Kate's Film Club: What's Up Doc?
by Kate Pop Culture
This Valentine's Day season, our resident film buff đź’ŞKate Corcoran is exploring rom-coms of the past. There will be meet-cutes, there will be pratfalls, and of course... outfits!
Peter Bogdanovich
Available to rent on: Prime Video and Apple TV.
No matter what I write in this review, it will not do justice to how absolutely spectacular this movie is. I will also preface that what you are about to read will make me sound very corny. I am not corny, and screwball comedies are not usually my bag, but as my partner said after I spent ~20 minutes raving to him about What’s Up, Doc?, “Hey, when a comedy connects with you, you like to give it five stars!”
As the title implies, this is live-action Looney Tunes with the queen, Barbara Streisand, playing Bugs Bunny. She’s incredibly charming but a magnet for trouble. The whole movie is about four identical plaid bags, each belonging to different guests at the Hotel Bristol in San Francisco. All four guests are staying on the same floor, and two of these bags are being sniffed out by thieves. As you can deduce, the bags constantly get swapped and shuffled around. Trust me when I say - hilarity ensues! There is an actual scene that involves guns, furniture used as weapons, and thrown pies – what is more Looney Tunes than that? Eh, a bundle of dynamite I guess.
SF is the perfect location for this film, as there is an epic car chase where the hills themselves play a comedic role. The scene literally goes on for so long that at one point, while I was nearly rolling off my couch with laughter, I forgot why they were being chased.
"There’s a scene towards the end where one character tries to explain the movie's entire plot to a judge, and it’s nearly just as funny as the movie itself."
To my role-reversing pleasure, the bag-swapping plot also serves as the backdrop for 94 minutes of Judy’s (Babs) sexual predation towards Howard (Ryan O’Neal). Sure, this isn’t very PC of Judy, but damn, do I love it. Howard constantly begs Judy to leave him alone, but she keeps showing up, charming the pants off everyone in his orbit. Everyone except Howard’s fiancée, Eunice (Madeline Kahn), and his musicologist arch nemesis, Hugh (Kenneth Mars).
There’s a scene towards the end where one character tries to explain the movie's entire plot to a judge, and it’s nearly just as funny as the movie itself. There ain’t one MISS in this movie – I’m not kidding you! It is per-fec-tion with a chef’s kiss and a pie in your face.
The writing may be what got What’s Up, Doc? all its accolades, but the visuals are nothing short of award-worthy themselves:
-It may be the 70s, but Eunice has not let go of the 60s – clothing and wig-wise!
-It’s rare to see a woman north of 60 sporting fashion shorts, but Mrs. Van Hoskins gives them to us twice!
-Mr. Jones carrying around a golf bag for the entirety of the film as a way to “blend in” made me lol so hard.
-Iconic under-the-table scene.
-Hot, tan man in just a bow tie and underwear. That's all.
-Babs’ hat.
Final Rating
I’m rating What’s Up, Doc? 100/100 dangerously unbalanced women. 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨
To read all of Kate’s wildly deep and complex reviews, follow @katecorcoran on Letterboxd!Â
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