THE REWATCHABLES · August 18, 2020
A 1980 comedy / sports directed by Harold Ramis, covered in the complete Rewatchables archive.
ON THIS EPISODE
FROM THE CONVERSATION
WHY IT WORKS
WHAT DID NOT WORK
SCENES THEY KEPT COMING BACK TO
Early Ty-Danny banter about drugs and golf is treated as pure gold.
About 24 minDangerfield’s machine-gun insults and the Judge’s absurd outfit are singled out as huge laughs.
About 24 minThe candy-bar reveal is described as the original money-shot gag that stunned theaters.
About 24 minTy’s bizarre, coked-out flirtation with Lacey is praised as a precursor to Fletch.
About 32 minBill Murray’s announcer riff and the bishop joining the round are treated as iconic back-to-back moments.
About 32 minTheir improvised interaction is highlighted as a once-in-a-lifetime comic collision.
About 32 minThe hosts treat the child’s nose-picking and eating as one of the funniest bits in the film.
About 32 minBill Murray’s surreal monk story is singled out as maybe the movie’s funniest scene.
About 48 minThe scene is funny but also noted as offensive and weirdly sexual.
About 48 min · medium confidenceThe judge is repeatedly humiliated, including lightning, betrayal, and the final loss.
About 48 min · medium confidenceWHERE THEY DISAGREED
Bill SimmonsTed Knight wins because the role is the hardest and most essential.
Sean FennesseyBill Murray wins in cultural impact and personal preference, though Ted Knight may win the movie itself.
Craig HorlbeckTed Knight wins.
Sean FennesseySuggests cocaine was creatively central to the movie’s chaotic production.
Bill SimmonsJokes that cocaine is on Apex Mountain because it fueled the film.
Bill SimmonsIt does not work and is one of the film's weaker ideas.
Sean FennesseyMostly accepts it as a dated part of the movie, but not a favorite.
Bill SimmonsA number of alternate casting ideas are floated, including Ted Danson or Harvey Korman for Smails and Michelle Pfeiffer or Bo Derek for Lacey.
Sean FennesseyGenerally agrees casting was delicate and that some swaps would change the movie significantly.
Calls Caddyshack the one comedy he would take to a desert island and says it is endlessly rewatchable.
Opening minutesArgues that it is not a great film but is an amazing movie and the pinnacle of post-Animal House comedy.
Opening minutesSays Murray's material is maybe the funniest in the movie and that the performance has huge cultural mileage.
Opening minutesSays Ted Knight may be his favorite movie character ever and praises his performance repeatedly.
Opening minutesArgues the movie changed how people talk and behave on golf courses more than any other sports movie.
Opening minutesSays the Carl-Ty material is a rare, near-mythic pairing and one of the movie’s great pleasures.
About 24 minChooses the early Danny-and-Ty scenes as an all-time rewatchable stretch.
About 24 minSays Ted Knight wins the movie because the character is essential and hardest to play.
About 1:12Says Murray wins in terms of cultural influence and personal preference even if Ted Knight wins the movie itself.
About 1:12Agrees Ted Knight won the movie after being prompted by the hosts.
About 1:12 · medium confidenceThe movie is framed as blue-collar mischief inside a country-club world.
Opening minutesThe hosts emphasize the cast’s comedy backgrounds and live riffing as central to the film’s success.
About 16 minThe production is described as drug-fueled, with cocaine helping create the film’s chaotic energy.
About 8 minDespite the chaos, the golf match gives the movie a simple competitive framework.
About 16 minThe film is presented as a bridge from 1970s comedy to later generations of viewers.
Opening minutesThe film was inspired by Brian Doyle-Murray and Harold Ramis's caddying experiences.
About 1:12Carl Spackler was not in early drafts of the script.
About 1:12The production reportedly involved heavy cocaine use and taking per diems in cash.
About 24 minCindy Morgan's Lacey Underall dive was stunt-doubled because she couldn't see without her contacts.
About 1:12Michael O'Keefe stopped playing golf for about 25 years after the movie because people kept recognizing him.
About 1:12Scott Colomby and Cindy Morgan dated for two years after filming.
About 1:12John Barmon Jr., who played Spalding Smails, later became a realtor in Boston.
About 1:04The movie was shot over 11 weeks in Florida in 1979.
About 1:12Used as the benchmark for National Lampoon comedy and as a point of comparison for Caddyshack's lineage.
Opening minutesCited as another major summer 1980 comedy and as a film whose scenes still matter despite coherence issues.
Opening minutesListed alongside Caddyshack and Blues Brothers as a key summer 1980 comedy.
Opening minutesUsed to describe Chevy Chase’s Caddyshack performance as a prototype for his later character.
Opening minutesMentioned as a stronger overall Bill Murray movie than Caddyshack.
Opening minutesNamed as another possible peak Bill Murray film in the comparison.
Opening minutesAnother Bill Murray comparison title in the apex discussion.
Opening minutesUsed as a comparison for Bill Murray's career peak and immediate post-Caddyshack run.
Opening minutesCited as Michael O'Keefe's other major sports/character film and a reason he was a strong Danny Noonan choice.
About 1:04Used for comparison to the movie's raunch-comedy era and Scott Colomby's career.
About 8 minLater revisited as a film that now feels incoherent but still has great scenes.
About 8 minUsed as Ted Knight's career benchmark and legacy context.
About 8 minMentioned as Ted Knight's post-Caddyshack renaissance vehicle.
About 32 minReferenced through Kenny Loggins’ soundtrack work and Bill’s earlier discussion of him there.
About 48 minUsed as a comparison point for golf-movie endings and Michael O'Keefe's golf credibility.
About 40 minThe repeated 'Noonan' chant is treated as an enduring cultural joke.
About 48 minTed Knight's deadpan line is celebrated as a meme-worthy quote.
About 40 minJudge Smails’ condescending offer is discussed as a classic insult line.
About 32 minBill Murray’s Dalai Lama routine is treated as an iconic recurring reference.
About 48 minTy Webb's house line about having both is held up as a perfect throwaway joke.
About 32 minThe special putter becomes a funny recurring golf talisman.
About 48 minThe bishop’s lightning-struck curse is singled out as a memorable running joke seed.
About 32 min · medium confidence“This steak still has marks”Opening minutes
“You take drugs, Danny? Every day”About 24 min
“The heavy stuff's not gonna come down”About 32 min
“I got that going for me, which is nice”About 48 min
“Well, we're waiting”About 40 min
MAKE IT A MOVIE NIGHT
WHAT TO WATCH NEXT
Three movies to watch before Caddyshack, and three to watch next.
ON THE MIC
Bill SimmonsThe Rewatchables
Sean FennesseyThe RewatchablesREWATCH FAVS
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