Foolin' Around

I saw this on cable around 1982, and have fondly remembered it ever since. Very funny! My sister and I cracked up the whole time watching the average-Joe, Gary Busey, try to win the love of rich-girl, Annette O'Toole, and the crazy antics involving the butler. The butler (Tony Randall) was so funny in this movie! Unfortunately, it is not currently available on DVD/video. I sure hope it is re-released soon.

This movie is an enjoyable experience from start to finish. Two all time great comedic moments in movie history are in this jewell. Tony Randall steals the show with his portrayal of Cloris Leachman's butler at the engagement party and Busey's thinking out loud comments on answering questions while he has has been summoned to fix an air conditioning problem.

The movie has it all... a little romance, a little comedy, great character development, good acting, but most of all, a great script.

The editing is above average, good locations and even the chase scene at the end has its thrills. Look for William H. Macy in the beginning.

Why can't Hollywood make more movies like this one?

"Foolin' Around" is one of those films that harkens back to 1930s screwball comedy, and that knows enough not to take itself too seriously. Likewise, it knows one of the key lessons of such comedies -- get likeable leads together with wonderful supporting actors to make the genre work.

Busey (one of my favorite actors when he's on his game) plays a good ol' boy who's going to the University of Minnesota who falls in love with fellow coed O'Toole. Despite the fact that she's ostensibly spoken for (with obnoxious boor Calvin), a romance blooms between the two of them, not the least because her grandfather (Eddie Albert, in an extremely fun character performance) sees in Busey a lot of the same blue collar roots and values that brought him to the top. Busey is wonderfully likeable (as he usually is) as is O'Toole, but it is Albert, Cloris Leachman (as O'Toole's status-conscious mother) and Tony Randall (hilarious as their stiff-as-a-board butler) that really get into the screwball spirit. Randall's efforts to keep track of a mysteriously disappearing and reappearing bag and his (off-screen) sex scene with Leachman are among the many highlights in this film.

On a one-to-ten scale, this film definitely hits a 7 1/2.

Back in like 1982, before we had real cable, my dad had a single cable channel! Remember those days they played the same movies for a month and after midnight soft core x rated films. Nonetheless, I saw this film one sat. afternoon. It is absolutely hilarious and I cannot believe more folks have not seen it. If you like the south park guys, this is a good show to see where they learned some of the off color comedy. I have to say that if you like comedy and surprises you should ck. it out. I have been trying to find it recently. I am sure ebay will be a good bet. I have nothing but good things to say regarding this film. Gary Busy's best! Anette O' tooles awesome. I have nothing but great things to say about the Tony Randall character. Also the end lines from his character are classic.

If you scout around a little bit here on IMDb you'll find Siskel and Ebert hating this film with vigor. They're really wrong IMO. The movie is worth watching. I'm not saying it's a comedy classic--there's a fair bit of dumb crap to wade through, and the last 10 minutes are weak--but its best moments are fun and interesting. For example, Eddie Albert's scene at the construction site with Gary Busey, at 1:14:00, is honest and powerful, yeah a bit melodramatic, but the actors keep it mostly real. Notice how Albert deliberately drops an apple, to show the height they're at, and then has another one ready to eat.

Annette O'Toole and Busey have definite chemistry. O'Toole is the making of the picture. This is some of her best work. She captures something essential about a young woman having trouble deciding about her future. I'm surprised that both Siskel and Ebert fail to see the quality of her performance. (The filmmakers missed a great shot by not adequately lighting her face when she invites Busey into the back of the van. The cinematographer, Philip Lathrop, should be docked a week's pay for that.)

Look for William H. Macy early in a small role; the scene is important because Busey needs to prove his mettle and his slight craziness, and does so. I laughed out loud at Tony Randall's work. Eddie Albert, who grew up in Minnesota, played two interesting Minnesota business leader types in his career: here and in "The Heartbreak Kid," 1972 version. (If you know the Twin Cities at all, "Foolin' Around" and "The Heartbreak Kid" are must-sees. The former is free on YouTube.)