A 1968 suspense comedy in which much of the action is provided by the physical comedy of Dick Van Dyke. He’s Jack Albany, a small-time actor who is mistaken for the big-time mob killer Ace Williams by the New York gang, led by Edward G. Robinson, who have brought Williams from the west coast for a special heist. Robinson is a mob boss who is also an art lover, and he plans to steal a very large and very famous impressionist flower painting from a Manhattan museum. Also stars Dorothy Provine as Robinson’s art teacher, who gets mixed up in the heist plans, and eventually she and Van Dyke are able to work together, but the gang won’t let them go, even after the real killer (Jack Elam) shows up. Slim Pickens is one of the gang as “Cowboy.” Directed by Jerry Paris, Van Dyke’s neighbor on his TV series, and a long-time successful director of TV and films. He appears briefly. I enjoyed this romp, Van Dyke has fun with the role, and he’s fun to watch. Provine and Robinson are also good. Running time is 100 minutes, and I watched it on Amazon Prime.
Disney Features 90: NEVER A DULL MOMENT
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