source: The Longshot

Trailer—The Longshot

The Longshot

Awesome comic cast is pretty much wasted in this only sometimes funny story of a bunch of losers trying to make it big on the horse racing circuit. Best is Jonathan Winters. If you're a fan of any of the cast members (Winters, Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, etc.) you may like this, others beware!

Writer/star Tim Conway and company deliver the goods (for the most part anyway) with "The Longshot". It's laughs/clunker ratio is pretty good. The cast is very likeable. A couple of the scenes go on a bit too long but that's not a deal breaker. "The Longshot" is not a classic comedy but it is a pretty satisfying watch. (That's all I have to say about this movie but IMDB is now making use a minimum of 600 characters so I have to ramble on. It's a rainy Saturday movie here on Long Island, NY. I think the sun is going to come out later this afternoon. I hope you're enjoying your Saturday. Okay, I think that's about it...)

It appears that the major Hollywood studio that backed this so-called comedy didn't give it much of a promotional or distribution push. Watching the movie, it doesn't take long to figure out why the studio heads got nervous. "The Longshot" is an unbelievably lame comedy. Most of the fault has to go to Tim Conway, who wrote the not ready to be filmed screenplay. There is barely a story here, and the movie frequently comes to a complete stop for minutes on end to try and deliver humor. That wouldn't be bad if the humor was actually funny, but for the most part it isn't. In fact, I only laughed once, at a sight gag involving Tim Conway dressed only in his underclothes. Conway and the rest of the cast have shown talent elsewhere, but they simply can't do anything with this screenplay and the dull direction by Paul Bartel. However, if you've ever wanted to hear Tim Conway do an old school style rap number with Ice-T, this movie will give you your chance.

Tim Conway, Harvey Korman, Jack Weston, and Ted Wass are buddies with a gambling habit and no money, four race track losers who get a chance at a long shot.... but they have to come up with serious money to get in on it, and that means borrowing from loan sharks. It's a low-key, depressed comedy that uses their broken-down lives as the setting for gags. The movie is populated with comedy pros, including Anne Meara and Edie McClurg as two of their wives, Jonathan Winters as a random passerby, and Stella Stevens as an aborted liaison with Conway. Given the particular and peculiar comedy chops of the people involved, it very much comes down to one's taste.

"The Longshot" is the story of four losers who get what they think is the break of a lifetime. A tip on a horse that can't lose. So they scrape every penny they can together to make a bet on the title's longshot. That's about all there is to this film. It is said that Conway wrote the script in 24 hours. It shows. It plays more like a group of skits from "The Carol Burnett Show" then a movie with such a thin plot line. But for fans of Tim Conway (especially) it has its amusing moments. Stella Stevens offers a little support in a throw away role but looks sexy enough to be memorable. If you have time to waste and need a few chuckles then you could do worse.

Prior reviews which stated the film as a series of skits strung together indicates a lack of appreciation for comedic films in the genre of farce. Without generating a spoiler, reference the film summary for the plot line. The cascade of thoughtful plots builds into the 'chase' by the mobsters who are owed. Genius. Considering that this film did not follow the typical formula for the mid-1980's by casting the "brat packers" or saturating the musical score with music from the "chill generation," it has a stunning brilliance. It has enough toilet humor to fascinate the "American Pie"-crowd. And, the hapless characters are surely inspiration for such shows as 2.5 Men & Big Bang. It's a classic comedy.

Imagine a rap song by Ice-T... and Tim Conway! That's how it starts. There are a lot of funny moments throughout the movie. The scene where Tim is in Stella Steven's room is hilarious. I watched this movie especially to see the cameo by Ernie Anderson. I was disappointed that he didn't get a close-up, I recognized him by his voice. Most movie guides give this movie one star. Highly underrated. I'd give it two and a half. If you like Tim Conway, watch this one.