Wednesday, June 18, 2008

I've Always Had Trouble with Titles, Too

No, I am not using this week's Watercooler Wednesday for another mini review of a book. Instead, I'm going to talk about a movie I was last week that I can't review elsewhere since it has never been released on VHS or DVD.

Don't Worry, We'll Think of a Title was released in 1966. Co-written by John Hart and Morey Amsterdam and starred Morey Amsterdam, Rose Marie, and Richard Deacan. And if those names don't mean anything to you, they played the co-workers in the Dick van Dyke Show.

The plot, such as it is, revolves around Charlie (Morey Amsterdam) who just happens to look identical to a defecting Soviet cosmonaut. After he and Annie (Rose Marie) are fired from their jobs at a restaurant by Richard Deacan, they head out to help a friend run a bookstore she has just inherited. There, all kinds of strange stuff happens as the Soviets keep an eye on Charlie hoping to find the secrets he defected with.

Oh yeah, there are the people who sneak into the store at closing and leave at opening. And the trap door in the middle of the bookstore.

To say it is weird is an understandment. The plot is really nothing more than an excuse for the gags. It wanders here and there. And the ending is so sudden it's jarring. But that's okay because it's been a mish mash of stuff all along. Heck, Richard Deacan shows up in another part later in the film, and everyone even acknowledges that he's played another part before.

And yet, I laughed the entire way through. Rose Marie and Morey Amsterdam are great together. And there are some truly funny moments.

Plus there are all the cameos. People like Carl Reiner, Milton Berle, Steve Allen, Danny Thomas, and others pop up. My favorite is Granny from Beverly Hillbillies driving the car from that show for a few moments.

Turner Classic Movies had this on a few weeks ago, and that's how I caught it. If I could review it at Amazon and Epinions, I'd give it two stars. Some funny moments, but not worth sitting through. And certainly not worth paying money for.

2 comments:

Audra Krell said...

I think you've saved me...I don't have time for anything below three stars! : )

Mark Baker said...

Odds are you probably won't hear about the movie anywhere else so it's not like I saved you a lot.