Film Review: Foul Play (1978)

From the 1970s onwards, many filmmakers tried to become Hitchcock after Hitchcock, with Brian De Palma arguably being the most successful in those efforts. De Palma, however, lacked the humour – one of the main ingredients of Hitchcock’s formula. That was the main emphasis of the works of another aspiring Hitchcockian, Gordon Higgins, in his 1978 directorial debut, Foul Play .

The protagonist, played by Goldie Hawn, is Gloria Mundy, a recently divorced San Francisco librarian who is advised by friends to try some new romantic adventures. Soon afterwards, on the road, she picks up charming and mysterious Bob “Scotty” Scott played by Bruce Solomon , who gives her a pack of cigarettes with hidden microfilm and asks her to meet him later at a cinema theatre. What she thinks to be a date turns into a nightmare when “Scotty” arrives late only to die from an apparent stabbing, and an even worse nightmare when his body mysteriously disappears. The nightmare continues with Gloria being attacked in her apartment, resulting in another body that disappears. Gloria tries to report these frightening incidents to the police, who are naturally sceptical, including Lt. Tony Carlson played by Chevy Chase , who is nevertheless attracted to the beautiful librarian. The frighteni…

Foul Play was a smashing success at the box office and confirmed Goldie Hawn as a big star and one of Hollywood’s best comediennes. Its success owes a lot to Hawn’s great talent and charm, as well as her hyperactive style of acting, which is in great contrast to laid-back Chevy Chase in his first film starring role. The two of them nevertheless have great chemistry together, while their comical interplay is worthy of the best screwball comedies of Classic Hollywood. Critics and cinephiles were, on the other hand, more interested in Hitchcockian elements, which Higgins who also wrote the screenplay delivered through clever use of San Francisco as a location, use of a MacGuffin and concepts of “ordinary man in extraordinary situation” in this case a woman . Apart from numerous homages to Vertigo and other classics, including the ending scene that clearly references The Man Who Knew Too Mu…

RATING: 6/10 ++

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