Condorman (1981)

User Rating:

5.1/10   

Director:

Charles Jarrott

Writers:

Mickey Rose (writer)
Robert Sheckley (novel)

Release Date:

7 August 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Family

Tagline:

He Spies! He Flies! He Death-Defies!

Plot:

Cartoonist Woody becomes the superhero he draws. Using his gadgets he helps a Soviet spy defect to the West.

Plot Keywords:

Spy | Superhero | Comic Book | CIA | Goofy Holler

Cast

Michael Crawford	...	Woody Wilkins
Oliver Reed	...	Krokov
Barbara Carrera	...	Natalia
James Hampton	...	Harry Oslo
Jean-Pierre Kalfon	...	Morovich
Dana Elcar	...	Russ Devlin
Vernon Dobtcheff	...	Russian Agent
Robert Arden	...	CIA Chief
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gérard Buhr
David Pontremoli

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | Australia:G | UK:U | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Monte Carlo, Monaco

Company:

Walt Disney Productions

Trivia:

GOOFY HOLLER: In the opening titles, when the animated version falls off the building.

Quotes:

Woody Wilkins: Who can save Princess Juliet - held captive by the evil Count Lorca? Who can save the city? Who?
[pauses to put on goggles; in a deeper voice]
Woody Wilkins: Who... this is a job - for CONDORMAN!

Movie Connections:

References Three Days of the Condor (1975)

CONDORMAN (Charles Jarrott, 1981) **1/2

Being a superhero flick made by Walt Disney Productions, one couldn’t expect the violent thrills associated with the genre – but, then, neither was it the kiddie-oriented fare I was dreading. In fact, it’s more espionage stuff (the narrative occurs in a variety of European locations) in clear imitation of the James Bond extravaganzas, complete with multi-purpose car, than outright fantasy (the hero is a mild-mannered cartoonist and the “Condorman” outfit emerges to be decidedly quaint, getting very little mileage into the bargain!).

Still, it’s engaging and pleasant-looking for what it is – though the simplistic “Condorman” theme wouldn’t rank among famed composer Henry Mancini’s most memorable pieces. The cast enters gleefully into the absurd spirit of the thing: Michael Crawford as the unlikely hero; Barbara Carrera as a luscious defecting Russian agent (she would eventually feature in the “Odd Bond Out” of that series i.e. NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN [1983]); Oliver Reed, a bit glum but at least non-hammy as the chief villain; James Hampton as Crawford’s C.I.A. agent pal; Jean-Pierre Kalfon as Reed’s top henchman, a one-eyed menace; and Dana Elcar as the C.I.A. operative who unwittingly puts “Condorman” on the map.

Typically, we get a number of disguises (at one point, both Crawford and Hampton don the garbs of Arab sheiks!), chases (on land and sea) and stunts (directed by the ubiquitous Remy Julienne) – not to mention romance (Crawford, of course, falls for Carrera and models his fictional “Laser Lady” character on her!). Incidentally, while we’re obviously not treated to an action prologue here like in the Bond films, we’re given an animated sequence instead – which is a nice way of acknowledging the film’s comic-strip aspect. Finally, I wouldn’t say that CONDORMAN is hilarious…but it does contain one good in-joke – a crack by Hampton that “not everyone in the C.I.A. is Robert Redford”, clearly a reference (and a very apt one given the title!) to that star’s own espionage venture THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR (1975).