(10/10)
Here's a forgotten classic that really never got it's just due. Dan Aykroyd is absolutely hilarious as a spaced-out
literature professor who - through a series of mishaps - is transformed into a superhero pimp. The story and
plot devices are clever and funny, and Aykroyd's quirky performance make him the consummate oddball.
Aykroyd's geeky professor has a chance meeting with a smarmy pimp (Howard Hesseman) who's looking to skip
town because he's deeply in debt to crime kingpin Mom (Nan Martin) who crushes shot-glasses with her bare
hands and runs a limo company. Hesseman cons Aykroyd into being his unwitting 'partner' and ultimately his
scapegoat to take the fall as 'Doctor Detroit' - a handle Hesseman makes up on the fly (fans of "The Usual
Suspects" may find that scene interesting). But to everyone's surprise - including Aykroyd's own - he manages
to rise to the occasion, living out his literary fantasies of chivalry and honor within the world of pimping!
This movie opened to a pretty unanimous critical trouncing and quickly disappeared from theaters, closing the
door on making the promised sequel "Doctor Detroit 2: The Wrath of Mom" (which I recently learned was
actually being planned, it wasn't just a joke at the end of the film). Most people that saw it caught it on cable or
home video and most of those people have forgotten it by now, but it is very much worth re-visiting. The
dialogue is still very funny and the physical comedy is extremely well-played.
A few of the highlights have Aykroyd donning a Colonel Sanders-type outfit and masquerading as a southern
attorney to win over a harsh southern judge, Hesseman getting more than he bargained for trying to get his
chauffeur to rough him up, and Doctor Detroit's climactic fencing with Mom. There are more than a few really
big laughs to be had and the movie does have that same 'everything but the kitchen sink' style of going over
the top that "The Blues Brothers" had.
The supporting cast is very bright and enjoyable - including T.K. Carter (who really never went on to the bigger
roles he really should have) as Hesseman's foul-mouthed chauffeur, as well as Fran Drescher ('The Nanny'),
Lydia Lei, Lynn Whitfield, and Donna Dixon (Aykroyd's real-life wife who he met making the movie) as the
prostitutes. There's even some musical performances by James Brown and a theme song by Devo (this was the
80's, after all).
Unfortunately (though predictably), Universal has this available as a pretty bare-bones disc, no extras. This is
the sort of movie you have to count yourself lucky if you even get a DVD release for, since there's such limited
interest. But it is a great midnight movie and a nice one to watch back-to-back with the Mr. T epic "D.C. Cab"
(another bare-bones Universal release from around the same time period).
You can get this from Universal here: http://www.nbcuniversalstore.com/detail.php?p=5825&ecid=2000&pa=SSP
Here's a forgotten classic that really never got it's just due. Dan Aykroyd is absolutely hilarious as a spaced-out
literature professor who - through a series of mishaps - is transformed into a superhero pimp. The story and
plot devices are clever and funny, and Aykroyd's quirky performance make him the consummate oddball.
Aykroyd's geeky professor has a chance meeting with a smarmy pimp (Howard Hesseman) who's looking to skip
town because he's deeply in debt to crime kingpin Mom (Nan Martin) who crushes shot-glasses with her bare
hands and runs a limo company. Hesseman cons Aykroyd into being his unwitting 'partner' and ultimately his
scapegoat to take the fall as 'Doctor Detroit' - a handle Hesseman makes up on the fly (fans of "The Usual
Suspects" may find that scene interesting). But to everyone's surprise - including Aykroyd's own - he manages
to rise to the occasion, living out his literary fantasies of chivalry and honor within the world of pimping!
This movie opened to a pretty unanimous critical trouncing and quickly disappeared from theaters, closing the
door on making the promised sequel "Doctor Detroit 2: The Wrath of Mom" (which I recently learned was
actually being planned, it wasn't just a joke at the end of the film). Most people that saw it caught it on cable or
home video and most of those people have forgotten it by now, but it is very much worth re-visiting. The
dialogue is still very funny and the physical comedy is extremely well-played.
A few of the highlights have Aykroyd donning a Colonel Sanders-type outfit and masquerading as a southern
attorney to win over a harsh southern judge, Hesseman getting more than he bargained for trying to get his
chauffeur to rough him up, and Doctor Detroit's climactic fencing with Mom. There are more than a few really
big laughs to be had and the movie does have that same 'everything but the kitchen sink' style of going over
the top that "The Blues Brothers" had.
The supporting cast is very bright and enjoyable - including T.K. Carter (who really never went on to the bigger
roles he really should have) as Hesseman's foul-mouthed chauffeur, as well as Fran Drescher ('The Nanny'),
Lydia Lei, Lynn Whitfield, and Donna Dixon (Aykroyd's real-life wife who he met making the movie) as the
prostitutes. There's even some musical performances by James Brown and a theme song by Devo (this was the
80's, after all).
Unfortunately (though predictably), Universal has this available as a pretty bare-bones disc, no extras. This is
the sort of movie you have to count yourself lucky if you even get a DVD release for, since there's such limited
interest. But it is a great midnight movie and a nice one to watch back-to-back with the Mr. T epic "D.C. Cab"
(another bare-bones Universal release from around the same time period).
You can get this from Universal here: http://www.nbcuniversalstore.com/detail.php?p=5825&ecid=2000&pa=SSP
 |
Rating;
| by Jim Haggerty |
