# 97 - CADDYSHACK (1980)

CADDYSHACK (1980 - COMEDY/SPORT/BILL MURRAY FLICK) *** out of *****

(Caddy vs. Gopher. Watch out. Especially since the Caddy is Sir Bill Murray. And the Gopher is, well, Satan...)



CAST: Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Michael O'Keefe, Ted Knight, Cindy Morgan, and Sir Bill Murray.

DIRECTOR: Harold Ramis

WARNING: Some SPOILERS and Bill Murray-Gopher internecine warfare straight ahead...




I feel about the sport of Golf the same way that I feel about Brad Pitt's appeal: (1) I know a lot of people like it, (2) I admit I find it superficially attractive, but (3) in the end, I just don't understand how it can inspire so much rabid zeal and endless enthusiasm. Also, it doesn't help that I seriously suck at it. Golf, that is. Not Brad Pitt. At least, not that I remember.

Needless to say, any film about Golf better have something else going for it if it crosses my path. TIN CUP managed the miraculous feat of engaging me because of: (1) Kevin Costner's rascally charm, (2) Renee Russo's feisty appeal, and (3) Ron Shelton's droll and witty script. Similarly, CADDYSHACK avoids the critical cold shoulder from me - barely - because of: (1) Sir Bill Murray's loony charms, (2) Rodney Dangerfield's mercilessly sardonic tongue, (3) Chevy Chase's droll visage, and (4) that demented Gopher. Without these four elements, CADDYSHACK would be the equivalent of cinematic Chinese Water Torture for me.

The plot isn't exactly Shakespeare. Just a straightforward - if somewhat insane - chronicle of the shenanigans at one particular Country Club. We follow the trials and tribulations of a variety of characters - golfers, caddies, the bimbos they drool after - during one eventful summer.

Our extended crew includes: (1) Danny Noonan (Michael O'Keefe), teenager gunning for a - really - "Caddy Scholarship" when he's not finding a moist spot to bury his penis in; (2) Ty Webb (Chevy Chase), hunky golf pro who has a surprising Zen streak; (3) Al Czernik (Rodney Dangerfield), ruthless entrepreneur who tells it like it is - and woe betide anyone on the receiving end; (4) Judge Smails (Ted Knight), dickhead rich Judge who fancies himself as the King of the Country Club; (5) Lacey Underall (Cindy Morgan), hottie niece of Judge Dickhead who has the hots for Ty and, judging from her name, is a frustrated Bond Girl; (6) Maggie O'Hooligan (Sarah Holcomb), girlfriend of Danny's who needs to marry him, pronto, if for no other reason than she needs to get a new last name - fast; and (7) last but not least: Carl Spackler (Sir Bill Murray), grounds-keeper who's declared a fatwa/jihad on (8) and the most cunning and crafty gopher this side of a secret medical experiment.

Like I said, we're not exactly dealing with a byzantine story here. CADDYSHACK is preoccupied with only four plot threads: (1) Danny's efforts to try to secure that "Caddy Scholarship," (2) Ty and Danny's efforts to smooth out their sex lives with Lacey and Maggie, (3) Al and Judge Dickhead's rapidly-deteriorating rivalry on and off the course, and (4) Carl and the Gopher's rapidly-escalating battle of wits and wills.

Who will win the Caddy Scholarship? Will Danny and Ty win the hands of their lovelies? Will Judge Dickhead get his comeuppance at the hands of wicked Al? Will the golf course survive the Carl-Gopher conflict? Or will it all come tumbling down? And when it does, will developers do the American things and build a shopping mall where the golf course used to be?

Check it out for yourself, but make sure you know what a screamed "Fore" means before you do so. It'll save you confusion.


BUT, SERIOUSLY: While not as funny as many folks make it out to be, CADDYSHACK is still an amusing ride due to the talents of Sir Bill Murray, Rodney Dangerfield, and Chevy Chase. Anyone who likes Golf will likely rate this flick higher, but for someone like me who really can't fathom the appeal of the sport, it is merely an above-average comedy.

Had it not been for the three aforementioned comedians' plot threads, I would have rated this as **1/2 (average). When they are onscreen, together or separately, the movie's energy picks up. When they are not, we are stuck with the Danny storyline which, frankly, is neither interesting or funny enough to keep your attention. As it is, the whole plot pivots on Danny and his "dilemma," with Sir Bill, Dangerfield, and Chase simply on the sidelines. Had they been made the center of the film, CADDYSHACK would be a lot stronger than it is.

Bottom line: CADDYSHACK is nowhere near as good as it's often made out to be. But what's good about it is due largely to Bill Murray, Rodney Dangerfield, and Chevy Chase - who give the film the bite it needs to be sporadically interesting.