Wacky Taxi

This movie premiered as "Pepper" at The Lakewood Center Theater, Lakewood is a suburb 25 miles outside of Hollywood, which should have been indicative of the low expectations the studio had for this film. The meandering plot was impossible to stay involved with. And it simply wasn't funny. I did get to meet John Astin, so I give it an extra star.

So, let me see if I understand this. We meet Pepper Morales, a married man with kids and a pregnant wife, at his job in a factory. The narrator tells us he is not satisfied with his job and we next see Pepper walk off the job after impulsively overturning a rolling cart filled with empty cans that scatter everywhere, making a mess that his former coworkers will have to clean up. At least he shook the hands of his coworkers before triumphantly exiting the building and leaping in the air for a freeze frame during the opening credits. Pepper goes home and announces he's starting a taxi business, spending almost all the family's savings on a broken down 1959 Cadillac and some take out food. This is during the first ten laugh-free minutes. It never gets better.

Maybe I'm just a cynical old guy, but I don't see a lot of humor in a man placing his family into serious financial jeopardy this way. Luckily for him his wife seems to be clueless about the potential dire consequences of Pepper's actions. He acts like someone experiencing a manic episode and by todays standards, everything he does is disturbing. Playing wacky music and speeding up the frames does not make on screen law-breaking and mental illness funny.

John Astin is funny in The Addams Family, but I cannot imagine what he was thinking to star in this steaming pile of crap. Cameos from the singer/satirist Alan Sherman and Frank Sinatra, Jr. Are also awful.

I gave this two stars because despite its deep flaws, it was fun to see San Diego in 1972 and literally tons of classic cars.

I bought this for £3 at a fleamarket as I collect old obscure films. The cover said, 'Family Comedy Colour' one of these didn't fit. Sure it is a family film and it's in colour, but there isn't much comedy in it except for the little bits where they really tried to inject some in. Actually it is quite a entertaining story of a poor man with kids who dreams of leaving his job at the canning factory and start up his own business. And he does, by buying an old junk heap car and painting taxi on the side he ferries people around town. But many things go wrong and he's discouraged from trying all the way by his brother in law but he carries on. It's a little strange in parts but this helps to keep you interested. Overall it's a nice family film with a bit of a grimy touch it manages to be a better than average tale of a man and his dream. 7 / 10

This is not a great movie but I would have been OK with sitting through it at the drive-in back in the day. My daughter says that any movie you can sit through should get at least a 3. I might even give this a 3.5. The story is about a man who wants to be more than a low paid factory worker and dreams of establishing a successful business. There are a lot of reasons to be discouraged but his family supports him through it all and he never gives up on his dream. I didn't like the final wrap-up at the end. It wasn't really needed. Otherwise it might have gotten a 4 from me, but it wasn't a deal breaker. Nice little G rated family movie.

In my opinion this is highly underrated. No not really a 10, but for fans of modern independent films, an unrecognized gem. John Astin is always a plus for me, like Alan Arkin or Steve Buscemi maybe? Yes, slow paced, but relatable to those who don't live in super hero tights or travel the spaceways, and worry about how day to day life sometimes goes the wrong way. Low budget and probably you'll see it in a blurry public domain version. Try not to hold that against it and relax and just appreciate it for what it is, not for what it could never be or never tried to be. Great performances by all. And Thanks to those who helped make this movie with their hearts.