Premise: A musical about a lovable whorehouse that gets exposed on the news.
This movie is a god damn delight. I was somewhat surprised to see it had such a low Rotten Tomatoes score. Yes, RT is useless for anything released before the RT era. Even still, the movie got Oscar and Globe attention. It has a pretty decent legacy. I wasn't expecting it to have a sub-50% rating. Then again, I always look to Clue to remind me that sometimes people need some distance from a film's release to realize the fun of it.
I don't have much knowledge of the Broadway show this is based on. It seems like the film adapts it pretty well though. The songs are catchy. Once I realized it was in fact a musical, I was able to adapt pretty quickly. Dolly Parton is a treat. Burt Reynolds a little less so, but he's fine. Dom DeLuise is effectively annoying. I even appreciated Jim Nabors as the part-time narrator to a certain degree.
The main issue I have with the movie is the issue I have with most musical films. It feels longer than it is. You see, the plots of musicals are pretty simple, because they have to leave so much time for the songs. So, in effect, I'm watching a move with about an hour of plot that takes almost 2 hours. I have a hard time adjusting my brain to that, so even if I'm enjoying the songs, my mental clock is moving at a different pace.
I really do like the cheeky tone of the whole thing. I enjoy the way that it paints the whorehouse as as wholesome as little league baseball. The local law is on the side of the Chicken Coop. It's a really pleasant world the film builds up. It's a good time.
Verdict: Strongly Recommend
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