Flicks in Pieces is a weekly feature devoted not to entire movies, but to the individual parts of them that we love and loathe.
Comedy is, in large part, based on surprise. The joke you laughed at the first time is bound to lose impact the fourth and fifth time you hear it. And that’s why it may be harder for film comedy to hold up over the years.
But what are those exceptions – lines of dialogue you’ve heard a zillion times, but still have the ability to crack you up? “This goes to eleven”? Pretty much anything by the Marx Brothers? Share the cinematic punch lines that continue to amuse you.
Nobody else in the world probably remembers this punch line, but it will always be one of my favorite movie moments. In "The Color of Money," Fast Eddie Felson has shown his young protege all there is to know about hustling pool, and it's time for the two to part ways so that the student can prove his skills on his own. When the old man senses resistance from the young man, he reminds him that the path to the big pool tournament in Atlantic City is quite obvious. Then he delivers this zinger: "What the hell else do you need -- an Indian guide?" Gets me every time.
SETUP: In the 1991 movie "The Chase", Charlie Sheen's character forces Kristy Swanson's character into her car at gunpoint. The rest of the movie is about them in the car, getting to know one another while being pursued by law enforcement (including a cop played by Henry Rollins).
At one point in the movie, the billionaire father of Swanson's character calls the two in the car and tries to cut a deal with Sheen's character to get his daughter back safely. When Sheen's character explains he isn't interested in money, the father says "Look, I didn't just fall off the turnip truck!" and Sheen's character quips, "Yeah, must have been a yam wagon..." and then turns to Swanson's character and remarks casually "Your pop's got a good sense of humor...".
Obviously, it's a lot funnier on the screen. On that note, "The Chase" is the one movie that I'm surprised doesn't have a large cult following. It's not the best movie ever made, but it's very, very entertaining.