The Great Bank Robbery (1969) Online

This is one of those movies that makes some of us laugh out loud no matter how many times we watch it, while it leaves other people cold, and to my mind that's one kind of classic. Calling it a "comedy" may be a little misleading, because it's more of a live-action cartoon -- it's not so much funny as it is silly, but it's silly in ways that have as much to do with the dialog as with the physical comedy. To me it has much in common with the Marx Brothers classics. So it's rather beside the point to discuss how good the acting wasn't, when to some of us just watching Kim Novak and Clint Walker trying to do comedy is itself highly entertaining. And although it does illustrate its moral ("Crime doesn't pay"? "Cheaters never win"?) in a form suitable for children (and also teaches the valuable lesson that bad people can be acting as clergymen, but that doesn't undercut religion itself), I think adults generally enjoy this film more than kids do. But not all adults.

Anyone who was not in stitches after watching this movie should take another look. This was quite simply one of the best comedies ever made. Hopefully, someday the powers that be will recognize the worth of this film and release it on DVD. Fans of Clint Walker and Kim Novak owe it to themselves to have this movie as a part of their collection, because the scope of their careers and the range of their abilities can not be adequately represented without it.

Warner Bros made a great PR note that Kim Novak was to star in her first Warner Bros film The Great Bank Robbery. At first when I heard it I was dismayed because Kim Novak took second billing to Zero Mostel who true to his name the fine actor had 'Zero' box office, and also because I believe Kim replaced Melina Mecouri, not a good sign for a major star of the then magnitude of Kim Novak's stardom. Also Kim Novak had just starred in the flop The Legend of Lylah Clare at MGM and I thought Kim took the first big paycheck offered to her; I was wrong. Ms Novak is gorgeous and delightful in this zany comedy directed by Hy Averback and co starring WB rugged Clint Walker along with a cast of fine character actors. This film is a delightful surprise.

This was an excellent "escape" movie. I mean, if you wanted to escape reality for a couple of hours...this is a humorous way to escape. It truly was almost a laugh a minute. You could keep ahead of the action and guess what was coming. It did not disappoint you! It was a FUNNY movie. With all the chases going on and so many main characters to follow; it truly kept your mind occupied and kept you following the ever-changing plot lines. The inter-mingling of so many sub-plots just added to the overall effect of the movie. Just when you thought you had seen the end of the plot line, there was even more intermingling between the various groups involved in "Harmony". Does anyone know where I can buy a copy for home viewing? DC III

Two rival gangs compete with each other to rob a fortune in gold from a small town bank. It's up clever lawman Ranger Ben Quick (the excellent Clink Walker) to thwart their plans. Director Hy Averback, working from a witty script by William Peter Blatty, relates the funny story at a snappy pace, does a good job of creating and sustaining an amiable lighthearted tone, stages the shoot-outs with real aplomb, and adroitly mines the sharp sense of brash'n'n'broad humor for plenty of belly laughs (the madcap climax in particular is a complete riot). The bang-up cast of familiar faces have an absolute ball with the wacky material: Zero Mostel as shrewd bogus priest Reverend Pious Blue, Kim Novak as the lovely and sassy Sister Lyda Kebanov, Akim Tamiroff as scruffy bandito gang leader Papa, Larry Storch as the dim-witted Juan, Claude Akins as formidable outlaw Slade, Sam Jaffe as the fussy Brother Lilac Bailey, Mako as the crafty Secret Agent Fong, John Anderson as the wily and corrupt Mayor Kincaid, Elisha Cook Jr. as Slade's antsy, but loyal partner Jeb, and John Fiedler as impish explosives expert Brother Dismas Ostracorn. As a nice added plus, Mostel heartily belts out the catchy song "Rainbow Rider" and Novak looks positively ravishing throughout (Kim's eye-popping Lady Godiva bit is especially memorable). Fred J. Koenekamp's lush widescreen cinematography makes neat use of fades and dissolves. Nelson Riddle's spirited score hits the stirring spot. An enormously entertaining romp.

There are far better comic westerns out there: The Paleface Movies, Cat Ballou, Destry Rides Again, McClintock!, Support Your Local Sheriff/Gunfighter. That being said, why watch this one? It's the cast: Zero Mostel, Clint Walker, Claude Akins, Mako, Larry Storch, Sam Jaffe, and Kim Novak, who in my estimation,was such a gorgeous woman, rivaling even the likes of Marilyn Monroe. The plot seems very familiar and very unoriginal : Several groups of robbers attempt to rob an "impenetrable" Western bank in a little town called "Friendly". There is underground tunneling into the vault, dynamite, and even Kim riding "Lady Godiva style" to distract the bank guards. They had to use large daises to hide her "ass-sets"(and front-sets)! Zero plays a corrupt Christian minister with "Sister" Novak as his sidekick and companion. Typical stunts with a typical Western wood-burning locomotive, some typical shootouts where people die (but only the bad guys or extras), and there is no visible "blood on the saddle". Zero sings a totally annoying and cloying song called "Rainbow Rider" while the Mitchell Boys Choir croons. That song, sadly, is hard to get out of your head. Acceptable, good-natured performances by all, but a cliché-ridden script. Yes,you HAVE seen it all before. The ending is sweet as Kim "falls" for Clint as she bails out of the hot air balloon and Zero & Co. literally float off into the sunset with the loot. Larry Storch plays his funny stereotypical "Mexican" that sounds like Speedy Gonzales. The ending mood is is marred by a last minute gunfight where "bad guy" Akins bites the dust. Fun but very light entertainment to be sure and it was a "bomb" at the box office. As I said, rated high for it's cast, not it's content.

The storyline is simple: a crew of inept bank robbers plan to execute a major heist on the town bank in a late 1880's western town. Headed by Zero Mostel, in the guise of a traveling revival preacher, the group is populated by familiar movie faces (Elisha Cook, Peter Whitney, John Fielder, and Sam Jaffe, all movie staples). Mostel is added by his "diversionary tactic," a very voluptuous Kim Novak.

The townsfolk include such recognizable character performers as John Anderson, John Larch, and Ruth Warrick. Claude Akins is very good as the villain, appropriately dressed in stereotypical black.

Clint Walker (TV's "Cheyenne") provides the muscle, literally and figuratively, as the reluctant and dim-witted hero.

Mako, Akim Tamiroff, and Larry Storch round out the excellent cast as an undercover agent and father and son Mexican banditos, respectively.

The characters are all western stereotypes but that's the novelty of the film.

Though not great, it is still an entertaining farce and will draw smiles, if not, laugh-out-loud guffaws.

In the western town of Friendly, there's a bank so impenetrable that even as hordes of Mexicans stampede down the street to rob it, people continue chatting and throwing horseshoes because it's just that impossible to rob. This is the bank referred to in the title of this spoofy western, in which no less than four separate teams are planning to break in, most of whom want the loot that famous outlaws have stashed there (because of it's fortress-like stature and a manager who keeps the books hidden from authorities.) Mostel plays a faux-reverend whose flock include a tunnel-digger, a demolitions man, an artist and a decoy (played by a shockingly curvy and flesh-flashing Novak.) He is the top-billed star of the film, but it's really an ensemble piece not unlike "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" or any other overdone comedy in which disparate people want the same thing and wind up fighting for it in an extended chase at the end. Walker plays a Texas Ranger who wants inside the bank for it's account information. Other potential bank robbers include Tamiroff and Storch leading the Mexican contingent of bandits and Akins as an outlaw who claims to hate killing people, though he does so frequently. The film is broad and occasionally loud, but has been unfairly dismissed as worthless and unfunny. Though the humor is low and sometimes lame, there are still a number of laughs to be had. All of the performers are quite dedicated to their roles and to the parodic elements of the story. Some of them just tend to overplay it. Mostel has an outlandishly ridiculous musical number which is funny in spite of itself. It's so tacky and ludicrous it winds up being entertaining on a camp level. Novak, not exactly a strong comedienne, has a lot to offer physically. She betrays all her fine earlier work in films like "Vertigo" (!) and "The Man with the Golden Arm" taking on such a decorative and exploitive role, but does deliver on those terms. Walker is everyone's ideal authority figure. Sure and proud, he's the perfect choice for his role. He has a dazzlingly bizarre picnic scene with Novak in which he is slipped some peyote and is given a rare opportunity to cut loose and have some fun while displaying (for one of the last times?) his tremendous chest. At 42, he puts anyone else on earth to shame hanging from a tree by one arm and rolling around in the grass with his head upside down. Many other familiar actors round out the cast, notably "All My Children"'s Warrick in a weak role that she makes the very most of. Cook also does well as Akin's nervous sidekick. It's all a big, overblown mess by the end (and in a grievous error, Walker is offscreen for ages in the climax), but it's worth a look for several amusing moments and the physical attributes of Novak and Walker. The approach to drugs is dated and it doesn't always hold up completely, but there is a certain degree of cleverness in it. One note: A free bag of peanuts to anyone who can understand what Tamiroff is saying in his opening scene.

I actually enjoyed this. Saw it on TCM and was glad I stumbled upon it flicking the channels.

It's fun.

It's not as slapstick as BS as I said, but it entertains, and is a little deeper comedy wise than some folk give it credit for. It's meant to be very stereotypical... the story line, characters etc Only the song in the Church i felt was not needed... felt a little Disney-ish.

The lead actress Kim Novac is absolutely stunning, worth watching just to see her. Will def be looking in to other films she made. Reminded me a bit of a cross between Doris Day and Goldie Hawn.

This is a funny piece of work by Exorcist author Blatty. Hey, it has every character actor on the list in crazy situations which play off our ever-loving Western Movie stereotypes. It was done before the great ones like Blazing Saddles, Rustler's Rhapsody and The Villain. See it and judge for yourself. The cast is great and the situations amusing.

About five years before this film hit the movie theaters, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World proved a box office success. It was a cartoonish, madcap collection of skits bound together by its central theme--a race to find a buried treasure.

One might wonder if the success of that film inspired The Great Bank Robbery and other films. TGBR is also cartoonlike and wacky. Like Mad World, it features competing factions out to find wealth--this time to rob a bank of its gold. It does not boast the array of film and television stars that Mad World does, but there are a few: Zero Mostel, Kim Novak, Clint Walker, Claude Akins, Larry Storch, Sam Jaffe, Elisha Cook, Jr.

I am not sure what rating the film earned, but it contains some nudity that might deserve an R, which is surprising, because the film has the feel of a Disney product, like The Apple Dumpling Gang (1975). It even features two songs with words by Sammy Cahn.

In the end, this is an uneven film. But if you like the kind of mugging you can expect from Larry Storch or Zero Mostel, it has a certain charm.

Zero Mostel managed, after being blacklisted in the McCarthy period, to climb back to his place as one of the leading stage personalities of his day. UlYSSES IN NIGHTOWN, RHINOCEROS, A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM, and FIDDLER ON THE ROOF made him a Broadway immortal. The film versions of A FUNNY THING HAPPENED and THE PRODUCERS showed he could have been one of the great screen comedic actors. Then, came GREAT CATHERINE and THE GREAT BANK ROBBERY, and Zero soon was seen as good as support but not in leads. He would have other screen highlights in the future (THE HOT ROCK, THE FRONT), but the possible great film career was screwed up.

As Reverend Pious Blue, Zero was supposed to be the head of a gang masquerading as revivalists, but actually a criminal gang planning to rob the bank owned by Big John Anderson (who is also the town Mayor). The gang includes Kim Novak and John Fiedler. The trouble is that others are considering a bank robbery: Claude Atkins, the film's stereotypical (?) bad man, and a gang of Mexican bandits led by Akim Tamiroff and Larry Storch. There is also a hero, who is romancing Kim, played by Clint Walker. These various elements, which also include Atkins' sidekick Elisha Cook Jr. and Ruth Warwick, simply do not jell. There are moments that are amusing, but more that are simply stupid. The robbery itself is not as good as the destruction of the theater by Zero, Gene Wilder, and Kenneth Mars in THE PRODUCERS, and that sequence only took five minutes of film (originally - now it's been cut to three minutes). The most notable point about it was the getaway (in a balloon).

But there was one bright spot - not Zero but Claude. Atkins was always a good actor, usually as heavies (even in INHERIT THE WIND he was the fundamentalist reverend who turns against his daughter for supporting Bertram Cates). Another typical role was in THE DEFIANT ONES, when he is the man who would turn Sidney Poitier and Tony Curtis over to the Sheriff (Theodore Bickel) because of his racism. But in this film he was allowed to be unique. He is the most moralistic gunfighter I know of in film. Every time he faces one of the questionable characters in the film, he starts referring to them as "scum" or "scum of the earth". It becomes like a moralistic mantra. He is a man with a hot temper, as Cook discovers to his cost, but he can show a nice sense of remorse afterward. His over-the-top moral bad-guy is the best thing in the film. As a result watch it for that. But otherwise it was a dismal failure for everyone else involved.

"Cat Ballou" meets "The Sting," though not as good as either. Zero Mostel leads a group of con artists scheming to rob a high security bank. It's a pretty standard comic heist story, except that it's set in the old west. The main charm of the film is the cast, led by Mostel and Kim Novak, but which also includes Clint Walker, Claude Akins, Larry Storch, Sam Jaffe, Mako, and Elisha Cook Jr. The film also features a peppy score by Nelson Riddle, but overall, it's pretty inconsequential fluff that I may have enjoyed more than most because of my affection for Kim Novak.

By 1969, Zero Mostel had finally achieved some Hollywood recognition. After a fine performance in A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM and an even better one in THE PRODUCERS, I suppose Warner Brothers figured Mostel had a charmed film career. Well, after back to back disasters like THE GREAT BANK ROBBERY and GREAT CATHERINE, I don't believe Mostel ever had another starring role. Actually, Mostel comes off better than most of the cast.

t this point in her career, Kim Novak was apparently reduced to displaying lots of cleavage (as does Ruth Warrick), and she and everyone else overacts pretty horribly. This is especially surprising with as talented a comedy director as Hy Averback (I LOVE LUCY) at

the helm. Actually, the only cast members left standing with much of their dignity are Elisha Cook, Jr. and Clint Walker. Especially terrible are Larry Storch and Claude Akins. Today, the drug usage gags would probably get this movie a PG-13 or an R. As it is, they are no funnier than the rest of the movie. Oh well, the cinematography is pretty...

Did the actual William Peter Blatty write this?!? Whoever wrote this wrote an awful script that's unfunny and filled with loose ends and subplots not fully explained. It feels at times like it was written by someone who had only seen one other comedy in their life - knowing the words but not the music, if you follow me. An embarrassment for all concerned.

Zero Mostel and Kim Novak. Larry Storch. How can it go wrong? Well, it can. And did.

At this writing, there are no "memorable quotes" from this movie on the IMDb site, and for good reason: I really can't remember anything particularly funny or witty from this script.

My understanding from some sources is that this movie had a fat bankroll, and Mostel, Novak, and some of the others in this movie were doing what they were told and collecting a big paycheck. Mostel, for example, had just recovered from being blacklisted, and after a series of Broadway and movie successes, was trying to earn money to make up for lost time. Don't get me wrong, however, a poorly utilized Zero Mostel is still better than a well utilized almost anyone else. Unfortunately, he didn't have the support to really make it sizzle.

But the saddest part is the tragic misuse of Kim Novak. She is in this movie solely to decorate the screen. (Which she does, admirably. One good thing about this movie is that this may be Kim Novak at her most beautiful.) It is amazing, however, how many scenes she has where she has absolutely no lines, and just is there to look pretty. The Lady Godiva scene is a classic example of the "shut up and look pretty" mentality, and it's a pointless embarrassment. Give her some lines to say! As an actress, she was good enough for Hitchcock, so she should have been good enough for Hy Averback and this piece of drivel.

Sorry, I'm getting more and more worked up as I write this review. I'll quit now. BOTTOM LINE: I could have used a pleasant movie on a pleasant Saturday afternoon. This wasn't it.

From the very start of "The Great Bank Robbery," it seems that Warner Brothers was trying to cash in on the popularity of a couple of large group comedies. A large cast of many moderately size roles had worked with two recent comedies in Hollywood. Both of those were independent films distributed by United Artists. And, the screenplays were written by the same person – William Rose. The mold was cast in 1963 with "It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World," which was a smashing success. It was followed three years later by "The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming," also a big success.

"Mad World" had more than a dozen big name stars in significant roles and more than two dozen well-known actors in supporting roles. It had a total of some 100 roles cast. "The Russians" had six big name stars and half a dozen key supporting roles, with a total of 38 roles cast. And, significantly, both of those films had top comedy actors of the day. Jonathan Winters appeared in both films, as did Carl Reiner and Paul Ford. The cast of "Mad World" reads like a list of top comedy actors and writers of the time.

So, now the Warners try their hand at the large scale group comedy. They need a different setting and original plot, and they go with a Western. That was fine because Westerns already had shown promise with comedies and more would in the future. So, then they needed a plot with a screenplay. To be very good, it should include situations, humorous antics and lots of funny dialog. Then, it needed the cast to fill the many roles. And that's where this movie flops – on all levels but the original idea for a plot. The script is very weak in comedy. For instance, Claude Akins has lines that repeat the same thing several times -- that he will have to do something bad to people, that he doesn't like killing all these people. It wasn't even funny the first time. His lines throughout mostly are terrible, and he is not a comedy actor. Clint Walker's lines and acting are hardly better. John Anderson as Mayor Kincaid is mostly a straight character throughout. Kim Novak is fair as the flighty but not otherwise funny Sister Lyda. Only three roles in this entire film are done well, and with some humor.

Zero Mostel is very good as Rev. Pious Blue, Ruth Warrick is genuinely funny as Mrs. Applebee, and Akim Tamiroff is good, but wasted with very little screen time. The only two people in the entire cast that have comedy talent are Mostel and Tamiroff. And the cast has no more than half a dozen actors total that audiences would recognize at the time. Many stock players fill in supporting roles, but with almost no comedy.

The film was based on a novel by Frank O'Rourke. I imagine it was supposed to be a funny story, but Warner Brothers wasn't able to pull it off with this film. I couldn't find the budget for this movie anywhere, but it's box office return in 1969 was just $1.5 million.That probably didn't come even close to paying the bills. In one word, "The Great Bank Robbery" is a dud. If you want to see great comedy and top comedians and other actors of the period, watch either of the other two films – "It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World," or "The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming." Their box office takes were $60 million (more than six times its budget) for Mad World in 1963, and nearly $22 million (more than five times its budget) for The Russians Are Coming in 1966.