''Taking Off'' is a 1971 American

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending ( black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the o ...

, directed by

Miloš Forman Jan Tomáš "Miloš" Forman (; ; 18 February 1932 – 13 April 2018) was a Czech and American film director, screenwriter, actor, and professor who rose to fame in his native Czechoslovakia before emigrating to the United States in 1968. Forman ...

. It tells a story of an average couple in the suburbs of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

who, when their teenage daughter runs away from home, connect with other parents of vanished children and learn something of youth culture.

Plot

Larry Tyne and his wife Lynn return home one evening to find that their teenage daughter Jeannie is not there. (Viewers know she is attending an audition, clips from which, with future star performers like

Carly Simon Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1943) is an American singer-songwriter, memoirist, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Top 40 U.S. hits include " Anticipation" (No. 13), " The Right Th ...

and

Kathy Bates Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an American actor and director. Known for her roles in comedic and dramatic films and television programs, she has received various accolades throughout her career spanning over five decades, includ ...

, recur throughout the film). The Tynes ring the Divitos, with whose daughter Jeannie is supposed to be, but the Divitos' daughter claims she doesn't know where Jeannie is. Enlisting their friends Tony and Margot, the two men search the neighbourhood bars while the women stay by the phone and gossip about sex. When the men return home drunk, Jeannie reappears, only to vanish again. Next day, Larry goes into the city to search for her. In the street he meets Ann Lockston, a parent who's also searching for a missing daughter, and Ann tells Larry about a self-help group for parents in their predicament. The police from upstate call the Tynes to say their daughter's been arrested 300 miles away, for stealing. The two rush to see her, only to find that it is the Divitos' girl in custody, having given the police a false name. On the trip back home, they stop off at a hotel, where

Ike & Tina Turner Ike & Tina Turner were an American musical duo consisting of husband and wife Ike Turner and Tina Turner. From 1960 to 1976, they performed live as the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, supported by Ike Turner's band the Kings of Rhythm and backing voca ...

are performing. A drunk Lynn is followed back to their room by an amorous stranger, unaware that Larry is already asleep in the bed. After the stranger disappears, Lynn tries out some of the tips Margot had confided to her earlier. Later, back in the city, Larry and Lynn attend a formal dinner for the self-help group. Afterwards, marijuana joints are handed round, and a young man named Schiavelli instructs the parents on how to smoke them. Happily high, Larry and Lynn take Ann and her husband Ben back to their home for more drinks and a game of strip poker. As the group gets more inebriated, a naked Larry jumps on top of the table to sing " Libiamo ne' lieti calici". At this point, Jeannie reappears and the guests hastily leave. When Jeannie admits to having been with a boy, Larry suggests she brings him home for dinner soon. When he appears, he proves to be an intelligent and wealthy musician. However, he declines to play for them, upon which Larry entertains the four with " Stranger in Paradise".

Cast

Lynn Carlin Mary Lynn Carlin (née Reynolds) is an American former actress. She is best known for her debut role in the film ''Faces'' (1968), for which she was nominated for an Academy Award. Life and career She was born in Los Angeles, the daughter of so ...

as Lynn Tyne *

Buck Henry Buck Henry (born Henry Zuckerman; December 9, 1930 – January 8, 2020) was an American actor, screenwriter, and director. Henry's contributions to film included his work as a co-writer for Mike Nichols's ''The Graduate'' (1967) for which he r ...

as Larry Tyne * Georgia Engel as Margot * Tony Harvey as Tony *

Audra Lindley Audra Marie Lindley (September 24, 1918 – October 16, 1997) was an American actress, most famous for her role as landlady Helen Roper on the sitcom ''Three's Company'' and its spin-off ''The Ropers''. Life and career Audra Lindley was born ...

as Ann Lockston * Paul Benedict as Ben Lockston *

Vincent Schiavelli Vincent Andrew Schiavelli (; November 11, 1948 – December 26, 2005) was an American character actor noted for his work on stage, screen, and television. Described as an "instantly recognizable sad-faced actor", he was diagnosed with Marfan sy ...

as Schiavelli * David Gittler as Jamie *

Ike Turner Izear Luster "Ike" Turner Jr. (November 5, 1931 – December 12, 2007) was an American musician, bandleader, songwriter, record producer, and talent scout. An early pioneer of 1950s rock and roll, he is best known for his work in the 1960s and ...

as Himself *

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939) is an American-born Swiss retired singer and actress. Widely referred to as the " Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", she rose to prominence as the lead singer of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue before ...

as Herself * Linnea Heacock as Jeannie Tyne * Corinna Cristobal as Corinna DiVito *

Rae Allen Rae may refer to: People * Rae (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Rae (surname), including a list of people with the surname Nicknames for * Rachel (given name) * Rachelle *Raquel *Raven (given name) * Reema * Reena ...

as Mrs. DiVito * Frank Berle as Committee Man *

Philip Bruns Philip Bruns (May 2, 1931 – February 8, 2012) was an American television and movie actor and writer. He portrayed George Shumway, the father of Mary Hartman on the 1970s comedic series '' Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman,'' and Morty Seinfeld, the f ...

as Policeman (as Phillip Bruns) * Gail Busman as Nancy Lockston *

Allen Garfield Allen Garfield (born Allen Goorwitz; November 22, 1939 – April 7, 2020) was an American film and television actor. Early life Garfield was born in Newark, New Jersey, to a Jewish family, the son of Alice (née Lavroff) and Philip Goorwitz. H ...

as Norman *

as Audition Singer *

as Audition Singer (as Bobo Bates) * Shellen Lubin as Audition Singer * Shelley Ackerman as Audition Singer * Lois Dengrove as Audition Singer * Bonnie Marcus as Audition Singer * Jessica Harper as Audition Singer

Awards

The film won the

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

at the 1971 Cannes Film Festival.

Reception

Writing in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'',

Vincent Canby Vincent Canby (July 27, 1924 – October 15, 2000) was an American film and theatre critic who served as the chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1969 until the early 1990s, then its chief theatre critic from 1994 until his death in ...

declared that "''Taking Off'' is not a major movie experience, but it is — a good deal of the time — a charming one." ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' called it "a very compassionate, very amusing contemporary comedy." However, John Simon wrote- 'I declare ''Taking Off'' an antihuman film: mean, arrogant, and thoroughly destructive'. It is noteworthy that John Simon's obituary in The New York Times called him a "caustic" critic who "saw little that he liked", and The Washington Post reported that a published collection of 245 film reviews he wrote contained only 15 positive ones.

Home media

''Taking Off'' was released to Blu-ray Disc, by British company Park Circus, on 7 November 2011 as a Region-2 widescreen Blu-ray Disc and by Gaumont (with Carlotta Films as home video distributor) on March 23, 2011 as a Region-0 widescreen Blu-ray Disc.

References

External links

* * * {{Cannes Film Festival Grand Prix 1970s musical comedy-drama films 1971 comedy-drama films 1971 films American musical comedy-drama films American films about cannabis Films about runaways Films directed by Miloš Forman Films set in New York City Films with screenplays by Jean-Claude Carrière Films with screenplays by Miloš Forman Universal Pictures films Cannes Grand Prix winners 1970s English-language films 1970s American films