The next film on my alphabetical trip through Disney Plus is "The Absent-Minded Professor", which, I am ashamed to admit, I'd never seen before. I found a charming, if slightly dated film, with some wonderous effects. I also discovered that the Alonzo Hawk character exists outside of the "Herbie" franchise, which came as a surprise.
Ned Brainard (Fred MacMurray) is physics professor at Medfield University. Desperately in love with the Dean's secretary Betsy (Nancy Olson) he has missed their wedding twice already. On the night of their third attempt, he is again experimenting in his lab, when he makes a ground-breaking discovery. He creates a new compound, Flubber, with unique characteristics that improve elasticity and, when exposed to certain stimuli, will float. Though eager for his discovery to be for the good of mankind, a conniving businessman, Alonzo P Hawk (Keenan Wynn), can only see personal riches, and tries to steal the substance.
Charming and quite witty were my initial thoughts about the film. It's a great script, with plenty of characters engaging in sharp repartee, particularly amongst the earlier scenes. MacMurray makes Ned likable, despite the ridiculous nature of his distractions. Effectively it's a Herbie Prequel for me, with Alonzo Hawk the films villain, Wynn is another other of those actors that Disney found whose voice I can listen to forever. His father, Ed Wynn, an even more classic Disney voice has a small role as a fireman. The visual effects are really good, particularly for 1961. Some of the in-camera stuff for when the Model T Ford is flying is OK, but it's the practical stuff that's the most impressive, with the car taking off, veering at 90 degrees and driving along a wall.
But it's not without some lengthy padding scenes though. The basketball game is interminable and keeps reusing the same shots over and over again. Though charming, the film is lightweight and I can't imagine that I'm going to revisit it very often, but I will watch the sequel and remake, when I get to them.
Ned Brainard (Fred MacMurray) is physics professor at Medfield University. Desperately in love with the Dean's secretary Betsy (Nancy Olson) he has missed their wedding twice already. On the night of their third attempt, he is again experimenting in his lab, when he makes a ground-breaking discovery. He creates a new compound, Flubber, with unique characteristics that improve elasticity and, when exposed to certain stimuli, will float. Though eager for his discovery to be for the good of mankind, a conniving businessman, Alonzo P Hawk (Keenan Wynn), can only see personal riches, and tries to steal the substance.
Charming and quite witty were my initial thoughts about the film. It's a great script, with plenty of characters engaging in sharp repartee, particularly amongst the earlier scenes. MacMurray makes Ned likable, despite the ridiculous nature of his distractions. Effectively it's a Herbie Prequel for me, with Alonzo Hawk the films villain, Wynn is another other of those actors that Disney found whose voice I can listen to forever. His father, Ed Wynn, an even more classic Disney voice has a small role as a fireman. The visual effects are really good, particularly for 1961. Some of the in-camera stuff for when the Model T Ford is flying is OK, but it's the practical stuff that's the most impressive, with the car taking off, veering at 90 degrees and driving along a wall.
But it's not without some lengthy padding scenes though. The basketball game is interminable and keeps reusing the same shots over and over again. Though charming, the film is lightweight and I can't imagine that I'm going to revisit it very often, but I will watch the sequel and remake, when I get to them.