La folle mission du docteur Schaeffer

When James Coburn passed away in 2002, it was sad to see how little fanfare was generated by this event. Coburn's resume is as strong as any actor of the Sixties and Seventies. For almost a decade, Coburn played in some of the strangest and most unorthodox films of the era. Everyone knows that he capably spoofed the popular spy genre with his "Flint" films. But it wasn't until he became the President's analyst that he really hit his stride. The fabulous panoramic views of a pre-World Trade Center New York duel with the more grimy shots of the Manhattan Garment District. Look for a humorous assassination involving a knife and a clothing pushcart. Nostalgic observation: the New York Skyline appears the way it does on the New York Mets' uniform patch. The plot concerns the President's need for a head shrinker. Wanted: a man who can be trusted with the leader of the free world's secrets. Grandpa Walton (Will Gear) shows up as the President's prior therapist. He is wonderful as always. Edgy pop singer, Barry McGuire, plays a stoner with a catchy song on his acoustic guitar. One memorable sequence combines McGuire's tune (something about "changes") and a team of assassins in a field, attempting to kill our hero, Coburn. The killers use everything from guns to gas to blow darts. Even a net. In widescreen, the final shot of the movie resonates with a sly, satirical nod to the genre. The villain of the piece comes as a big surprise to anyone under the age of forty: think telephone exchanges and room-size computers. And mix. Bravo!

James Coburn is a psychiatrist selected for a major assignment: personal analyst to the President of the U.S. of A. At first, he's beaming with pride at this great honour, until he realizes that he has to be constantly on call. Suffering a nervous breakdown, he goes A.W.O.L. This proves to be too much temptation for foreign powers to withstand, as they send agent after agent to abduct Coburn and find out just what the President may have told him during therapy. Meanwhile, Coburns' own government doesn't want him divulging anything, of course, so now he's expendable.

Written and directed by Theodore J. Flicker, "The President's Analyst" is a very sharp and clever political satire, taking aim at so-called "liberalism", the hippie generation, the Cold War, etc. It's not necessarily always funny in a "ha-ha" sort of way, but it should continuously amuse the viewer, especially if they were alive during the era when this first was released. Its plot involves such agencies as the "C.E.A." and the "F.B.R.", not to mention the most heinous of them all: "T.P.C." Over 50 years later, it still works quite well, with top performances by all concerned. It further benefits from grand widescreen photography and a jaunty soundtrack composed by Lalo Schifrin. Best of all is the priceless left turn the film takes in the final act, when it shows us just who the TRUE villains are.

Coburn is always fun, and he shines once again in this performance. It's just hilarious to see him hiding out with the hippies, and wearing an appropriate disguise. (He also plays a mean gong.) He's very well supported by a clean-shaven Severn Darden as Russian agent Kropotkin, Godfrey Cambridge as amiable C.E.A. agent Don Masters, and the enticingly sexy Joan Delaney as Coburn's girlfriend. Other familiar faces include Pat Harrington Jr., Jill Banner, Eduard Franz, Walter Burke, Will Geer, William Daniels, Joan Darling, and Arte Johnson. In one interesting twist, we never do see the President on screen.

Good fun, and somewhat forgotten over time, although you CANNOT miss it if you enjoy a solid satire and / or are a big fan of the eternally cool Coburn.

Eight out of 10.

"The President's Analyst" is a satirical counter-culture classic that takes aim at everything and everyone, including the counter culture itself. It's also endlessly quotable and is probably the only movie where you'll hear a line like "Don't say Chinks. Say Chinese restaurant. Chinks is bigoted." Absolutely golden.

My father used to work for The Phone Company and he absolutely loved this movie, as did I from the first time I saw it. I taped it off AMC years ago before they turned evil (back when there were no commercial breaks and they still showed plenty of films letterboxed), and I wouldn't part with my tape for anything in the world -- expect maybe a special edition DVD with all of the original footage and music restored.

To anyone who says this film is boring or unfunny, I say, "Poppycock!"

Au contraire, Jacob Cremins, The President's Analyst is a brilliant snapshot of mid-60s America, with all the insane paranoia and absurdity of a culture spinning out of control. It is intensely funny to anyone born before 1955. I'm sorry you had such a disagreeable experience viewing it. Your generation will have your movies, this one is mine.

This is a wonderful Christmas movie for the old fart on your shopping list. William Daniels' role as a gun-happy suburbanite is worth the price alone. The talented, and woefully under-used Godfrey Cambridge finally gets a star turn as a government agent undergoing analysis. And Barry ("Eve of Destruction") McGuire as the leader of a band of hippie musicians is a dead-on send up of the emerging flower children.

Yes, one had to be a telephone customer before the advent of the Baby Bells to grasp the sheer villainy of THE PHONE COMPANY!

I forgot what a masterpiece of paranoia this movie is; only in this

case, it isn't paranoia, everyone really IS out to get you! This is

James Coburn's best performance in my opinion, as a psychiatrist

who has been conscripted to become the President's analyst, and

when he decides to quit, discovers just how disposal American

citizens are. This is my pick for THE paranoia movie of the 1960s.

That this movie came out in 1967 is incredible; it deals with

assassination carried out casually by the FBI, the CIA, the violence

that has been absorbed as wholesome by America, the escape

from violence into sex and drugs, and much, much more, all

during the time of the Vietnam War and zero tolerance for differing

views. The speech by the black FBI agent in the beginning on

how he discovered racism is especially painful, and remarkable

given the time period.

The movie is hysterically funny, cynical, black, and most ironically,

hopeful, and a must-see for any film lover. The script is terrific, but

the direction stands out in the inspired camerawork. This

obviously was a labor of love by the director/writer, and

interestingly, one of only two or three non-t.v. films he ever directed.

If you see it, you may be bored by today's sex and gore standards.

But if you remember the 60s, keep them in mind when you see

this film. You'll wonder how it ever got made.

Ten out of ten stars, because there isn't anything I can find wrong

with this film; it's brilliant in every aspect.