The late Colin Higgins knew how to make a funny thriller. He had successfully done this two years earlier with the screenplay for "Silver Streak" and he did it again here with "Foul Play" his directorial debut.
The film stars Goldie Hawn as a shy librarian who unwittingly gets caught up in an assassination plot. Chevy Chase plays the cop assigned to the case who falls in love with her. A nice supporting cast is headed by Burgess Meredith as Hawn's karate expert landlord. His fight with the villainous Rachel Roberts is a highlight. Brian Dennehy (in a very early role) plays Chase's partner. Finally one must mention Dudley Moore who is a scene stealer in a small role that, no doubt, helped his getting cast in "10." The first act of the film sets up the thriller aspect of the story as Hawn repeatedly gets into trouble and runs for her life. There are a couple of legitimate scares early on. Higgins wisely (after a meet cute pre-title scene) keeps Chase off screen for almost 30 minutes so we can get into the main story and care about Hawn. When Chase re-enters the film he is surprisingly laid back in the role and comes off fairly believable. Again credit must go to Higgins for keeping Chase at bay. Had he run amok like his SNL persona it would have killed the movie. Save for one pratfall off a pier Chase pretty much keeps in character.
The other key element to the success of the film is that Hawn and Chase have terrific chemistry together. It's apparent in their first scene together. A sweet scene in front of a fireplace where the two discuss their thoughts on the other when they first meet is one of the best scenes in the film. It's clear to see why they would team up again two years later in the less successful "Seems Like Old Times." I would love to see some writer come up with a good story for the two of them to do now.
Of course in comedy/suspense films you have to have your share of humor to offset the suspense and thrills. Higgins does a good balancing act between the two so as to not make it so jarring it feels like two movies altogether. As with his other films similar to this (Silver Streak and Nine to Five) we have an enjoyable film and nothing more. We won't look back on it as a classic but we can always tune into it for two hours of pure entertainment.
The film stars Goldie Hawn as a shy librarian who unwittingly gets caught up in an assassination plot. Chevy Chase plays the cop assigned to the case who falls in love with her. A nice supporting cast is headed by Burgess Meredith as Hawn's karate expert landlord. His fight with the villainous Rachel Roberts is a highlight. Brian Dennehy (in a very early role) plays Chase's partner. Finally one must mention Dudley Moore who is a scene stealer in a small role that, no doubt, helped his getting cast in "10." The first act of the film sets up the thriller aspect of the story as Hawn repeatedly gets into trouble and runs for her life. There are a couple of legitimate scares early on. Higgins wisely (after a meet cute pre-title scene) keeps Chase off screen for almost 30 minutes so we can get into the main story and care about Hawn. When Chase re-enters the film he is surprisingly laid back in the role and comes off fairly believable. Again credit must go to Higgins for keeping Chase at bay. Had he run amok like his SNL persona it would have killed the movie. Save for one pratfall off a pier Chase pretty much keeps in character.
The other key element to the success of the film is that Hawn and Chase have terrific chemistry together. It's apparent in their first scene together. A sweet scene in front of a fireplace where the two discuss their thoughts on the other when they first meet is one of the best scenes in the film. It's clear to see why they would team up again two years later in the less successful "Seems Like Old Times." I would love to see some writer come up with a good story for the two of them to do now.
Of course in comedy/suspense films you have to have your share of humor to offset the suspense and thrills. Higgins does a good balancing act between the two so as to not make it so jarring it feels like two movies altogether. As with his other films similar to this (Silver Streak and Nine to Five) we have an enjoyable film and nothing more. We won't look back on it as a classic but we can always tune into it for two hours of pure entertainment.