L'ordinateur en folie

Squeaky-clean cut collegiate Kurt Russell (as Dexter Reilly) downloads data from his campus computer, and becomes a "cause celebre" by demonstrating his improved mental gymnastics. "The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes" continues the Disney studio's successful run of comedies featuring good-looking youngsters, great character actors, and a plot providing its star with a super-human strength. The first follow-up film had Mr. Russell discovering how to become invisible. Since it's a Disney film, the characters aren't too quick with the obvious (like the invisible hanging out in the girls' locker room), but everything is certainly likable.

The film is chock full of familiar favorites, like veteran Cesar Romero (as A.J. Arno), Joe Flynn (from "McHale's Navy"), and William Schallert (from "The Patty Duke Show"). Getting to play in roommate Russell's top bunk is handsome blond Frank Webb (as Pete Oaks), who also joined Russell and Medfield College co-star Jon Provost (as Bradley) in the pages of "16" and "Tiger Beat". The teen magazines duly noted the presence of three of their own in one film. Mr. Provost had background fame as the second kid to own TV's "Lassie" and Mr. Webb ended his career tragically. Both feature prominently in the film's relatively fun conclusion.

****** The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (12/31/69) Robert Butler ~ Kurt Russell, Frank Webb, Cesar Romero, Jon Provost

Though highly successful at the time, I'm not sure the Kurt Russell trilogy starting with The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes has stood the test of time very well. It'll be hard to get kids to understand a movie that features a computer the size of an entire room. In an underfunded college, it's a huge achievement for them to get one computer donated to the campus. In a freak accident, Kurt gets electrocuted and melds his mind with the computer chip. He's a walking encyclopedia!

But, kids today won't understand how amazing his superpower is. They just whip out their cell phones and Google their questions, finding answers in seconds. They've probably never read an actual encyclopedia in their lives, relying on Wikipedia instead. If you're able to explain it to them, this might be a cute choice for family movie night. It's a classic Disney movie with no real danger anywhere, but with a pseudo-menacing bad guy (Cesar Romero) who wants money and power and chases after the good guy. There are terrible 1960s haircuts, music that will make you roll your eyes, and an extremely silly paint fight.

Before you feel sorry for big-time actors like Cesar Romero, David Niven, and Fred MacMurray who played in silly Disney movies when they grew older, keep this in mind: Many silver screen actors were disgusted by the inappropriate films after the demise of the Hays Code. Disney movies with banana peels and pies in the face reminded them of the good old days of the 1930s. They were probably very happy to make them!

At Medfield College, an nonintellectual named Dexter Riley (Kurt Russell) becomes brilliant over night. Following an electrical accident, he gains the abilities to remember any knowledge learned instantly and perfectly; all because a donated computer memory was transferred to his brain. After Riley gains fame and attention via television appearances, the dean of a competing university decides to go after him and ruin his reputation. At the same time A. J. Arno, a secretly technologically-based crime boss, with an upstanding public persona pursues the student and his school, as the computer he had donated - that is now integrated into Riley's - holds the records of his crime network.

Kurt Russell had appeared in Disney films since 1967, albeit in bit or supporting parts, but it wasn't until 1969 when the Studio still adjusting to the loss of their key creative force, Walt himself, had Russell headline a film. The result was The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes which is arguably the first of the "gimmick" comedies that would define the majority of output for 70s Disney, though foundations could be seen in the two Robert Stevenson films Blackbeard's Ghost and The Love Bug. The first Dexter Riley film unfortunately is beneath Kurt Russell's talents as it's basically a sitcom in feature film format.

From the staging, to the acting, to the plot that begins with a high concept and everything returning to the status quo established at the beginning of the movie, the movie has all the typical checkmarks seen in one of the may gimmicky sitcoms of the 60s from enduring classics like Bewtiched and I Dream of Jeanie to buried embarrassments like My Mother the Car. Russell as Dexter is more or less your typical hapless sitcom protagonist who stumbles into dilemma's let's ego or some other factor lead him astray then come back to the status quo through some grounded force, in this case his friends who for all intents and purposes are basically one singular character spread across 15 or 20 people.

There's a few chuckle worthy scenes sprinkled throughout the movie such as a scene where Dexter completes an entire exam booklet in a little under 5 minutes and then out of boredom starts squeaking his chair or eating lunch to the annoyance of the professor and other students. And I did get the odd chuckle from Joe Flynn and Alan Hewitt playing competing Deans trying to claim Dexter for their respective colleges. But not only are these points scattered thin throughout the movie, it only makes the movie feel more like a sitcom thanks to Flynn and Hewitt's association with them (McHale's Navy and My Favorite Martian). Even Cesar Romero as villain A. J. Arno is disappointing as he's basically playing a variation on the antagonist from Blackbeard's Ghost but without the Gravitas Robert Stevenson brought to that movie.

The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes is harmless, but also weightless and toothless. From it's "gee gosh" protagonist to a silly story that reverts to the status quo on tired contemporary sitcom cliches, it's a movie that seems like it wants to be forgotten.

I went to see this movie when I was ten years old and I loved it. Looking back and watching again as a 60-year old brings back good memories. In a world in flux this was a fun and cool little respite. It was the burgeoning day of the teen heartthrob and Disney wisely chose Kurt Russell. Russell was nigh on perfect as the "near-do-well" college student who suddenly becomes a national intellectual savant. Surrounded by a fine looking group of actors and actress it was kind of a warm hearted look later popularized as it is better to look good than to....well, you get it. As a ten year old I wanted to dress and be cool like these kids.

The story is fun too. Thrust into a spotlight with an encyclopedic all-encompassing computer like knowledge Russell played the role of Dexter making him a kind of photogenic celluloid teen idol right up there with rock stars. OK, the whole thing is rather stupid, but it's what I'd call "stupid good fun". Emminently watchable in spite of everything - and it was a big hit at the time.

Granted today the sophistication of youth and the ubiquitous nature of tech makes this flick quite dated. Even so, as a kind of time capsule of a time I give the film high marks. It was the perfect career turn for child actor Kurt Russell too. His staying power and consequent career speak for itself of course with this movie as a turning point. Disney would mine him for a while of course, but it was in the seventies he fully emerged as a leading man in an assortment of roles to which this film certainly was a springboard. In closing I love the fact that movies could be so simplistic and yet so much fun. A great time capsule of an era gone.

I remember seeing this as a kid in the theatre, and saw it again for the first time in many years on cable recently. I was surprised how much I enjoyed it after all this time. Russell's performance is quite believable, despite the fantastic story line. Really good entertainment, and blows away much of the modern Disney entertainment provided these days, which is pretty nauseating.