To be honest, I do not remember how I came across this 1981 Disney action comedy. It is said that Condorman is an adaptation of a book called The Game of X. Well, I have never heard of it but one thing is for sure, Condorman is a spy movie, or rather a James Bond parody. To go on, I even can’t tell you if I liked it or not but in the end it didn’t bore me at all and that’s something most of the James Bond movies can’t say of themselves.
The movie is all about Woodrow Wilkins a comic book writer and illustrator. His newest invention is Condorman, a secret agent with the awkwardness and dopiness of Inspector Clouseau but the coolness and gadget-amorousness of 007. Woodrow’s goal is to create real-life adventures for Condorman and before he can say knife it is him who, during a civilian paper swap in Istanbul, personally turns into the hero . During the rest of the movie Woodrow tries to rescue the ex-KGB special agent Natalia from her own boss Krokov and his army of pseudo assassins. Supported with a Condormobile, a Condorboat, a Condorsuit, Condorman, Harry (a friend from the CIA) and Natalia deliver a relentless pursuit with the villans through Yugoslavia, Italy, Switzerland and finally Monte Carlo.
Condorman with Michael Crawford and Barbara Carrera is quite a costly trash movie. Furthermore it is not the James Bond parody itself and the rather corny and flat jokes which make this movie still watchable. Personally I think it is the unintentional gags, the charming movie mistakes and the Disney-naivety. Even though I hold that Charles Jarrott had absolutely no idea of how to handle the budget of the movie (less explosions, less locations, more professionalism) I go with John Corry of The New York Times who wrote in his review: “(…)There are worse things to watch while you eat popcorn.”
Last but not least, is it just me who thinks that the Condorman logo has some similarities with the German WWII Reichsadler or do you know what I mean?!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lo5LZmx9Vrg]
