O Harém das Encrencas

Richard Crenna plays a U-2 spy plane pilot too stupid to find Russia and who runs out of fuel and crashes in what must be Saudi Arabia.(This is vaguely reminiscent of the Francis Gary Powers story of several years earlier, although he ended up in Moskow). Shirley Maclaine ends up in a harem. Although frenetic and wild, this movie is filled with smarmy sex jokes, comedy on the level of a burlesque house, and offensive ethnic stereotypes; the Arabs are the only group that can still be insulted publicly. Peter Ustinov, always marvelous, was admittedly funny as the Arab king. I suppose this vulgar movie, ripped without mercy by critics at the time, will appeal to the same thirteen year-old boys who like the slob humor of Adam Sandler or Michael Myers, but for adults it's "no sale"! John Goldfarb DON'T come home!

Saw this years ago but saw it several times. Early sexy funny Shirley, hilarious Ustinov, Crenna when he was in top comedic form. Great fun. Maltin hated it so you know it had to have something going for it. Too bad it got trashed. Very offbeat & funny & appealing.

"John Goldfarb, Please Come Home" just might be my all-time favorite movie. I first saw it when I was about 10 and made sure to check it out whenever it ran in those pre-cable days. As a middle-ager who picked up a MAD magazine/Stan Freberg-style sense of humor at age 6 and never outgrew it, "John Goldfarb" covered all the bases- whoops, this was a football movie! The great Peter Ustinov truly carried it as the goofy, model-train-obsessed sheik, and the closing football game was Marx Bros. quality. This one's got everything a fan of pre-"Saturday Night Live" satire can ask for, plus it had Shirley MacLaine before she went into orbit. A young John Williams did the funny score (including the Notre Dame fight song played belly-dancer style). I was just the right age to appreciate the presence of sitcom regulars like Crenna and Backus (I still love "Gilligan"). I'd give anything to find "John Goldfarb" on video. And the kicker? It was written by William Peter Blatty, who scared the daylights out of us with "The Exorcist" a decade later! I prefer this Blatty, thank you. "John Goldfarb, Please Come Home"- the perfect off-the-wall movie for MAD/ Freberg/"Gilligan"/Marx fans of all ages. If you know and love this picture, you're on my A-list for life!

"John Goldfarb, Please Come Home" is a farce seemingly typical of the '60s. The story centers around a bumbling pilot and former college football player who finds himself as coach of a ragtag football team in the Middle East. William Peter Blatty, author of "The Exorcist," wrote this comedy (hard to believe!). It's a movie full of political incorrectness. Peter Ustinov is at the heart, playing a crackpot Arab sultan. And Shirley MacLaine does a memorable turn as a female reporter going undercover in the harem. She does a unique belly dance here! Of course, a movie like this couldn't be made today. But let's just look back and enjoy the laughs, shall we?

This movie was newly released, showing in a newly completed "rocking chair" theatre in Orlando FL. Only 15 then, had gone to FL by bus from NC, to visit a friend dying of cancer. We bought bright surfer shirts-a new rage, and went to see this movie at the new theatre. I obviously have a good time youthful impression connected with seeing his movie. The movie itself is a vague memory of a humorous football game, cute harem girls including the young Shirley McLaine, a neat railroad running around a palace, etc. While the acting quality etc. may not have sunk in at that time and age, it was a neat comedy I would love to see again. Wish it would be released on video. Even wish it might appear on TV sometime. Perhaps one day someone may have taped a televised showing and a copy may be available that way. Anyway, I think it was a pleasant comedy, in good taste, that anyone would enjoy.......Except for them celibate types at Notre Dame!!!