Product Details

• Actors: George C. Scott, Sue Lyon, Harry Morgan, Jack Albertson, Alice Ghostley
• Directors: Irvin Kershner
• Writers: Guy Owen, William Rose
• Producers: Lawrence Turman
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, HiFi Sound, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Fox Home Entertainment
• VHS Release Date: May 24, 1985
• Run Time: 104 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6301801725
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #286 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

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  #2 in	Video > Comedy > By Year > 1960-1969
  #16 in	Video > Classics > Classic Comedies

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great comedic discovery....., September 13, 2003

By	Chris K. Wilson "Chris Kent" (Dallas, TX United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Not too many people have heard of the 1967 film "The Flim Flam Man," and that's too bad for them. I have owned this lovely valentine of a movie for several years, and have always appreciated its comedic/dramatic allure. Everything clicks perfectly in this old fashioned film, from its authentic locations (this movie was filmed in small town Kentucky) to a wonderful musical score by Jerry Goldsmith.

I love George C. Scott's rip-snorting performance as a train-hopping con-man whose legend precedes him. He literally stumbles upon a military AWOL drifter in Michael Sarrazin, and the unlikely pair join forces to make a little cash. Camping in abandoned railroad cars, hiking cross country and stealing a car or two, this colorful pair eventually has the county police hot on their tails. Along the way, Sarrazin falls in love with the mayor's daughter, Slim Pickens loses his paycheck (great scene) and Scott samples a bit of the local moonshine.

"The Flim Flam Man" is aided by a cast of extraordinary character actors, including Harry Morgan, Jack Albertson, Strother Martin, Albert Salmi and Pickens. Morgan, as the local sheriff, is especially funny in a grand slapstick role. But director Irvin Kershner has done an excellent job in balancing comedy, drama and romance with skilled ease. It's the quieter moments in "The Flim Flam Man" that I truly admire, such as the scene when Scott reminisces about the purple-eyed girl he once loved in Missouri, or when Sarrazin discusses his dreams of the future with Sue Lyon.

This is such a charming movie, that each time I watch it I'm sad to see it end. "The Film Flam Man" transports us to a dreamy Southern land, colorful and optimistic, train whistles in the background, vibrant town squares, campfires beneath railroad bridges, bustling general stores. While this film was made in 1967, the small town ambiance of "The Flim Flam Man" harkens back to a time 30-40 years prior. It's a romantic recreation, in some ways a tender tribute to a past way of life. I always find the final image, of the abandoned bicycle resting at the railroad crossing, to be haunting, with Scott's character having disappeared to rustic parts unknown. I would love to join him on his journey.

For those anacquainted, "The Flim Flam Man" is a great discovery.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Mordecai!, October 30, 2002

By	C. A. Luster "The Rook" (Burke, VA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

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The sad truth is you will be very, very lucky to find this movie on TV, and unless you know a store that has a copy on VHS you are destined to miss one of George C. Scott's finest performances. Most people know Scott for his portrayal of Patton. His portrayal of Mordecai Jones although less honorable is far more funny. To my knowledge Scott did not play but perhaps in two other comedies, Dr. Strangelove which he did a memorable job, and "They Might Be Giants", which was more cerebral. This is the funniest and lightest. Great fun for the whole family. Good support from Michael Sarrazin, Sue Lyon, Harry Morgan, Slim Pickens, and the rest the cast. Some Keystone Cop type chases are funny along with the preachings of Morticai about the dishonesty of man to his new protege Curley. This is a beautiful film with some wonderful scenes of what a small rural town was like in the early to mid 1960s. Hopefully this will come out on DVD since in my humble opinion it is one of Scott's greatest performances. It frustrates me that so many comedies that are out on DVD lack humor and believe it funny to trash people, and this exceptional comedy is not available yet.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Author's Wife, January 1, 2003

By	Dorothy J. Owen (North Wilkesboro, NC United States) - See all my reviews

I liked this movie...The movie does differ from the book in a number of ways, but not with the basic philosophy. ..One: the movie was not set in rural Texas, but in North Carolina--although it was filmed in Kentucky as the producers thought the landscape there looked more like North Carolina than the real thing (go figure); second, there are blacks in the movie, in the general store at Ellers Bend, and there are black characters in the book, but none of them were being flim-flammed. I'd like the video even better if we received any royalties from it! I thought Scott was fine as Mordecai; Sarazin good as Curley (in spite of being a Canadian having to speak with a Southern accent); Harry Morgan was great as Sheriff Meshaw; Alice Ghostley and Jack Albertson fine as Mr. and Mrs. Packard; Sue Lyon adequate as the love interest. Minor characters (the Flim-Flamees), especially Slim Pickens, were excellent. I particularly liked the way the movie used the train motif--from the beginning, with Scott being thrown from a train, to the middle with the whistle in the background in the Slim Pickens scene, and wrapping the whole thing up at the end with the Flim-Flam Man's bicycle left behind at the railroad siding. This movie holds up well, even though it was filmed in 1967.