Customer Reviews

The Longshot/They Went That-A-Way & That-A-Way

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Those who remember watching The Carol Burnett Show know that Tim Conway is perhaps the funniest actor to ever live. The two films on this double feature DVD, Longshot and They Went That-A-Way & That-A-Way, are not legendary classic comedies, but they each contain a number of very funny scenes and offer an overall kooky good time. Tim Conway not only stars in both films, he wrote both of them. Longshot (1985) is particularly noteworthy because it features a reunion of the funniest comic duo of all time, Conway and Harvey Korman. They team up with Jack Weston and Ted Wass to form a team of all-time losers and underdogs. They continually berate themselves for passing up opportunities in the past, missing out on some big payoffs just because they are afraid to take risks. When a stable worker from the tracks tells them he can guarantee the victory of a longshot horse in a certain race, they decide, for once, to go for it all the way. Their partner in the stables has a special little pep pill that will make the horse run like the wind, and he agrees to slip the pill to the horse if the guys will place a bet for him along with themselves. Logic and common sense says the horse can't possibly win, but the guys not only place a huge bet on the horse, they borrow all of the money from a local mobster. As the movie progresses, there is a lot of pretty funny physical comedy, Jonathon Winters shows up to add his own twist of fun to the proceedings, and the ending plays out much better than I expected.

They Went That-A-Way & That-A-Way is actually the older of these two films, dating back to 1978. In this one, Tim Conway teams up with Chuck McCann as incompetent police officers who are sent to jail undercover to try to find out where a notorious bank robber stashed the money from his heist. No one at the prison knows they are cops, and no one would believe it, anyway, as these guys are just pathetically slow about a lot of things. They find the money a few days before they are set to be released, but to their great dismay the only person besides themselves who knows they aren't really criminals suddenly dies. Faced with the dire circumstances of a ten-year stay in prison, the duo decides to break out of jail and take the recovered money to the governor. There are some really funny scenes in this movie, including a truly classic scene wherein Tim Conway finds himself ordered to pull the warden's bad tooth and has just a little bit of trouble with the Novocain - this scenario reminded me a lot of some of Conway's classic performances on The Carol Burnett Show. Another memorable scene features Conway impersonating a Japanese translator at the governor's party. Interestingly, this movie features two characters from The Dukes of Hazzard - Enos (Sonny Shroyer) and Ben Jones (Cooter). This ending of this movie did leave me feeling a tiny bit cheated, but I can't complain about all the laughs I had along the way.

If you are a fan of Tim Conway, this double feature DVD is certainly worth picking up at its affordable price; you get about three hours and fifteen minutes of comedy, and you'll certainly enjoy a number of really funny scenes even if the movies as a whole don't live up to your expectations. For me, the dentistry scene in They Went That-A-Way is worth the price of the DVD all by itself.

The Longshot is a relatively unknown comedy that deserves more attention. It's a story of 4 blue collar type nobodies just shuffling their way through life. You have to pull for them throughout the movie as they are genuinely grounded in their lifestyles, yet reach out for a once in a lifetime opportunity that turns out to be a scam. Which makes the movie only more realistic. Any fan of gambling will appreciate the moments at the track. Each character brings something different to the group, yet no one dominates the action even though Tim Conway appears to lead them. It's a lighthearted comedy that has funny moments sprinkled throughout with a general depressing yet funny atmosphere...Watch for Tim Conway visiting Ms. Dixons apartment, it's one of the funnier sequences in the movie.

This is classic Tim Conway humor. If you like good old fashion clean situational humor then this is a must have. Its hard to find humor that doesn't rely purely on sexual inuendos to force a laugh. But here is the diamond in the rough. Enjoy!

I happen to be a Tim Conway fan, and I love horseracing, so I love this movie. The plotline is you have 4 guys who are losers who like to go to the track and gamble. While at the track, they get a tip from a track worker about his attempt to fix a race using a 40 to 1 longshot named French Majesty and giving it something that will make it run fast. The catch is that he needs money to do it, so our four simpletons go ask a loan shark for the money. They get the money, but find out the mob has their own horse, Papa Chippi, racing in the same race. After finding out the race isn't fixed, Tim takes things into his own hands, running on the track trying to encourage their glue factory reject to win. Does French Majesty come back to beat Papa Chippi? Will the mob break Tim Conway's kneecaps? Will Stump fix the hose on his fishtank? All of these questions will be answered in 90 minutes.

Two Very Funny Tim Conway Movies!!!

This double feature set is well worth the value! So what that films like these are not presented in widescreen.

The Longshot is the better of the two movies, though I enjoyed them both. I laughed like mad at The Longshot it was perfectly cast and written by Conway. It was a very very funny film.

They Went That-A-Way was good also, it was basically a modern day Laurel and Hardy film, made in 1978.

Check out Tim Conway in these great DVDs also, McHale's Navy - Season One and McHale's Navy: Season Two.

These two movies are not Conway's best, but they are still pretty good. The only problem, and the reason for the 1 star rating, is that the DVD presents these films with the sides cut off. In other words, Pan and scan. Had I know that, I would not have bought this.

Hey, don't miss out on this great dvd. I like the longshot and I have not seen the other Tim Conway movie but I'm guessing it will be great. The longshot is one of my favorite movies and is absolutely funny! Even if you haven't seen this movie or any Tim Conway movies, you will enjoy this great dvd!

I enjoy some older movies. Tim Conway with his corny bumbling manner makes for light laugh out loud movie experience. If you enjoy that movie style you might like these.

I have looked for this movie in the past and never could find it available. The Longshot is pretty funny and who doesnt like these characters! Fun movie for a horse race fan.

I used to watch this movie when i was young, i have not been able to find it anywhere. I love this movie, it is the best ever! If you want a good laugh, this is it!!