2521
TITLE : Condorman
YEAR OF RELEASE : 1981
CLASSIFICATION : PG
DIRECTOR : Charles Jarrot
STARRING : Michael Crawford, Oliver Reed, Barbara Carrera, James Hampton, Dana Elcar
TONY'S COMMENTS : Funny, James Bond style entertainment, starring Michael Crawford as a cartoonist who becomes a comic book style superhero, called "Condorman". Crawford's mission is to rescue Russian agent Carrera, with villain, Reed in hot pursuit. Full of action, secret agents, gadgetry, beautiful women, exotic locations, car chases, speed boat thrills & espionage. "Condorman" is Disney's big screen answer to the popular secret agent craze.
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In 1981, the floundering Walt Disney studio released their first "PG" rated comedy, Condorman. Michael Crawford (a.k.a. Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera) stars as overworked comic book creator Woodrow Wilkins, on a quest to create an international superhero. Insisting that "Condorman" not do anything in four-color Benday print that he couldn't do in real life, he ventures into danger and becomes mixed up in European spy business when he meets the beautiful Natalia Rambova (Barbara Carrera) while running an errand for his CIA file-clerk friend Harry (James Hampton.) Woody bumbles his way from fantasy into reality as he helps her elude her Soviet boss Krokov (Oliver Reed) and defect to the United States, using gadgetry of his own design.
This comedy-adventure film was a resounding flop in theatrical release, failing to compete with other studios' more adult comedies. But the film plays reasonably well for a family audience today. It opens with a cleverly animated credits sequence and features some beautiful European locations. Crawford is an appealingly physical comedian who manages to raise smiles even when the script's situations run out of steam, and genuine romantic chemistry is created between Natalia and Woody. Veteran character actor Oliver Reed as Krokov doesn't get to do much—he mostly stands around, looking dour and making threats—but his expressive face is still fun to watch. Director Charles Jarrott films many dialogue scenes in one long take, allowing his actors room to work, although judicious editing would have been a good idea in some scenes.
The film's "PG" rating derives from the film's frequent but innocuous explosions, crashes and gunfire. Jarrott seems more comfortable directing action than actors, and the film features solid stunt and pyrotechnics work, with Woody's James Bond-esque vehicles and gimmicks providing several surprises as the lovebirds flee a growing list of enemies. Condorman's episodic plot moves along well, and the occasional slow moment or obvious rear-projection shot passes by quickly. The comedy isn't out-and-out hilarious—it relies mostly on Cold War spy gags and slapstick reminiscent of the Herbie movies—but it does have its moments, and it's all harmless enough. Kids will enjoy the action, and parents will appreciate the absence of foul language and other explanation-requiring content.
YEAR OF RELEASE : 1981
CLASSIFICATION : PG
DIRECTOR : Charles Jarrot
STARRING : Michael Crawford, Oliver Reed, Barbara Carrera, James Hampton, Dana Elcar
TONY'S COMMENTS : Funny, James Bond style entertainment, starring Michael Crawford as a cartoonist who becomes a comic book style superhero, called "Condorman". Crawford's mission is to rescue Russian agent Carrera, with villain, Reed in hot pursuit. Full of action, secret agents, gadgetry, beautiful women, exotic locations, car chases, speed boat thrills & espionage. "Condorman" is Disney's big screen answer to the popular secret agent craze.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In 1981, the floundering Walt Disney studio released their first "PG" rated comedy, Condorman. Michael Crawford (a.k.a. Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera) stars as overworked comic book creator Woodrow Wilkins, on a quest to create an international superhero. Insisting that "Condorman" not do anything in four-color Benday print that he couldn't do in real life, he ventures into danger and becomes mixed up in European spy business when he meets the beautiful Natalia Rambova (Barbara Carrera) while running an errand for his CIA file-clerk friend Harry (James Hampton.) Woody bumbles his way from fantasy into reality as he helps her elude her Soviet boss Krokov (Oliver Reed) and defect to the United States, using gadgetry of his own design.
This comedy-adventure film was a resounding flop in theatrical release, failing to compete with other studios' more adult comedies. But the film plays reasonably well for a family audience today. It opens with a cleverly animated credits sequence and features some beautiful European locations. Crawford is an appealingly physical comedian who manages to raise smiles even when the script's situations run out of steam, and genuine romantic chemistry is created between Natalia and Woody. Veteran character actor Oliver Reed as Krokov doesn't get to do much—he mostly stands around, looking dour and making threats—but his expressive face is still fun to watch. Director Charles Jarrott films many dialogue scenes in one long take, allowing his actors room to work, although judicious editing would have been a good idea in some scenes.
The film's "PG" rating derives from the film's frequent but innocuous explosions, crashes and gunfire. Jarrott seems more comfortable directing action than actors, and the film features solid stunt and pyrotechnics work, with Woody's James Bond-esque vehicles and gimmicks providing several surprises as the lovebirds flee a growing list of enemies. Condorman's episodic plot moves along well, and the occasional slow moment or obvious rear-projection shot passes by quickly. The comedy isn't out-and-out hilarious—it relies mostly on Cold War spy gags and slapstick reminiscent of the Herbie movies—but it does have its moments, and it's all harmless enough. Kids will enjoy the action, and parents will appreciate the absence of foul language and other explanation-requiring content.
