Foul Play

Likable comedy murder mystery. Gloria Mundy (Goldie Hawn) gets involved with an assassination attempt. Cop Chevy Chase is hired to protect her. There's more to the plot but that's the basics.

This is a beautiful movie--shot on location in San Francisco. The stars are likable; the script is interesting, if all little too confusing and there are many funny--and suspenseful--moments throughout. I saw this back in 1978 and loved it and it still holds up beautifully. A lot of people says this plagiarizes Hitchcock. It does a little but it's so entertaining it doesn't really matter.

Chase is good in his first film after leaving "Saturday Night Live" and Hawn is just delightful. There's also strong support from Burgess Meredith, Brian Dennehy and Dudley Moore. Also there are some beautiful shots of San Francisco all through the movie. And it starts off great with the Barry Manilow song "Ready To Take A Chance Again". Just basically a great big fun commercial film. Well worth catching. I'm only giving it a 9 because it IS a little too long.

My favorite movie of all time. I just love it. Why isn't it on DVD as I've worn out a few VHS Tapes. I first ran this movie while managing a theater in Charleston West Virginia when it was first released and have never tired of it. The acting is very competent and the actors and actresses themselves are used to their fullest. Especially Dudley Moore who plays a great part as only he could. Actually 'Whitey Jackson' is also very competent although I can't recall anything else he acted in. The direction and music is top notch as are the costumes. I just loved the part with the two Japanese tourists. The only criticism that I would have is that the scene in the Italian Restaurant is not well done, but the rest of the movie shines. I also thought the scene in the movie theater with Chuck McCann was inspired and was the scene with the two older ladies playing Scrabble. Truly inspired. But I just wish it would come out on DVD.

I saw this film when I was nine years old. And I loved it. From the opening shot of Goldie Hawn's VW bug driving along to Barry Manilow's "Ready to Take a Chance Again" to the Pope tapping his foot to "Three Little Maids From School Are We," this movie is pure entertainment. What makes it so funny is it seems an exercise in lateral thinking. A snake that eats cigarettes? An albino hit man? Billy Barty? I love the music in this film and watching Dudley Moore sing "I feel the earth move under my feet" ... while he tries to seduce Hawn, who was the very model of wholesome cuteness in the '70s and '80s. Her pairing with Chase gave us some of the funniest shows of the era. (I also enjoy "Seems Like Old Times.") The only downside to this film - if you see it when you're an impressionable child, you'll always be wondering if someone will stab you through the theater seat. Argh!

Goldie Hawn gives a delicious comic performance as a San Francisco librarian who's been living like a hermit, encouraged by a friend to get out there and shake her pom-poms; instead, she becomes indirectly involved with a pack of nefarious criminals who plan to assassinate the Pope (!) on his visit to the Opera House. The picture has some real ringers (Dudley Moore and his apartment full of sex toys, two little old ladies playing Dirty Scrabble), but Hawn is very appealing, especially while sitting in a movie theater with her black-rimmed glasses watching a film-noir about a detective and a Chinese sailor. Chevy Chase, in his debut as a leading man following his departure from "Saturday Night Live", plays the lovestruck cop on the case and he's very green; some of his lines fall flat (especially a tasteless bit about a government official wearing make-up), however his love scenes with Goldie are low-keyed and sweet. The bungled car-chase finale is a complete waste, yet the movie is buoyed by a terrific supporting cast, including funny Billy Barty, handsome Brian Dennehy (who gets lost in the action), scene-stealing Burgess Meredith and kinky, salacious Rachel Roberts (as "Delia Darrow"). A fitfully fun time. *** from ****

No doubt in my mind that this is Goldie Hawn's best film. She does the dumb blonde thing brilliantly here and she has never looked better. The whole cast is good, although it is definitely very 70s in appearance, which is always a drawback!This is both funny and quite exciting. Very lighthearted and Hitchcockian, it moves along at a fast pace, and is always entertaining. The scenes with Dudley Moore and Goldie are absolutely brilliant and the villains are like those of Bond movies but adapted for screwball comedies. I don't quite know why I like this film so much. Perhaps it's because it's not available on DVD, and things always seem better when you can't have them. For any fans of Goldie out there, this is definitely the film to see, and, if it were available, to own. Can someone please release this on DVD?! For all aspiring dumb blondes, just watch Goldie's gem of a performance. And did I mention that she has never looked better....nor, possibly, has anyone else...ever.