Cancel My Reservation

CANCEL MY RESERVATION. You've read the other reviews and they're all on the mark. Those who like it are allowed to like it and those who hate it are all correct. Directed by Paul Bogart from television the film looks like a made for TV movie as many features did in this era. In the first five minutes there's a scene in which Bob says he is 42, he was 69 when made this film. He looked great for 69 but he looked early 50's, not 42.

Here's my problem with the film, it's like Bob had to have a one liner every minute so you have 90 bad one liners which are unrelated to the story line or script. One good funny line every five minutes would have done. Strangely, unlike most ordinary films, I think the last ten minutes have made it better. There is a great support cast with nothing to do, but it begs the question as to why Anne Archer had to wait about ten years after this for lead roles. She's gorgeous. Here's the interesting thing, the last last ten minutes which are a bit more serious are good.

Comedy was going through a monumental change at this time and with a bit of thought, some serious jokes about Native Americans could have made this work. And Bob delivers a good line in the final scenes about going to jail for a parking ticket, and it's this line that made me think that this could have been OK.

Unlike many of the these reviewers, Cancel My Reservation does not take itself too seriously. It is no more than a fun flick, without pretensions of high drama. Much of the seemingly stilted dialogue may indeed be deliberate self-parody. The film reminds me of the old Saturday double feature presentations, for those of you who can remember those afternoons at the movies. Relax, and enjoy it as a pleasant diversion, as well as for nostalgic reminders of actors and comics of years past. Bob Hope is a true classic, who provided us with years of pleasure, and who had the courage to tackle many forms of entertainment. He was able to laugh at himself about his film flops, much as Jack Benny did with his The Horn Blows at Midnight. (And the critics are on the mark about the nubile Ms. Archer.)

"Cancel My Reservation" is just what it wants to be. In other words, it's a very successful movie, even if it's just successful at being completely confusing and silly. Bob Hope fumbles through this movie looking old and confused (even this far back), and the dated sexual roles and racist overtones are just one more factor that makes the viewer wince. There is a cute sight gag or two, but the movie just seems like a drawn out Hope skit from a television special. Fans of Johnny Carson or John Wayne can catch short cameos that will bring a smile.

Bob Hope is a stressed out New York TV host. His doctor orders him to take a vacation so he heads off to his ranch in Arizona for a couple of weeks. But ,instead of getting away from it all, he ends up being accused of a murder that takes place during his stay in the desert.

The comedy is broad, farcical and loose much like a sketch on one of Hope's TV specials. As usual, Bob's in a jam and firing off a succession of wisecracks helps him to cope with a sticky situation.

Forrest Tucker and Ralph Bellamy play the bad guys in their respective roles as a con on the run and an evil land baron who's trying to frame the twitchy TV star. Keenan Wynne, as the cigar - chomping sheriff who has to find the real murderer, seems to have based his characterization on Yosemite Sam (with great success !)

This is a free - wheeling '70s movie and it's better than most of the pictures that Hope made near the end . In fact, as it turned out,this was to be his last, major big screen feature and , happily, it also proved to be his best in some time.

Bob Hope's swan song is pretty lame. Yet somehow, I feel this film is a compelling one to watch and I can't quite put my finger on it.

Hope had sharp wit and was somewhat subversive back in the 40's, but once he got rich he became an unbearable conservative - his shows for the troops nothwithstanding. As such, I think I really enjoyed watching him embarrass himself in this horrific bit of celluloid swill.

This has a lot in common with Preminger's "Skidoo" in that it really does try to be hip and modern without having a clue what that means. Director Bogart doesn't want to seem to move the camera anymore than he has to and so the flick has a very TV movie feel to it... not surprising since Bogart did a lot of TV work - most notably, "All In the Family". For a much better look at what he could do, watch "Mr. Ricco" with Dean Martin. Bogart did a good job in this one, released in 1975.

Bogart wastes what could be an interesting story by failing to utilize some really great southwestern scenery. I'm not sure who the cinematographer was, but they should be beaten, waterboarded and shot as soon as they can be located.

The storyline is very contrived and serves only to allow Hope to joke around and toss out some one-liners as a talk show host on vacation with his much-too-young wife played by the totally wasted here Eva Marie Saint. Toss in marital troubles, Native American preaching and a murder mystery and you've got a tremendous mess. This movie has a "make it up as you go" feel.

The only real reason to watch it is to be amazed at how bad it is, and to watch it unfold, like a train wreck in slow motion. It's like watching your rich, arrogant, drunk uncle soil himself on the dance floor at a wedding reception - and you like it because the old bastard is such a jerk.

I need some tummy tones. I'll stop now.