Papa en a deux

Marty Feldman was an extremely funny and under appreciated comedian and this film is one of his funniest. You probably will remember Feldman from his Mel Brooks days in YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN and SILENT MOVIE. However, he also had two other worthwhile films to check out: THE LAST REMAKE OF BEAU GESTE (1977) and IN GOD WE TRU$T (1980). In Think Dirty, Feldman wrote the screenplay and stars to wonderful comic effect. Most of the funniest moments are sex-related and there is a brief nude scene with Julie Ege, but overall the film portrayed in a seemingly innocent tone. The basic idea of using a controversial topic (in this case sex) to sell a product is not an advertising novelty, but Feldman pulls it off with a good deal of funny moments, especially the day-dreaming sequences and the animated bits (by Richard Williams Studios of PINK PANTHER fame). I happen to disagree with Leonard Maltin's review of this film (and this is not uncommon). I would recommend this to any Monty Python fan or anyone who enjoys the Farrelly Brothers and Mel Brooks comedies today.

This still remains in my memory as one of the funniest films ever. In that respect, it was very much ahead of it's time, certainly for 1970. A number of current and future stars were cast very cleverly (who could imagine Penelope Keith, for example, as a German lesbian, and a former mud-wrestler to boot??!!). This film poked fun at almost every aspect of the Establishment, and that is not a bad thing - but very brave at the time, I would suggest. An absolute classic, in my view.

Marty Feldman was a likable and gifted comedian, but that doesn't mean he couldn't star in some lousy films. Take this terrible comedy for example: the bizarre, sometimes cute fantasy sequences are its only saving grace. This only goes to prove that if you want to turn chaos into comedy, you have to be really good at it (like the Marx Brothers were); otherwise, you'll end up being merely chaotic. (*1/2 )

I remember seeing this for the first time when I was about 7. Children In Need was on BBC 1 (or maybe Comic Relief) and I was allowed to sleep downstairs to watch the whole event. Anyway, I found this on the other channel at about 2.30am, and I was totally blown away by it. Not least the funky theme tune, the cartoons, those eyes, Julie Ege etc. Anyway, a couple of years later I got it on VHS...surprise surprise, the cut I'd seen on ITV had been trimmed significantly. The bit with the hot dog vendor, the fantasy sequence where Teddy imagines a fight sequence with the vicar had both been cut, with maybe some other bits. I've seen this film more than any other film, and have collected as much stuff to do with it as I can; 4 posters, lobby cards, and approximately 60 black and white stills. If anyone has anything else related to this film, please get in touch. A few things bother me though; how did Shelley Berman get involved?Why is Alan Bennett uncredited? Shelley Berman turned up in Friends a few years back, and his character's name was Kaplan, as in this film. Was Kaplan his own persona, or was this a nod to the film? Does the US cut differ any from the UK?

Marty was one of the great talents of his generation.I was a fan particularly of his writing on Round The Horne. However he didn't seem to have great success when it came to films in the UK.There are some funny sequences in this film,but as a whole it is wanting.He didn't try again here for 7 years.Incidentally it is curious that this film has a low rating but 14 out of 20 reviewers have rated this 7 or above.