Review of What's Up, Doc? (1972) by Ken S — 26 Feb 2016

Funny early 70s comedy that was a throwback to the screwball comedies of the 1930s, particylarly something like "Bringing Up Baby" in which Streisand kind of plays the Hepburn character, and O'Neal is doing his best flustered Cary Grant.

The movie involves a series of identical bags being traded and moved around sometimes unknowingly by the characters...and Streisand steps in to just wreak havoc on O'Neal's life as he attempts to win a grant.

It is good fun, and captures that classic screwball feel while updating it a bit for a 70s audience. Those things should most definitely date the film, but they really don't, because at it's core this movie is pretty damn funny.

The best bit is definitely the chase scene through San Fransisco near the end...it is big grandiose, slapstick fun. Oddly enough I saw at least some of this movie as a kid, and I'm not sure if I came in at the chase scene or not, but before discovering it's title, I had a very vivid memory of seeing that chase and the subsequent courtroom scene.

I'm glad seeing it as an adult it proved to be even funnier than I remember.