by Nick Ferro, Contributing Writer
Welcome to Another Person’s Treasure. In this series we discuss films that have not been well received by critics and have also not been well liked by the general public. However, we think there are films that deserve to be given a second chance. Let’s begin, shall we?
Michael Keaton has been popping up in the movies and TV more and more recently, bringing forth a renaissance for his career, or a “Keatonaissance,” if you will. With his recent SAG win for Dopesick, his upcoming appearances in Morbius, The Flash, and Batgirl, along with a smattering of other roles and award nominations and wins, he really has made a comeback in the last few years. I’ve always been a fan of Keaton’s work for the most part. He had a run of comedies in the ‘80s and ’90s that I enjoyed, ranging from classics like Mr. Mom to head scratchers like Multiplicity. In addition to his role as Batman, there was always something on in my house that featured him. Batman and Beetlejuice alone are among my favorites of all time but, there is one particular movie from his filmography that I believe is both underseen and underrated. With Keaton being more in the public consciousness, I wanted to call to light his 1984 gangster movie, Mel Brooks style comedy, Johnny Dangerously.
Originally intended to be a satire rumored to star Sylvester Stallone, this film apparently went through a few iterations before ending up a zany goofball comedy. Making $17 million on a reported nine million dollar budget in the ‘80s is not exactly a failure, but it definitely was not a success. Directed by Amy Heckerling in her sophomore directorial outing, and co-written by Norman Steinberg, who shares a co-writing credit on the screenplay of Blazing Saddles, its hard to deny that this movie has a pretty good pedigree. With those names behind the camera, combined with a cast that includes Michael Keaton, Joe Piscopo, Danny DeVito, and the late great Peter Doyle, I’m honestly surprised you’re still reading this and not already pressing play! Inarguably, comedies are subjective and what makes me laugh might not make you laugh. Its hard to say that you will definitively love or even like this movie, but what I am positive of is that the aforementioned scores are way too low. So without giving away all the jokes, let me try and persuade you into giving Johnny Dangerously a try.
The basic plot of the movie is, when Johnny’s mother needs money for a medical procedure, he must turn to a life of 1930s style organized crime. Every time he tries to go legit, another illness causes him to stay in the mob. But when Johnny’s kid brother, Tommy (Griffin Dunne), becomes the new hard on crime DA, Johnny has to juggle his secret life of crime with his family life.
To start off, Keaton as the title character carries this film from start to finish; there is not a moment when he is on screen that he isn’t doing something to enhance the comedy. From his delivery of jokes or witty lines to his physicality, whether it be prat falls or a reaction to someone else’s joke delivery, he completely embodies this role. In interviews, he has attributed his love of the genre to James Cagney’s roles in classic mobster movies, and I truly believe that this love informed on Keaton’s choices throughout the film. There are so many jokes, gags, or comedy stunts throughout the movie, but on a joke for joke basis, Keaton by far sells it the best. Even if one of his bits doesn’t land for you, his charm is definitely enough to garner a chuckle. He plays the “gangster with a heart of gold” so well, which is only enhanced by the comedy element. This is a gangster that keeps chewing gum in his cigarette case and breaks the fourth wall to tell the kids in the audience not to smoke. Not to mention that every Christmas, his gang gave back to the community in the form of festively wrapped bundles of cash while all the mobsters sing Christmas carols. Keaton is just so charming throughout that even if you don’t find the comedy working, you will no doubt enjoy watching him perform.
Johnny Dangerously is not a one-man show; this movie lives and dies on the dedication of its supporting cast. Every one of the supporting players and extras are doing exactly what the movie and Keaton needs in order deliver gag after gag. The movie is incredibly goofy, but everyone in the movie plays it completely straight. Its perfectly acceptable behavior to drop a bomb from an airplane, in the stylings of Looney Tunes, onto the nightclub of a rival mob boss. Joe Piscopo has some of the darkest lines in the movie, which end up also being some of the biggest laughs, because he delivers them with such a seriousness. He has a string of callback jokes throughout the film referencing how people in his life only made a transgression against him “once,” that he delivers completely straight, that no matter how goofy the line. Playing Johnny’s 29-year-old mother is 59-year-old (at the time) academy award winning actress, the late Maureen Stapleton, who completely crushes the role of Ma Kelly. She plays what essentially boils down to “tired old lady” with such a flair. Her chemistry with Keaton lends to some very funny bits and when she does her fourth wall breaks and gets stern, she cracks me up every time.
The comedy is, as I mentioned, very “Mel Brooks-y,” which makes sense coming from a co-writer of Blazing Saddles. There really is something for everyone, though — puns and wordplay, newspapers with funny headlines, visual gags that are either in the background away from the main focus or right in front of you daring you to laugh. There are endlessly quotable lines throughout that I found myself rediscovering on this most recent re-watch, some of which I remember my brother and I repeating constantly.
Which brings me to a point that I am sure most of you are thinking: “Nick, you probably only like this movie because of nostalgia.” Well, that’s definitely a little true. Let’s face it, nostalgia nowadays is a dangerous thing that’s been practically weaponized by Hollywood to trick us into liking a new “Reboot-quel” of a beloved franchise from your past. I know I’m a victim of it as much as anyone (see my review of Ghostbusters: Afterlife). Yes, I am very nostalgic for this movie. There were at least a dozen times when a joke reminded me of watching this as a kid with my brother, dad, or cousins and laughing hysterically at one joke or another. But one thing I have noticed when revisiting older movies that I loved as a kid and am nostalgic for as an adult is that they don’t all hold up. There is nothing worse than re-watching something you loved growing up and realizing, “Oh no… this movie is bad.” It sullies the memories a bit because, at least for me, there’s a level of embarrassment and shame that comes along with the realization that you were probably a dorky 12-year-old. So, when I watched Johnny Dangerously in preparation for writing this, I was incredibly relieved that I still very much enjoyed it. Did I enjoy it as much as I did when I was 12? No, but I never once questioned my choice to write about this movie. In fact, it only strengthened my resolve, because I really feel more people should get to experience it firsthand. Plus, people will finally start understanding my references to it!
Is this movie dated in both time and humor? Yes. Is it only available on standard definition DVD and hard to find? Sure. Is the comedy eye rolling and juvenile at its worst? Of course. But if you are in the mood for an extremely silly movie whose goal is to make you laugh in under 90 minutes, then I think it would be worth your time. Oh, and did I mention Weird Al Yankovic wrote the song “This is the Life” for this movie? It plays during the opening credits and the music video features clips from the movie! It’s a big deal! Okay, fine, it’s a medium deal, but still there are so many reasons you should give this movie a try. Maybe you will be like the masses and find it to be just okay, maybe it could be your new favorite movie and not just Another Person’s Treasure.
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