What's Up Doc? (1972)
Directed by Peter Bogdanovich
Judy: I know I’m different, but from now on I’m going to try and be the same.
Howard: The same as what?
Judy: The same as people who aren’t different.
We all need to laugh right now.
I love really silly comedies packed with jokes. We don’t have enough of those these days.
What’s Up Doc? is a 1972 comedy starring Barbra Streisand and Ryan O’Neal. It’s an homage to the screwball comedies of the 30’s and 40’s like Bringing Up Baby or The Lady Eve, which I’ve written about previously (article here).
Ryan O’Neal plays Dr. Howard Bannister, an absent minded professor of Musicology at the University of Iowa, who goes to San Francisco to compete for a coveted research grant offered by the eccentric Frederick Larrabee (Austin Pendelton). He travels with his uptight fiance, Eunice (played by the incomparable Madeline Kahn in her film debut.)
Barbra Streisand plays Judy, who is the epitome of the female archetype of these screwball comedies. She’s funny, beautiful, and is constantly scheming. She’s also hilariously brilliant, a vagabond scholar who’s picked up a considerable amount of knowledge from all institutions of higher learning that she’s either been expelled from or dropped out.
Judy spots Howard at a drug store in the Hotel Bristol and is all like “BOOOIIING HE’S MINE!”
Judy pulls many “pranks” on Howard like pretending to be his wife, Eunice in front of his other nerdy contemporaries at the convention.
The plot of the movie is propelled by four identical ugly plaid suitcases.
Howard brings a suitcase with him, containing several igneous rocks with musical properties.
Judy brings a bag containing her clothes and a large dictionary.
Two mysterious men named “Mr. Jones” and “Mr. Smith” obtain a bag containing secret government plans that they must transport.
A wealthy socialite named Mrs. Van Hoskins has a suitcase full of jewels, which several of the Hotel Bristol employees try to steal.
Over the course of the evening the four parties unwittingly take one another’s bag, and hilarity ensues. It’s the perfect comedic formula.
Ryan O’Neal is not my favorite actor, but he’s in three of my favorite movies of all time; What’s Up Doc? and Paper Moon, both Bogdanovich films. He’s also the star of Barry Lyndon directed by Stanley Kubrick. The best directors knew how to get great performances out of his stupid, handsome, blank face.
This is my favorite Babs movie. Funny Girl is #2.
She’s so funny. This role was practically made for her. She really reminds me of Barbara Stanwyck in The Lady Eve. I’m a big fan of this hat she’s wearing.
Director Peter Bogdanovich also acknowledges Looney Tunes as inspiration for the tone of the film (including the title), which makes sense when you see the scene where the characters engage in a pie fight at a fancy party. There’s a fantastic car chase sequence through the streets of San Francisco, that ends with all the characters crashing into the bay.
The thing I love about this movie is it has a joke per minute ratio only rivaled by the Simpsons. There’s no less than 10 jokes in every frame of this movie, from the performances to the art direction.
This movie was constructed to be silly and fun, directly in opposition to the tone of the movies that came out during this time. The Godfather, The French Connection, Deliverance… these are HEAVY ASS films that really challenged audiences. What’s Up Doc? is not trying to challenge anyone. It’s not trying to make a commentary on society. Don’t get me wrong, I love heavy dramas that make want to take a shower afterwards, but it’s nice to sit down on a Saturday afternoon and escape into pure fantasy and laugh, laugh laugh.
From start to finish this film is pure fun. It’s a great date night movie. You absolutely cannot say that about Deliverance!
