Foul Play (1978)

· by · in 1978. ·

Synopsis:

A klutzy librarian, Gloria Mundy (Goldie Hawn, Private Benjamin), inadvertently becomes involved in an elaborate assassination plot. Gloria is assisted by a snarky police detective, Tony Carlson (Chevy Chase, Fletch), who is having problems of his own.

Reaction & Thoughts:

“Beware of the midgets. They’re taking over the world!”

I’ve seen Foul Play a zillion times, and it never gets old. This is a quirky, goofy, hilarious comedy-mystery that still holds up fabulously well after all these years — I love its silly humor and ridiculous plot. The hand-picked cast is fantastic too. Above all, I love how the movie pays homage to some of my favorite Alfred Hitchcock movies.

Reminiscent of not only Hitch’s thrillers, but also the comedy-mysteries of the 1930s, Foul Play does a great job combining mystery with slapstick and romance.

Foul Play opens with a really nasty murder, and this ugly and unpleasant moment is immediately followed by a comic exchange between actors Goldie Hawn and Chevy Chase at a cocktail party. Foul Play continues to mix the yucky with the funny, and that’s part of its appeal — it’s almost impossible to predict what will happen next.

The film marked the directorial debut of writer Colin Higgins, best known for penning the beloved cult movie Harold and Maude (1971) and the Richard Pryor-Gene Wilder blockbuster Silver Streak (1976). He’s also the man behind popular ’80s comedies 9 to 5 (1980) and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982).

Writer and director Higgins wasn’t the deepest or cleverest of filmmakers, but he knew how to make an entertaining movie. Foul Play is jam-packed with all sorts of crazy ideas designed to make you giggle. The mid-section wobbles a bit — the movie is a bit longish — but this is a super-entertaining movie from beginning to end.

Hawn and Chase are wonderful. Chase is hilarious as a smug police detective. Hawn is a delight as the “girl-who-knew-too-much.” However, the supporting cast steals the movie. Dudley Moore (original Arthur), in his American film debut, is a riot as a kinky conductor. The karate-fight between character actors Rachel Roberts (Sidney Lumet’s Murder on the Orient Express) and Burgess Meredith (Rocky) is hard to describe!

Diminutive thespian extraordinaire, Billy Barty (The Day of the Locust and Willow), also has a few great moments as a door-to-door salesman. And how can anyone resist a movie that features songs by Carole King, Barry Manilow and The Bee Gees? The main song, “Ready to Take a Chance Again,” music by Charles Fox and lyrics by Norman Gimbel, sung by Manilow, received a well-deserved Oscar-nomination.

Conclusions & Final Thoughts:

Foul Play is escapism of the silly kind — it always manages to put a smile on my face. As I said before, the film pays homage to the Master of Suspense, so this is catnip for Hitchcock aficionados. If you know your Hitchcock trivia, you will have fun pointing out the allusions to classic films like Rear Window (1954), The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), North by Northwest (1959), etc. Color, 116 minutes, Rated PG.

11 responses to “Foul Play (1978)”

  2. Wonderful review of one of my favorites as well—Chevy and Goldie are a wonderful couple, and the plot is well constructed and this was where most of us first met the amazing Dudley Moore, who almost steals the movie. Throw in the great Brian Dennehy and brilliant character actors like Burgess Meredith and Rachel Roberts, a title song by Barry Manilow and the charms of San Francisco, and you have a perfect movie! I need to pull out my own dvd now and watch again, Eric!

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  4. Yes, a good one! Saw it in the theater when it first came out…reminiscent of ‘fun’ Hitchcock like ‘North by Northwest’ and ‘The 39 Steps’. I found a cheap DVD somewhere but haven’t watched it yet…I’m wondering now if I should’ve picked up the Blu-ray instead. Which did you watch…or was it a VHS?

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