Stevecorp Don't listen to the negative reviews

Cleveronix A different way of telling a story

BallWubba Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

dougdoepke The movie's mainly a matter of taste. There's no real narrative or exchanges of dialog, while the characters are more humorous caricatures than real people. Still, the cinematography is dazzling, probably too much so since FFC appears obsessed with the spiraling effects. These, however, do lend the film a free-spirited sense of freedom that young Bernard (Kastner) is confused by, having been kept on a tight parental leash. So, the theme, as much as there is one, is very much a 60's one— how to break free of stifling convention. In Bernard's case, it's more like simply understanding what it is that's stifling him.The biggest mystery to me is how FFC assembled such an outstanding Broadway cast—Harris, Paige, Torn—for a Master's Thesis. And who's inspired touch is that "attack chicken" that bedevils the girls, or the Neanderthal cop who's never off duty. Anyway, if you're not insisting on a conventional style and are willing to put up with some pretty self-indulgent passages, the movie may have genuine appeal, especially for those either nostalgic or curious about the free-wheeling 60's.

JasparLamarCrabb Such a great movie. Francis Ford Coppola's early comedy is nothing like his later, full-bodied epics, but it's certainly very entertaining. Peter Kastner is a 19-year old, essentially thrown out into the world by his bombastic father Rip Torn...all to the horror of his clinging mother Geraldine Page. Kastner gets a lot more than he bargained for from wacky landlady Julie Harris (as Miss Thing), extremely misinformed co-worker Tony Bill and insane actress Barbara Darling (an uncharacteristically sexy Elizabeth Hartman). The movie is hilarious with every single actor totally in tune with Coppola's acerbic take on life circa 1966. Karen Black plays the only sane character so you know this is a very different movie. There are great songs from John Sebastian including DARLING BE HOME SOON.

Alan J. Jacobs This is pretty much a lousy unfunny movie, but it's got Karen Allen and Rip Torn and Geraldine Page and is directed by Francis Coppola. The movie moves, and makes absolutely no sense. There is no way to relate to the totally geeky kid who stars in this flick. However, much of it was filmed outdoors in New York City in 1966, and for those of us who live here, the difference between then and now is stark, and makes the flick worth watching. For example, the kid roller skates to work, and one scene is quite extended and rolls through lots of familiar Manhattan streets. The most shocking scened is when he goes past Penn Station, which no longer exists. At the moment when the film was shot, the front facade of Penn Station was still standing, and behind it, Madison Square Garden was rising.I froze that frame to stare at it. I couldn't believe that such a moment in architecture actually existed, leave alone be preserved on film. The scenes in Central Park are fascinating to compare the brown and yellow grass/dirt of yesteryear with the verdancy of today's park. The park was on a downward cycle at that time, later to be saved by the Central Park Conservancy.It's wild and raucous and dopey, but it shows a great deal of creativity with settings and a camera that moves with or against the actors. It's skillful and fascinating and utterly meaningless, but it's history.

Ddey65 One of the few times when the late Elizabeth Hartman gets to play as somebody other than a frail, mousy girl. Since her Oscar Nominated performance in "A Patch of Blue," Hollywood always seemed to want her to play vulnerable, handicapped women, or vulnerable women of some sort. This time, she plays a bitchy, egotistical, man-hating actress/go-go dancer, who wins the heart of a young library clerk, played by Peter Kastner. The kind of character, who could probably be the inspiration for a riot grrrl band.Besides that, I'm a Native New Yorker, so I've got a natural attraction for movies filmed in New York City, and the rest of the tri-state area. Biff Rules!