

As a long time admirer of Charlie Chaplin, and I still am, from his first screen appearance in Making a  Living (1914) to his later films, The Great Dictator (1941), Monsieur Verdoux (1947), and Limelight (1952), A King in New York is a movie I wanted to see for years, but simply hadn't. 

I stumbled upon it on HBO Max recently, and figured it was as good an opportunity as any to finally sit and watch it.

Known for his iconic character, "The Little Tramp," Chaplin was a genius when it comes to story telling. I immensely admire his films City Lights (1931) and Modern Times (1936) particularly. With the latter, I look past the tinge of Marxist overtones to appreciate and admire the innocent, ingenious comedy and romance within.

Chaplin wrote, produced, directed, and scored many of his movies, including this one. 

These two silent movies were made after the advent of talking movies. As Chaplin felt sound would be a passing fad, these films prove he could tell a story with comedy, tragedy, and romance without having to speak. 

But even Chaplin had to keep up with modern times, though he was reluctant to have the Little Tramp speak.

He eventually did, however, in his first full talking film The Great Dictator where he played dual roles. First, he played the Little Tramp for the last time in the role of Jewish barber. Chaplin also played a satirical version of Adolf Hitler. Hence, the movie's title. 

Chaplin was exiled from the United States in 1952. By this time, his innocent "Little Tramp" character, loved by millions worldwide, was involved in a paternity suit. The public began to see an actor straying far from the innocent Tramp to a person who chased young girls and seemed irresponsible.

Above this, his loyalties were in question as this was a time when anti-Communism was at its zenith in America. 

Chaplin opposed the House Un-American Activities Commission as they questioned many notable individuals about their loyalties towards Communism. Attorney General James McGranery didn't take kindly to his opposition and said Chaplin would only be granted a Visa if he could "prove his worth and right to reenter the U.S."

While sailing to his home country of England, the U.S. Government decided to deny Chaplin re-entry.

He ended up residing in Switzerland for the remainder of his years, but did return to the United States in 1972 to receive an Honorary Oscar. Chaplin received a deserved standing ovation that lasted 12 minutes during that ceremony. 

Filmed in the U.K., A King in New York is his first after his exile, and wasn't released in the U.S. until 1972.

In A King in New York, Chaplin plays King Igor Shahdov who flees from his country of Estrovia to New York City after he's deposed from his throne following a revolution.

Once in New York City, the king wants to experience the American way of life. He moves into an upscale hotel room where his Ambassador, Jaume (Oliver Johnston), becomes his personal assistant.

His money situation is meager as his former Prime Minister stole his funds.

Shahdov tries contacting the Atomic Energy Commission with plans for using atomic energy for the sake of creating a utopia.

All the while, the king realizes he can't keep up with the fast paced raucous life in the Big Apple.

Several producers approach him to film commercials for various products, and are willing to pay him handsomely.

He's also invited to a dinner party, but declines the offer until he runs into a gorgeous woman named Ann Kay who's using a shared bathroom between their rooms.

Charlie Chaplin as King Shahdov in A King in New York

In an awkward meeting, the two start talking and she encourages him to attend the party. Of course he agrees knowing she'll be there.

Little does he know the party is a secretly televised program set up by Kay.

Shahdov learns this after the fact and is less than pleased knowing he was tricked to appear on television.

Still, Kay encourages him to accept television offers, and do whatever he can to look good on American T.V., including a little plastic surgery. 

With funds depleted, Shahdov agrees to do a few commercials for payment. 

He's also invited to speak at a progressive boy's school where he meets a 10-year old named Rupert Macabee (played by Chaplin's son, Michael Chaplin), whose mind is wrapped in more political thought than a child's mind should be. 

Macabee lectures Shahdov about freedom and rule in a rather Marxist style. 

The king learns the boy's parents are both Communists jailed for not giving names during a hearing similar to the McCarthy hearings held during this decade. 

Later on, Shahdov finds Macabee aimlessly wondering the snowy streets of the city. 

The kid ended up running away from his school. So, Shahdov takes him up to his room to give the boy food and shelter. 

The king has to step out for a few hours, leaving Macabee behind. 

While he's gone, some officials come to the king's room and Macabee lets them in. 

He tells the officials that Shahdov is his uncle. They grow shocked as soon as this kid starts proselytizing his Marxist ideas. The press catches on to Shahdov affiliating with Macabee, and the king is soon suspected of being Communist himself.

So, Shahdov has to face hearings in front of a panel similar to the real House Committee of Un-American Activities. 

As all this is going on, authorities make Macabee reveal the names that his parents wouldn't tell.

He's presented to the king afterwards to demonstrate what a patriot looks like, but the kid feels heavy with guilt. 

Shahdov invites Macabee and his parents to travel to Europe with him.

"The madness won't go on forever," the king tells a weeping Macabee. "There's no reason for despair." 

To those unfamiliar with Chaplin's life, A King in New York may come across as as a mere cynical picture, convoluted at times, running long at other times, and with a few funny bits here and there.

It's irksome to watch Chaplin, "the king," lecture American leadership about freedom while sympathizing for those adhering to a system that doesn't tolerate opposition in thought and deed - ideas that ultimately oppose freedom.  

In a recorded interview in 2013 Michael Chaplin says there was no proof his father had any ties with Communists or the Communist party. I'm not claiming anything contrary. 

In this movie, Chaplin tries to show American leadership the American optimism surrounding freedom and liberty which he, it seems, thinks the HUAC doesn't share. 

The political aspect of this movie comes out when the king visits the progressive boy's school.

Michael Chaplin as Rupert Macabee 

In the scene where Shahdov first meets Macabee, he finds the boy quietly reading. When asked what he's reading, Macabee responds nonchalantly "Karl Marx."

"Surely you're not a Communist," the king replies.

"Do I have to be a Communist to read Karl Marx?" 

"That's a valid answer," Shahdov says. "Well, if you're not a Communist, what are you?"

"Nothing. I dislike all forms of government." 

"Well, somebody must rule."

Macabee says he doesn't like the word "rule" and begins a tirade about "human dignity destroyed by political power" because it antagonizes the people, and violates their "natural rights." 

He uses the concept of passport regulations to prove his point, wagging his finger with each declaration while speaking mechanically without letting the king get a word in edgewise. The king practically begs him to let him talk.

"And free speech, does that exist?" Macabee asks.

"No, you've got it all!"
I don't know what to make of this scene as there's a lot happening here.  

The encounter is mixed with some slapstick humor as other students play small pranks on Shahdov as he's engaging with Macabee. The entire scene concludes with Shahdov sitting on a cake.

Nothing Macabee dictates really moves the king.

But when we meet Macabee again, he's a hungry pitiful boy stranded out in the freezing cold. And the king then takes sympathy on him.

Macabee later identifies as a Communist because, as he claims, society makes it advantageous not to be one. 

Shahdov later calls Macabee, "the most obnoxious child I ever met, but a genius."

Archer was on to something when he wrote that Chaplin operates simultaneously on several levels of meaning. Complexity indeed!

Based on how the scene plays out, I'm left thinking it's a depiction of where Chaplin stands in the midst of the political climate of his day.

He's not persuaded by Communism but still pities those who are Communist and have been questioned  by the HCUA. Chaplin was a self-described humanitarian, and this sentiment of his popped up before in the speech he gave in The Great Dictator. 

Nevertheless, the satire in the movie's depiction of American life is played out well in this movie. It's where the movie shines the most. Americans of the day were already riled up dancing in the aisles of rock concerts, mesmerized by the glare of movie screens, instantly sold by advertisements, and constantly surrounded by noise of music, media, traffic, and constant chatter. Nothing has changed much since then. 

As far as the story goes, the movie is all over the place, tripping over itself with a drawn out narrative mixed with political commentary, satire, and a taste of silly humor. 

By the third act, A King in New York slows down. The satire is used up in the previous acts. The story begins turning convoluted and long winded. The motivation just feels forced as though Chaplin is chastising the American system of the day, swatting it on the nose with a rolled up newspaper because the system booted him out.

No doubt Chaplin had a lot to say after being kicked out of the nation that helped make him the cultural icon he is to this day. His work is still loved and admired here and abroad.

Fans of Chaplin who take an interest in his life and work are more likely to appreciate this film rather than those who simply aren't interested.  

Chaplin and Dawn Addams (right)

I understand his displeasure. That frustration is depicted in a scene where Shahdov comically sprays a firehose at the House Un-American Activities Commission. Never make enemies with a writer! 

It's not the first time in his career Chaplin used American officials as the punch line of his humor and satire. 

In his 1917 silent movie The Immigrant, Chaplin kicks a rather pushy immigration officer up the backside. A foreigner making a mockery of the American governmental system wasn't taken kindly back then. 

I believe this early scene was later used as evidence to "prove" Chaplin was "anti-American." I am willing to bet all my Chaplin movies that Charlie was anything but anti-American. Far from it.

It was a time though, after all, when American patriotism was high, as it should be. And anti-American sentiment within US borders needed and still needs to be swiftly expelled without a second thought. 

But Chaplin's comedy works in his facial expressions which made me laugh. In the dinner party scene, while he sits next to Kay at the table and flirts with her, she randomly breaks into advertising slogans. 

Shadhov has a confused look on his face as he glances around behind a smiling Kay who's looking towards the camera Shahdhov can't see. 

I still maintain my love and appreciation for Chaplin as an artist. I love satire, but Charlie's satire in this movie is clearly coming from bitterness. Some of is a sort of "a funny thing happened on the way to the House Un-American Activities Commission" scenario. Other times, it's the same kind of humor a jilted boyfriend would make about the girlfriend who dumped him.

My displeasure is where Chaplin depicts his preachy toleration. You can't tolerate everything, even in the name of "humanity." We should respect people. We shouldn't respect nor tolerate their bad ideas. 

This is a movie made from the mind and view of a jilted man, broken over a major rejection after a relationship between himself and the United States that lasted several decades.

To put it in modern terminology, the HCUA in the 1950s was simply trying to cancel Communists because Americans generally don't like people trying to overturn American culture.
While Chaplin seems to support even Communist thought to flow freely like all other thoughts, I have to side with G.K. Chesterton on this one who says "there's a thought that stops thought. That is the only thought that ought to be stopped."

Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss (1988)

"In Northern Indiana, lakes with fish in them are far and few between."

Director

Dick Bartlett

Cast

Jean Shepherd - Adult Ralph Parker/ Scott

Jerry O'Connell - Young Ralph Parker

Dorothy Lyman - Mrs. Parker

James B. Sikking - Mr. Parker

Jason Clarke Adams - Randy Parker

Cameron Johann - Flick

Ross Eldridge - Schwartz

I'm finally covering this rare gem of a flick. I've mentioned it several times before as it's based on the writing of humorist Jean Shepherd.

Also, more than twice, I've discussed the 1983 Christmas staple, A Christmas Story, the movie about Ralphie Parker and his quest for the Red Ryder BB Gun, based on the book In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash by Shepherd.

Back in November 2019, I shared my thoughts as to whether A Christmas Story is a stupid movie or not. 

I then reviewed its 1994 sequel It Runs in the Family (aka My Summer Story) which not a lot of audiences know about. 

Sometime after that, I attempted to make a comparison between A Christmas Story and the 2010 movie Diary of a Wimpy Kid. It's a stretch, but I did it anyways.
I then discovered a few made-for-TV films about Ralphie and the Parker family also based on the works of Jean Shepherd. Most of them predate A Christmas Story - The Phantom of the Open Hearth (1976), The Great American Fourth of July and Other Disasters (1982), and The Star-Crossed Romance of Josephine Cosnowski (1985). I watched. I reviewed. So, check those out!

I honestly thought that was going to be it for Jean Shepherd content. But... here we are! 

Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss is the second movie to follow A Christmas Story. 

The Star-Crossed Romance of Josephine Cosnowski is the first - technically. I say "technically" because it was released the year after A Christmas Story.

But unlike its holiday predecessor, you won't find Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss playing on TNT or TBS in a 24-hour loop.  

Incidentally, I intended to watch and review 2012's A Christmas Story 2 - the most unnecessary of sequels - last January. Other reviews got in the way. So, it'll have to wait until next Christmas.

Hopefully that'll give my readers something to look forward to.
By the way, A Christmas Story 2 claims to be "the" sequel. Balderdash, I say!

Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss is a made-for-TV film, co-produced by The Disney Channel and PBS. It aired in that order and was released onto VHS by Disney Home Video in 1993. Today, finding that VHS copy will run you nearly three digits. 
I watched a copy included in a set of Jean Shepherd films distributed by a company called "Onesmedia."
The quality seems as though it was recorded to disc from a VHS tape.

The movie starts with black and white images of "wage slaves" burdened by the heavy drudgery of work, work, work. The footage was taken from the silent movie Metropolis. 

Shepherd narrates about the sweat and toil of every working human. It's accompanied by a rather high-pitched rendition of Hi Ho from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs as people march to perform their manual tasks in unison. 

Ralph (Jerry O' Connell- Stand By Me) and his buddies, Flick (Cameron Johann) and Schwartz (Ross Eldridge) endure the incessantly cruel boredom of waiting at the employment office to finally obtain their working papers which Ralph has been eager to have. 

To them, work leads to wealth.  

They finally get their papers and find an opportunity for gainful employment at Scott's Used Furniture Palace.

They're quickly interviewed by Scott himself (Jean Shepherd), whom Ralph describes as a cross between Rasputin and the Wolfman. All three of them are hired on the spot, fueling each of their fantasies of wealth. 

They all celebrate their victory with a soda and talk about what they'll do with the heaps of money they think they're all in for.

Meanwhile, as Ralph shares the news with his family at the breakfast table that he's joined the working class, the family dog Fuzzhead hasn't returned home from his usual morning stroll to...wherever he wanders each day.

Mrs. Parker (Dorothy Lyman - Mama's Family) starts to worry. She tells Mr. Parker (James B. Sikking - Hill Street Blues) that she won't go on the family trip without Fuzzhead. 

James Sikking, Jerry O'Connell, and Dorothy Lyman in
Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss

Meanwhile, clocking into their first day at the Used Furniture Palace, the boys are told to haul a heavy refrigerator up several flights of stairs in an apartment building. It's a scene reminiscent of Laurel and Hardy shoving a piano up a long flight. As they struggle, sweat, and swear, it's clear this isn't what they had in mind when joining the ranks of the working class.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Parker makes several "lost dog" posters with some of Ralph's brother, Randy's (Jason Clarke Adams) crayons, and posts them around town.

She offers a reward, though isn't certain what that reward will be.

Soon, people from all over Hohman, Indiana stop by their front porch with all kinds of dogs. Sadly, Fuzzhead isn't among them. 

Elsewhere, sore in parts he didn't know could actually become sore, Ralph has a nightmare about a looming refrigerator haunting him in his bedroom.

The next day, he and his two coworkers have to lift the same kind of fridge up another set of apartment stairs. Being a "galley slave" is hell after all, despite the paycheck.

For two weeks, Ralph works under the thumb of Scott in his palace of used furniture only to meet with the fate of being fired - $2 deducted from his paycheck for the work gloves. 

Later, while out driving, Mr. Parker spots Fuzzhead in the back seat of a luxurious Rolls Royce driving in front of them.

He chases the car down to a huge estate where a wealthy woman gets out with Fuzzhead.

At first, she's reluctant to give up her newly found poopsy-woopsie, but realizes it's best the dog goes back with its rightful family.

And Fuzzhead is left with his memories of the decadent life of prepared steaks and soft pillows as he returns to cheap canned dogfood and sleeping on the floor.

As the family is ready to take a trip, but worried how they'll manage to do so with Ralph's job, he tells them at dinner that he quit. 

When they ask why, he says he wanted to spend more time with his family.

So, they pack up the Chevy Sedan and head to a cabin at Clear Lake near Lake Michigan. 

Mr. Parker is anxious to catch some fish. And Mrs. Parker is anxious to just get away.

Their road trip includes the common setbacks such as the persistent whining from the kids, Randy's car sickness, Mr. Parker running out of gas because he'll only fuel up with Texas Royal Supreme Blue gasoline, and Mrs. Parker stopping at roadside shops and stands for useless kitsch décor. On top of all that, Ralph admits he forgot to pack the fishing tackle. 

When they finally make it to Ollie's Haven of Bliss cabins and campsite, they stay at the cabin named "Maria" as they're accustomed to. But Mr. Parker learns the fish have stopped biting.

Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss is a wistful movie than utilizes some of the same style as A Christmas Story. 

In one scene Ralph breaks the fourth wall for a brief moment as Shepherd narrates what he's thinking, just as he did in the Christmas movie. 

In another scene that might be the only nod to A Christmas Story, the Old Man gets a flat tire. Ralph sticks his head out of the car window and asks "Can I help?" 

Mr. Parker responds with, "Are you kidding me?" 

I also caught another scene scored with music from Sergei Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf, just as A Christmas Story did.   

The actual vacation half of the movie felt a little like a diluted National Lampoon's Vacation (1983), though much of the content is based on stories by Shepherd that were first published in Playboy magazine back in the 1960s. They were later published in his collection of short stories called Wanda Hickey's Night of Golden Memories in 1971, 

The movie is a bit corny at times. I still find it entertaining enough with several relatable scenarios and anecdotes.
I can imagine fans of A Christmas Story finding the most joy out of this film. 

The cast is well assembled, making the story of the all too familiar family road trip synonymous with comedy. It's a decent enough follow-up to the holiday classic regardless if it intends to be a follow-up or not.

Sikking plays Ralph's Old Man in a style that closely resembles Darren McGavin's performance in A Christmas Story.

To most audiences, McGavin is "the Old Man." 

Sikking fills the role well, with an ever-present look of confusion mixed with stern intent on his face. 

I also liked the relationship depicted between Ralph and his father. There seems to be a little more closeness between the two. 

Considering that Ralph's dad bought him his coveted Red Ryder BB gun in the previous film (the one person he didn't directly ask) it's a nice, subtle touch for the two to have a little closer relationship.   
Shepherd knows how to capture the world through the eyes of a kid facing the hard truth, with no soft way of putting it, that despite all of our plans and goals and fantasies, life is way too heavy for us to force and push it in the direction we want it to go. Only by luck or by chance will it cooperate with our demands.

It's the daily grind that makes vacation glamorous. The more we work, the more we yearn for and appreciate vacation. You can't have rest and relaxation without putting in your 40-hours a week. 

For many, the trek to our vacation spot is half of the burden.