What's Up Doc (1972) - New Hollywood Cinema with Dan Simpson

Part of the series New Hollywood Cinema, hosted by Daniel Simpson as part of the Cinema Society of Kingston.

Peter Bogdanovich’s What’s Up, Doc? is a deliriously fast-paced screwball revival that pays homage to the golden age of Hollywood comedy while carving out a madcap identity all its own. Ryan O’Neal stars as the bespectacled, buttoned-up musicologist Howard Bannister, whose life is turned upside down when he crosses paths with a whirlwind of chaos in the form of Barbra Streisand’s free-spirited and quick-witted Judy Maxwell. Set against the backdrop of a plush San Francisco hotel, their fates—and a set of identical plaid suitcases—become entangled in an escalating web of mistaken identities, slapstick chases, and razor-sharp repartee. With a pitch-perfect supporting cast, including Madeline Kahn in her scene-stealing film debut, and a climax that careens through the streets of San Francisco in one of cinema’s most exhilarating car chases, What’s Up, Doc? is an effervescent comic delight that recaptures the spirit of Hawks and Sturges while standing as a classic in its own right.

This picture is a total smash. - Variety

In Bogdanovich's analytical twist on the genre, even joyous liberation leaves a huge mess. - The New Yorker

About the New Hollywood Cinema Series

New Hollywood Cinema is a series dedicated to highlighting artistic triumphs from American film in the late sixties and seventies. In the wake of a collapsing studio system and disintegrating Hollywood Production Code a new generation of filmmakers took the reins of Hollywood movies and transformed the shape of American cinema. Combining Hollywood traditions with modern sensibilities, the New Hollywood made the arthouse mainstream, creating a legacy of artistry in American moviemaking which has never been matched.

About the Series Host, Daniel Simpson

Daniel Simpson is a recent PhD graduate in Screen Cultures and Curatorial Studies at Queen’s University, having written his dissertation on the New Hollywood cinema of Mike Nichols and Arthur Penn. In addition to his work as an instructor, Daniel also creates original video essays on film and film culture, published on Youtube under the name “Eyebrow Cinema.”