Review of Caddyshack (1980) by Adam F — 05 Jun 2013

"Caddyshack" features a very thin plot and the humour is very juvenile, but it really delivers on the laughs. Rodney Dangerfield, Chevy Chase and Billy Murray (along with the incredibly fake-looking gopher puppet) completely steal the show so you don't really care that the characters that were introduced earlier disappear for large parts of the movie.

The three comedians have some fantastic, memorable lines and some great jokes throughout the film, including probably one of the greatest ending lines in any comedy. When the movie is over you'll be scratching your head wondering what exactly it is that you just finished watching because you expect the movie to have a solid arc and a beginning, middle and end and it kinda does.

.. but the middle and end of the film come very quickly towards the last third of the film and then the credits start to roll. You'll be laughing so hard by the end that you won't even care that the entire movie is basically a 22 minute sitcom that had so many good jokes they couldn't cut it down to anything less than an 1hr 39 minutes.

The plot is predictable so thankfully no one really dwells on it and you can tell that everyone was having a blast while the movie was being shot. There's a nice mix of slapstick and stand-up humor, the jokes are crude and memorable, there's a lot of nudity, someone mistakes a candy bar for a turd, Bill Murray bites the head off an explosive rabbit, Rodney Dangerfield watches TV out of the world's greatest golf bag and the bad guy gets what he deserves in the end.

Despite being over 30 years old the movie never feels dated and it's still hilarious. Even if you're not a fan of the featured comedians this will make you at least chuckle consistently, if not turn you into an outright fan.

Pop this sucker in and watch it, you'll be glad you did and you'll be quoting the movie for years afterwards. (Dvd, May 28, 2013).