900 in 10 years!
400 Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein / 500 The Odd Couple / 600 Stir Crazy / 700 Tommy Boy / 800 Jack and the Beanstalk
"Ty, what did you shoot today?"
"Oh, Judge, I don't keep score."
"Then how do you measure yourself with other golfers?"
"By height."
Danny Noonan (O'Keefe) is a golf caddy at the prestigious Bushwood Country Club. He needs to earn money for college and is trying to win the club's college scholarship. All of the caddies want the scholarship, but only one will receive it. To increase his chances, he starts caddying for influential club member Judge Smails (Knight). Smails is the co-founder of the club and in charge of the caddy scholarship. Smails enjoys his position within the club and his family: wife (Kibbee), irritating nephew Spaulding (Barmon Jr) and promiscuous niece Lacey (Morgan), use the club every day.
Danny also regularly caddies for Ty Webb (Chase), whose father co-founded the club. Ty is a talented golfer, but he does not play with a group or keep score. As the caddy competition heats up, Smails is distracted by the presence of new member Al Czervik (Dangerfield). Czervik is a construction tycoon. He is loud and abrasive and ignores the club etiquette. His behavior is a constant irritant to Smails. Smails' niece is also a distraction for the caddies, who vie for her attention and the scholarship, despite Smails best efforts. Danny is also interested in Lacey, even though he is in a relationship with Maggie (Holcomb), who works in the food stand at the club. Meanwhile, the course is being ruined by a gopher, and assistant groundsman Carl Spackler (Murray) becomes obsessed with destroying the creature. Can Danny get the scholarship and the girl?
Caddyshack is an iconic sports film. It was Harold Ramis' directorial debut. Ramis served as the co-writer of the film, alongside Douglas Kenney and Brian Doyle-Murray. The story is based on Doyle-Murray's (and others) experiences as a golf caddy as a teenager. The film was originally supposed to focus on the caddies and their experiences with the eccentric Bushwood members. However, Ramis encouraged improvisation and the roles of the caddies shrank as the roles of Ty, Czervik, and Carl increased (they were originally planned as cameos).
The film is popular in the golf community and with professional golfers. It also appears regularly on top movie lists for sports and comedy films. It appeared on 3 of the American Film Institute's (AFI) 100 Years Lists: 100 Years...100 Laughs, 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes, and 10 Top 10 in the Sports Category. Carl's Cinderella story scene and the "Be the Ball" sequence are often quoted. The Cinderella story was improvised by Bill Murray.
The cast is great. This was stand-up comedian Rodney Dangerfield's first big film. His Al Czervik is obnoxious but entertaining. Ted Knight was an established actor, best known for his role on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. His Judge Smails is pompous and ridiculous, but he keeps the character from being truly evil. He and Dangerfield are the perfect foils for each other. Saturday Night Live vet Chevy Chase's Ty is laid-back with a sly sarcasm that is often missed by the other characters. Bill Murray was still on SNL while filming this, and his Carl is perfectly unhinged and off-kilter, especially concerning his obsession with the gopher. Doyle-Murray has a small role, as the caddy's boss Lou.
All of the adult characters are eccentric and interesting and keep the zany film moving. The teenage caddys, on the other hand, slow down the story. Michael O'Keefe is mostly the straight-man to the comedians. He is fine as the teen lead, but nothing extraordinary here. Scott Colomby is much more interesting as Tony, but he doesn't have much screen time. Cindy Morgan is eye-candy and Sarah Holcomb is annoying. Holcomb isn't a bad actress, but her character is annoying and has an unexplained Irish accent. The other caddys and staff members don't have defined personalities, but a few get some good lines throughout the film.
It is a zany whirlwind of a movie, and definitely lives up to the hype.
Caddyshack (1980) 98 minutes
Rating: R for sexual content, nudity, some language and drug use
Director: Harold Ramis
Starring: Chevy Chase as Ty Webb
Rodney Dangerfield as Al Czervik
Ted Knight as Judge Elihu Smails
Michael O'Keefe as Danny Noonan
Bill Murray as Carl Spackler
Sarah Holcomb as Maggie O'Hooligan
Scott Colomby as Tony D'Annunzio
Cindy Morgan as Lacey Underall
Dan Resin as Dr. Beeper
Henry Wilcoxon as Bishop Fred Pickering
Albert Salmi as Mr. Noonan
Elaine Aiken as Mrs. Noonan
John F. Barmon Jr. as Spaulding Smails
Lois Kibbee as Mrs. Smails
Brian Doyle-Murray as Lou Loomis
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