The Chicken Chronicles

Somewhat languishing in obscurity, "The Chicken Chronicles" is fairly an amusing under the radar 70s high school sex comedy drama set during the end of the 60s era. But again the context is much boarder, thoughtful and true to its decade than one might suspect, very similar to Cameron Crowe's coming-to-age comedy "Fast Times at Ridgemont High". Throughout the feature is a running theme of sexual liberation, drugs, alcohol, absent / distant parents (where technology is used to communicate instead of face-to-face) and the affects the Vietnam War is having on the younger generation.

Californian teenager David Kessler is about to graduate high school with the senior prom rather near, but faces some problems before doing so. He's desperately trying to find the time to finally make out with his picture-perfect cheerleader girlfriend Margaret. To do so he needs help from his dweeb brother, for finding a place where they won't be disturbed. Out-of-blue there's Tracy, someone who he has known since early childhood and she really does fancy him. Also the school principal really has it in for him, although David does bring it upon himself with the numerous pranks and his boss at the chicken take away shop won't get off his back.

While it might seem aimlessly random in its structure (moving back and forth between its shenanigans), Paul Diamond's screenplay goes onto balance the authentic drama and witty comedy rather well. Even though it has an obsession on sex, never does it succumb to any crass or low brow acts or dialogues… although Silvers' character can be rather creepy. Director Francis Simon's bright and breezy direction (where the boom mike would suddenly appear at times) keeps it lively and fun in what is an enjoyably mellow throwback in spirit. The flavoursome soundtrack cruises right in. The performances go a long way to keeping it so. A fresh-face Steven Guttenberg (only his second feature, but debut lead role) is very likable as David… bringing heart and laughs to his character. However for me it was the great Phil Silvers as David's eccentric womaniser boss Max Ober, Ed Lauter as the snide principal Mr. Nastase, Branscombe Richmond as David's cool and collected, dope smoking buddy Mark and the ravishing Lisa Reeves as David's uptight girlfriend that had the memorable moments. Also there's a wonderful, homely performance by Meridith Baer as the down-to-earth, girl next door Tracy.

It might not stand out from the crowd, but it passes for an enjoyable teen comedy drama.

Before there was "American Pie," before there was "Fast Times At Ridgemont High" and even before there was "Porky's," there was "The Chicken Chronicles." Although this teen comedy is considerably tamer than any of those later films, it's still a very amusing example of the genre in it's infancy. Back in the mid-70s when this kind of movie was very popular drive-in fare, this was one of the better ones. Everything's here....high-school hijinks, totally casual sex (way before the stigma of AIDS), copious drug and alcohol use and a general atmosphere of adolescent anarchy. Fairly obscure today(not currently available on video or DVD), it's worth a viewing if you ever see it pop up on cable TV.

This was one of Steve Guttenberg's very first major roles and he displays some of the mock-innocent, winking wiseacre bad-boy charm that he would later put to good use in the Police Academy movies. The late Phil Silvers provides some of the biggest laughs as the irascible, foul-mouthed boss of the fried chicken restaurant where Guttenberg works.

Director Frances Simon displays a nice feeling for late-60s southern California, making the movie an entertaining look at a more innocent (though no less wild) era gone by.

Unfairly dismissed by some, The Chicken Chronicles is a funny high school sex comedy. It is very light-hearted. It's fun to see. I thought this was cute and not bad at all. Filled with charm, innocence, drama and romance. I thought it was a nice mix. From an artistic standpoint, there were some plot elements and character developments I didn't think were totally needed. They do however drive the story, which seemed to be their purpose, so I can accept them. But the real centerpiece of the film is its acting; three performances in particular stick out. If you can find this obscure little movie on DVD, pick it up for sure and give it a watch.

I'd just watched THE POM POM GIRLS and was quite taken by one of the actresses, Lisa Reeves, who only ever appeared two other theatrical films and a handful of TV appearances before retiring from acting and moving to Oregon to be an Educational Assistant, so I'm now on a quest to see all nine of her IMDB credits, starting with THE CHICKEN CHRONICLES. The film was written by the son of famed Hollywood screenwriter I. A. L. Diamond, who co-wrote with Billy Wilder such classics as SOME LIKE IT HOT and THE APARTMENT, so I'm guessing there's some autobiographical elements to the story about a Beverly Hills High School senior, Steve Gutenberg in his film debut, on a quest to lose his virginity before he graduates. His reluctant girlfriend is Reeves, and she's once again quite good playing the girlfriend who doesn't really want to have sex with him. The other standout in the cast is Branscombe Richmond, who plays Gutenberg's best friend and co-worker at the nasty fried chicken joint owned by the always great Phil Silvers (best known for playing Sgt. Bilko). It's kind of cool that Gutenberg's best friend is an Asian dude from Hawaii who's not used as comic relief at the character's expense, which was how most minority sidekicks were typically used in his era. I looked Richmond up and he's been in a ton of movies, most often as a stuntman, with credits from THE KENTUCKY FRIED MOVIE to COBRA to 3 NINJAS, and is still working today, both acting and as a stunt coordinator. Another standout in the movie is Meridith Baer, who I didn't recognize in the film, but her name sounded familiar. She plays a teen girl with a "reputation" who likes Gutenberg. What's cool about her character is she's actually really sweet and actually nicer than the girl Gutenberg wants to be with. When I looked her up, she's all over HGTV as a successful businesswoman with the premier "home staging" business in the world. Fascinating! Just like Reeves, I'm kind of surprised Baer didn't appear in more movies. They both have a great natural presence and come across as really likable. But back to the film's plot, there's a bit of pathos to the film with Gutenberg's wacky hijinx potentially getting him expelled, in which case he won't get into Stanford and will be sent to Vietnam, though the film doesn't earn any genuine emotion. It's primarily just a lightweight comedy, but even when the comedy isn't always that funny, which unfortunately is often, the film does have an earnestness you don't get in most films of this sort, and it's not nearly as crass as the plot and poster would have you imagine either. It's a PG-rated sex comedy, which is unusual, even if that's the 1970s version of PG, so it's a racy PG with lots of sex-talk, pot smoking, and swearing, but it still manages to be a fairly innocent and sweeter than you'd expect. Overall, THE CHICKEN CHRONICLES has a far better cast than the script deserves, and they manage to keep you engaged, even when the situations and hijinx seem rather contrived.

AI CAPSULE REVIEW: The Chicken Chronicles is a lightweight 1970s teen sex comedy with more sweetness than sleaze, elevated by a surprisingly endearing cast-including a charming early performance by Steve Guttenberg. While the script is thin and the laughs uneven, the natural charisma of the actors keeps it engaging.

The best things about this movie are: the SONGS (on the original release), the GIRLS (Maddy, Margaret and Tracy) and the CARS!! The plot of this movie is sort of mediocre, but there are some decent scenes of Beverly Hills; with all of the (now) classic automobiles in this film there REALLY should have been more "cruising" scenes. The way the film was shot really did (and to me, still does) make you feel as though you're in May of 1969. Too bad it's so difficult to obtain licensing rights for certain songs--the soundtrack could have used some good Soul tunes like "Time Is Tight" by Booker T. and the MGs, "California Soul" from Marlena Shaw, or "Nothing But A Heartache" from the Flirtations. One final criticism: A movie set in California featuring three beautiful women (with High School as a backdrop) set in the Spring of '69 has NO BEACH SCENES??