Saturday, March 28, 2015

SW Watches: Johnny Dangerously (1984)

Of the 1980's comedy staples, somehow I never saw Johnny Dangerously (1984) until I was well into college.  I suspect our family's lack of HBO during the window in which this would have run incessantly meant I never had the opportunity.  So, I don't have 1980's nostalgia for the movie.



Frankly, I don't really like it.  Which is weird, because I like everyone in it from Keaton to Boyle to Marilu Henner, but because Jamie does love the movie, I've seen it a number of times.  I think maybe two spots in it ever make me laugh (one of which is using a pricing gun on puppies in a pet store), and another I only laugh at because Jamie laughs so hard at it (Griffin Dunne yelling "Oh muh God!" as his car plunges down a hill).

I don't want to overly complain about it, because it's not actually painful to watch.  It's not like a mid-00's comedy like an American Pie III of whatever that I would just cringe my way through.  I just...  I dunno.  Maybe if I'd seen it when I was 11.


9 comments:

Sound Affects said...

You fargin icehole!

Matt A. said...

I saw this movie for the very first time about two weeks ago. It was one of those movies where the kids who had HBO made endless references to those of us who didn't. It sort of settled into the background of my brain for many, many years, until I saw it pop up in Netflix.

I'll say that, for a very first viewing, by someone who was alive and somewhat aware of the cultural happenings of the time when it came out, it was a fun ride. The scenes with Danny DeVito were great - especially how (spoilers) he was offed. His "Play Ball" bit was pretty good.

However, I must say that most of the humor would only work once. Once. A second viewing would ruin most of the surprise jokes. Meathead as the Pope. Ray Waltson getting his glasses knocked off (if they had been able to get Burgess Meredith, it would have been that much better).

The League said...

I always feel bad when I know you guys liked something and I'm the little raincloud. I suspect I probably liked this movie better the first time, but when Jamie said "Let's watch 'Johnny Dangerously'", I literally gave an "ugghhh" that was not even how I realized that was how I felt about the movie until I said it out loud. I'd feel worse, but that's how she reacts when I pitch "Airplane". And I consider the fact that's her reaction to Airplane to be a cognitive or moral defect.

Matt A. said...

I can't claim to know your lady well enough to pass such judgements, but, yes, that kind of reaction to "Airplane" should call into question an individual's psychological state. To expand upon this, I have made it a mission of mine to slowly introduce my daughter to the relevant cultural references that will allow her to enjoy watching "Airplane". But that's another topic.

The League said...

Surely you can't be serious.

Matt A. said...

Mostly serious. But I'll let you call me Shirley. Commercials like https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKGsjtRoMck, but under the guise of "Don't act like this." One of the earliest was showing her the difference between a prop plane and a jet plane (a subtle joke in the film that took me a long while to figure out). I haven't figured out how to work in Jive, but I have a few leads.

The League said...

That poor child will be left trying to explain to her peers why she spent most of her childhood being tutored to understand the nuances of Airplane. But she will know a lot more about Barbara Billingsley than her contemporaries.

mcsteans said...

Look, y'all. I think Airplane is hilarious. For some reason, however, it makes me not feel well while I'm watching, like I also chose the fish. Just wanted to clarify and defend my sense of humor.

The League said...

I'm not sure that defense made any sense to anyone but me.