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STUDIO: Lions Gate
MSRP: $19.98
RATED: G
RUNNING TIME: 100 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES:
• nothing

The Pitch

"The Great One gets one right in the kisser behind the Iron Curtain."

The Humans

Jackie Gleason, Ted Bessel, Michael Constantine, Joan Delaney, Phil Leeds

The Nutshell

Walter Hollander (Jackie Gleason) takes his family on a European vacation and the plane they are on is hijacked and taken behind the Iron Curtain to the nation of Vulgaria. Walter is accused of being a spy and before getting arrested the Hollanders take refuge in the U.S. Embassy.

The Lowdown

Released in 1969 and written by Woody Allen, Don't Drink The Water is a fun little film that is filled with the sort of quirky type comedy that Allen fans will appreciate. I would suggest from the start that if you are a fan of Allen's you should get this movie if only to get a taste of his work before he started getting more involved in future projects that would garner critical acclaim. Although there is little to no action in Don't Drink The Water, the fast paced, quick witted dialogue makes up for it and there is no one better suited for this sort of material than Gleason.

Walter is a middle aged successful caterer from New Jersey who only went on this European vacation just to shut his wife, Marion (Estelle Parsons), up. Walter has also brought his flirty daughter, Susan (Joan Delaney), who is going to be married when she gets back home. While Walter is away he puts his brother in law in charge of the business which he is not keen on doing because his in law is a klutz who can't manage dialing the phone let alone a successful business.

With the family taking refuge in the Embassy (the ambassadors dim-witted son is left in charge while he's in Washington) they soon discover that they are not the only ones hiding out and if things could not get any worse Walter hears that his brother in law has killed several people due to food poisoning and their relatives are suing - which would mean ruin Walter financially. The reason I bring up the in law bit is not so much that it has any significance advancing the story as it has one of the funniest moments in the film and it is nothing more than Hank on a phone talking. Now the audience does not hear the other end of the conversation but, and this is where Gleason is superb, the entire conversation is played out through facial gestures of Gleason as he is getting the bad news. Facing the possibility he'll be trapped in the Embassy for years and the fear of his business ruined Walter has no choice but to come up with a plan to escape Vulgaria.

Gleason was the perfect choice to portray the complaining yet lovable schmuck who can't seem to catch a break and Estelle Parsons was the perfect actress to play his wife. Both characters are not the brightest bulbs in the room and both are harmless with their bickering back and forth making this movie a treat to watch. What I liked the most about these two is both got equal time in shouting each other down and were on the receiving end of their own slap stick comedic moments. Even though Gleason is the star of this film I have to give a lot of credit to Estelle for helping to make his moments funnier.

Don't Drink The Water is a light comedy that offers plenty of good natured laughs that young audiences today might find boring. In fact, just one glance at box office numbers over the last ten years says it all about what sort of comedy film goers prefer, and since this film just offers comedy where the gags and put-downs are directed at the person delivering it instead of at others expense, this film may not go over too well with today's crowd. All that matters though is I enjoyed it.

The Package

A big fat nothing.

7.0 out of 10