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Writers: Buck Henry & David Newman (screenplay)
Cast: Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal, Madeline Kahn, Kenneth Mars
Genre: Comedy
This is a proper screwball comedy! Made by a very young Peter Bogdanovich. I watched some of the DVD extras including a mini documentary on making the film which was shot at the time it was made. Peter looked like a kid! And to think he already had The Last Picture Show under his belt when he made What's Up Doc.
I heard that Bogdanovich was a fan of Bringing Up Baby and that film inspired this one. It's easy to see that too with Ryan O'Neal as the nerdy professor who doesn't have a clue to what's going on and Barbra Streisand as the wacky strong willed woman who pursues him and pursues and pursues.
Madeline Kahn was my favorite character she just slays them in this, she's so good! I laughed out loud at some of the gags...but when we get to the third act which is a wild chase through the streets of San Francisco I was amazed! Damn that was so well done and those are all real stunts done on the streets of the city, wow! When you see the cars drive down the steps in the park, look at what the taxi cab does...it bottoms out on a step and takes out a huge chunk of cement! I later read that Bogdanovich did that without permission and that scars on the steps are still there today. Loved the comedy bit with the two men trying to carry a huge sheet of glass across the crowded street, that's classic screwball!
What's Up Doc (1972)
Director: Peter BogdanovichWriters: Buck Henry & David Newman (screenplay)
Cast: Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal, Madeline Kahn, Kenneth Mars
Genre: Comedy
"The accidental mix-up of four identical plaid overnight bags leads to a series of increasingly wild and wacky situations."
This is a proper screwball comedy! Made by a very young Peter Bogdanovich. I watched some of the DVD extras including a mini documentary on making the film which was shot at the time it was made. Peter looked like a kid! And to think he already had The Last Picture Show under his belt when he made What's Up Doc.
I heard that Bogdanovich was a fan of Bringing Up Baby and that film inspired this one. It's easy to see that too with Ryan O'Neal as the nerdy professor who doesn't have a clue to what's going on and Barbra Streisand as the wacky strong willed woman who pursues him and pursues and pursues.
Madeline Kahn was my favorite character she just slays them in this, she's so good! I laughed out loud at some of the gags...but when we get to the third act which is a wild chase through the streets of San Francisco I was amazed! Damn that was so well done and those are all real stunts done on the streets of the city, wow! When you see the cars drive down the steps in the park, look at what the taxi cab does...it bottoms out on a step and takes out a huge chunk of cement! I later read that Bogdanovich did that without permission and that scars on the steps are still there today. Loved the comedy bit with the two men trying to carry a huge sheet of glass across the crowded street, that's classic screwball!